24 replies to this topic

[mobile]

I introduced myself a few weeks ago, before I had my tortoise, but as of last night I am now a proud owner of a Hermann tortoise...

Meet Hermie...

[Freddy]

Hi Mobile,
Congratulations on your new tortoise 'Hermie'. He looks great. I wish you many happy years with him. Best of luck.
Kind Regards
Freddy

[mildredsmam]

hi mobile,

congratulation's hermie's lovely

[mobile]

I hope you have plans to post loads of pictures, Mobile, so we can see what he/she gets up to x x hugs x

I certainly will. At the moment she is a little shy and spends much of her time burrowed down under and up-turned plant pot. She not too keen on eating either and I'm hoping that this is just due to her settling into her new home?

[mobile]

Hermie's indoor home:

[mildredsmam]

hi mobile,

hermie's indoor home looks great.

you've done a great job,

just alittle friendly advice, I would move the stone from under the heat lamp it can get too hot, its best just to have soil in the basking area.

also is that a uv strip the other end from the heat if it is then it would be better the other end with your heat bulb.

[mobile]

Hi Karen,

Thanks for the advise, much appreciated. May I ask why you advised on moving the UV fluorescent lamp to the other end? As it's a fluorescent, with external ballast, it doesn't put out much heat.

[Kelly]

It's really important that your UVB lighting and heat lamp are at the same end of the table for proper bone and shell development.

 

When tortoises are exposed to UVB light a chemical reaction occurs in their bodies which coverts this to vitamin D3. Their bodies can only do this process correctly if they are exposed to the correct basking temperature at the same time as being exposed to this form of light. This in turn then triggers their calcium metabolism for proper bone growth.

 

Think of them in the wild..... the sun provides both the heat and the UVB light at the same time.

[mobile]

Thanks for the info. The basking lamp at the lower end of the table is a Mega-Ray, so provides heat and UV. The flourescent the other end if more for illumination purposes, though it is a UV type. It doesn't really need to be a UV type, but I had a unrequired spare. Given this, is there any issues with keeping it the other end of the table just for illumination?

[Kelly]

No.... that should be fine then.

 

I do the same thing in my 4 ft table, as it is too dark up that end otherwise.

[mobile]

The basking stone is now out and she was basking under the lamp earlier. Hopefully I have the setup good now, but please let me know if anyone things I should change anything else as I'm still learning.

[jay]

awww,hermie look's so cute!your tabletop home looks really good.

Jayne

[mobile]

We all like a nice soak now and again...

[mildredsmam]

how cute, lovely photo.

[mobile]

She's still a little shy, but starting to 'come out of her shell' a little now and explore the table.

[Graham]

What a lovely picture, and such a cute little tort!

Thanks for sharing it with us. 

[mobile]

Stella, I'm not surprise that the kids love you taking in the tortoise. My kids are fascinated with ours, though currently she only seems to come out for an hour then buries herself inside her terracotta pot. Being my first tortoise, her behaviour is a little worrying, though she is eating, drinking and starting to explore a little more. I presume that they are typically more active?