Russian tortoise care sheet: Submitted by forum member Fish_geek

RUSSIAN TORTOISE – A Very Long and Detailed Care Sheet!
(Agrionemys horsfieldii)

Classification: Reptiles (Turtles and Tortoises)

AKA: Steppe Tortoise, Afghanistan Tortoise, Four-toed Tortoise, Russian Box Turtle

Origin: Afghanistan, Northern Pakistan, Northern and Eastern Iran, North Western China and the Soviet territory Kazakhstan. Most found in the pet trade are from Uzbekistan.

Adult Size: 8-10 inches shell length (female), 6-8 inches shell length (male)

Life Span: not known for sure, but a healthy one should out-live its owner

Set-up:
These guys are very adaptable and have been known to put up with all kinds of conditions, so naturally there is a lot of conflicting information available out there. These care instructions are based on their natural habitat, as well as advice from people who have kept and bred them successfully for years.

Tortoises don’t usually do well in aquariums. They don’t understand the glass walls and will continue to stress themselves trying to walk through the walls. Glass aquariums also don’t provide for much ventilation and can make it difficult to maintain the proper temperatures and conditions. You’re better off with a mesh reptarium (100 gallons or larger) or you can use a large Rubbermaid tub or something similar. These are pretty affordable and easy to replace, and will make your tortoise much happier. Give your tortoise as much exercise room as possible and go with at least a 50 gallon container. Get one the tortoise can’t see through, or if you choose a clear or opaque one or must use an aquarium, wrap something around the outside of it, such as an aquarium background or blanket so your tortoise can’t see through it.
 
Of course you can build your own enclosure if you prefer. This can be fun and allows for much creativity. A very interesting building plan can be found here: http://russiantortoise.org/tortoise_table.htm
Building an outdoor pen for the warmer months is also a fun idea. Just remember they’re great diggers and should be supervised when outside. The natural sunlight is great for your tortoise’s health, and you can even plant edible leaves and flowers for your pet to enjoy. Be careful that the yard or plants have not been treated with chemicals and make sure there are no plants that may be poisonous within your tortoise’s reach!

Provide a water dish deep enough for the Tortoise to submerge itself a little in the water. They may drink from the dish as well as soak up water through their vents. It’s important to provide this because they can become dehydrated easily and the moisture they get from their food is often not enough. Clean out the water dish daily and use dechlorinated water. Make sure it’s not hard for your Tortoise to get in and out of the dish; there are some nice water dishes on the market now that were made with these animals in mind. They’re usually readily available in pet stores.

UV Lighting:
Russian Tortoises are diurnal animals, which means they are naturally active during the day. As with any diurnal reptile, they require the UV light they would naturally get from the sun and will become very ill without it. All lights should be left on about 12-14 hours a day and turned off at night. It is a good idea to put the lights on a timer so they are turned on and off at consistent times. There are two effective UV lighting options available (among lots of ineffective ones).

Most commonly used are the fluorescent tube UVB bulbs found at pet stores. These bulbs will fit into standard strip light fixtures (yes even the ones at hardware stores; you don’t have to pay a fortune at a pet store for the fixture). Try to place the UV light so that the tortoise can get within 6 inches or less of the bulb for optimal exposure. You can add a little hill of rocks to climb up or find a way to install the light lower so that this distance can be achieved. Change the bulb every 6 months even if it hasn’t burned out yet. The bulbs lose their effectiveness after 6 months and should be replaced this often for best tortoise health. The best bulbs are the Reptisun 5.0 and 10.0, or the Reptiglo 8.0. Avoid ESU and other not-so-good brands; they just don’t work as well. The fluorescent UVB bulbs don’t provide much heat, so you’ll need to have a basking lamp or ceramic heat emitter as well. There will be more detail about this in the “temperature” section.

The other UV lighting option is the Mercury Vapor Bulb. A few of the top reptile companies are making these now. They’re not always available in pet stores, not for a good price anyway, but they’re very affordable on sites like www.lllreptile.com These bulbs put out the beneficial UV light as well as heat, the only all-in-one reptile lamp that actually REALLY does what it claims to do. And unlike the fluorescent tube UVB bulbs, they can last up to 2 years without being replaced. Some last longer than others; a little research will help you decide on the best one. MVBs have also been known to improve the reptile’s appearance and appetite, and do wonders for their health. The price of one of these is about the same as the heat lamp and UVB light combined, so it may not be any cheaper than the fluorescent UV light and basking bulb combo, but it’s an interesting option. There are a few things you’ll need to consider when using an MVB bulb. These bulbs need to be further away from the reptile to prevent harmful burns because they are so powerful. You will see the minimal distances for each wattage/size bulb on the box when you get your MVB. The only problem is that being so far away, sometimes they don’t produce enough heat for the enclosure and you’ll need to add another basking light or heat emitter to keep the temps up. This is often an issue with high-heat desert animals like Bearded Dragons and Uromastyx; the Russian Tortoise has lower temperature requirements so you may not need to make adjustments afterall.

Temperature and Humidity:
The basking area should be around 90-95* F, tapering off to the 70s F in the cool end. This is easy to do with a regular basking light that clamps on to the side of the enclosure. Again, there is no need to overpay at a pet store for this light. You can get one of the silver dome lights at any hardware store or Walmart for under $10, and even the basking bulb can be a regular light bulb. The ones at the pet store are the same bulbs in a fancy box with a big price tag. The only bulb you HAVE to buy specifically made for reptiles is the UV bulb. Everything else can be done much cheaper! There is a lot of conflicting information out there about which type of light bulb is better to use for the basking area. That depends on what you’re trying achieve. The halogen spot bulbs focus a strong beam of light to one area. These are good for reptiles that actually come to a certain spot every day to bask. Regular incandescent bulbs produce light in all directions; the dome light fixture helps to focus the light into the area you want it, but it covers more area than the halogen bulb does. These seem to work better for reptiles that need the heat but don’t necessarily come out to bask in the light. Which wattage to use depends on your particular setup and what kind of temperatures you need to create; it’s often a matter of trial and error until you find the bulb that works best for your setup.

Night time temperature has been another subject of debate in the reptile world. Here’s the bottom line. As long as the room your Tortoise lives in does not drop below 60* F at night, no lights or heaters are needed. If you have difficulty keeping the temp above 60 during the night, a ceramic heat emitter can be used. These produce heat without any light, so they will keep temperatures safe without disturbing your Tortoise’s sleep. It is not recommended to use a black or red light at night to keep the heat up, because the light has been known to disturb reptiles’ sleep which affects their overall health.

*A note on thermometers: Having a reliable thermometer for measuring temperatures is important. The stick-on or dial types typically sold in pet stores can be very inaccurate, and do not give you an accurate reading of the basking spot. They can be up to 20 degrees off, and may inspire unnecessary or unsafe adjustments to the temperature. Temp guns and other expensive equipment are available for this purpose, but a cheaper favorite among reptile enthusiasts is the digital probe thermometer. These can be found at places like Walmart for about $12 and are much more accurate and longer-lasting than the dials or stick-ons.

Humidity should be kept around 60% as long as temperatures are kept high enough to avoid any skin/shell problems or respiratory infections. High humidity and low temperature will cause problems like these, so it is important with a humid environment like this, to make sure the temperature is not consistently low. A cheap humidity gauge will help you keep an idea of what your humidity is. It doesn’t need to be as accurate as the temperature. Keeping a dish of clean water in the enclosure should help keep the humidity up, as well as misting the bedding to keep it slightly moist. Avoid misting the timothy hay; you don’t want it getting moldy!

Bedding:
Russian Tortoises love to dig and burrow, so they like a few inches of soft bedding to live on. This can get messy, but it seems to be what they like best. This recipe for bedding has worked for many people: use a combination of Play Sand and coconut bedding (Eco Earth, Bed-a-Beast, etc). A 50/50 mix of sand and coconut bedding should create a 2 inch or deeper substrate for your tortoise to dig around in. For a 50 gallon container, that’s about 25 pounds of sand and 1 block of Eco Earth to make about a 2-inch deep bedding layer. Keep this bedding moist; do not allow it to get dry and dusty. Add some Timothy Hay to one end of the container (opposite side from the heat lamp for obvious reasons) for your tortoise to dig in and munch on. Just keep a close eye on the hay and replace it often so it doesn’t get moldy.

If this bedding does not work out for you, newspaper, Carefresh, a bath towel or tile can be used also. Avoid bark chips, calci sand, crushed shells or wood shavings, as they should not get wet and can also cause a serious intestinal blockage if swallowed. Stick with the safe stuff!

Feeding:
Russian Tortoises are herbivores. That means no crickets, no matter what the pet store says! Their ideal diet consists mainly of leaves and flowers, and variety is the key to good health. For good nutrition information, please check out this page. http://www.russiantortoise.org/russiantortoisediet.htm
Put out a fresh salad every morning and let your Tortoise eat its fill. Remove any uneaten food within a couple hours, or at least before bedtime; you don’t want it spoiling in there.

Common Health Concerns:
Like any other reptile, tortoises can have all kinds of health problems. Most of them are caused by something not being right with the setup or care. If caught early, these problems can usually be solved by changing or adjusting something. Parasites are also a valid worry, especially with wild-caught reptiles. Growth problems, deformities and mobility issues are often nutritional or caused by inadequate UV lighting. Problems like respiratory infections, skin and shell problems, shedding difficulties, etc are usually humidity/temperature related but may require veterinary treatment. It is a good idea to find a good reptile vet in your area and get a checkup for your new pet. Annual checkups are a very good way to keep an eye on your pet’s health, and if you ever suspect something isn’t right, a vet appointment is in order!

*Much of the information for this care sheet was borrowed from a wonderful site called www.russiantortoise.org. For more info on Russian Tortoises and another great care sheet, please pay the site a visit and let us know what you thought of it!

If you have more questions about this type of animal or just want to connect to other people with the same interests as you then visit our forums here .