View Full Version : Need red foot Info
ReptiZone
01-28-04, 11:08 AM
I will be on the look out for Baby or young red foot tortoise to add to my collection I want to do educational show in a few years and I want to have at least an animal of every catagorie if Reptiles.
But B4 Hand I would like to know where is the best place to look for a healthy one *That info can be PM'd to me*
I would also like to know what are there care requierments.
- proper food
- proper temps and humidity (if need be)
- proper substrate
- are hides requierd
the whole 9 yards if you think I don't know it chances are I don't so plz just give any info you may think is help full.
Ps I do the internet care sheet thing but I dont trust any of it unles it is from a top breeder but I don't even know who they are so I trust the ppl here more then the ppl out there LOL if that makes sence.
The ReptiZone
red bootz
01-28-04, 10:46 PM
So long as their environmental needs are met Geochelone Carbonaria tend to be a pretty hassle free species, or so it has been my experience. That being said, You need to meet their environmental requirements first.
A warm enclosure with an area where they can get their body temps up into the mid eighties should suffice. They'll benefit from a humid substrate they can dig into especially when they're young. I use cypress mulch for the adults and a mixture of cypress mulch/soil for the youngsters. An area for soaking is also necessary for this species.
Feeding is tricky. They are not like a snake where you can just thaw out a mouse, throw it in the enclosure, and have all of their dietary requirements met. They are, on the whole, vegetarians so you'll probably have to take a quick course in Nutrition. You'll have to learn about calcium : phosphorous ratio's, Goitrogens, Oxalic acid...etc. etc...so that your tortoise gets all the nutrition it requires to grow properly. Or else you'll be taking a quick course in MBD, Pyramiding, and dead tortoise.
One last thing, your red foot is not like your BCI or Burm. Its not going to be content curled up in a corner of a small enclosure. These guys get pretty big...on average 35-40cm SCL. And they'll walk around. And they'll poop in the mulch. Everyday. well...almost everyday...The point being they will eventually need a very large enclosure to be comfortable.
Anywayz, not everything on the net is BS. There's actually quite a bit of good info out there. You just have to weed out the crap.
Check out the World Chelonian Trust site. They have a nice little care sheet for G. Carbonaria.
Good Luck. And make sure the kids disinfect their hands after touching Mr. Freindly tortoise.
ReptiZone
01-29-04, 08:10 PM
Thanks for the info are they close to the Geochelone Sulcata I worked with a few of thows and a leopard tortises if the similar in care I will be fine. But I need reserch the nutrishional value of Veggies and oter food that could pe incorperated in there diet.
Thanx for the reply.
The ReptiZone
Marc Doiron
red bootz
01-29-04, 11:21 PM
They are vastly different from Sulcata's and Paradilis. Carbonaria NEED humidity. They are from the edges of tropical rainforests where as the other two species hail from much drier climates. If you kept sulcata and leopards in the same type of set up as red foots you'd have URI in no time.
There diets are also different. Red foots tend to have less roughage and more fruits and protein...this is COMPARATIVELY speaking of course.
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