newbie with a red foot and lots of questions

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Posted by Pete on May 06, 2000 at 02:05:13:

Thanks goodness for this forum. 2 days I never even thought of owning a tort, today heat lamps and uvb bulbs, humidity....Wow.
I was givin what I assume is a red foot, neighbors kid bought him, mom said no way. So Pete's got a red foot, I've done some surfing and have learned alot but I still have a few questions.
1.He or she,(no idea how to tell for sure) is 6" long and 4" across. Can I assume an age?
2.On this forums advice I am ordering Annies Pasture mix tonight as well as an opunita cutting, however I know it will take some time to grow and be suitable. The question.What do I feed him in the meantime? (need help on this one fast)Can I just grab some grass from the lawn? Fruits and veggies? He's not eating much of anything now,2 bites of tort food is about all and I'm worried.
3. Bad newbie...bought glass tank, measures 18"x36". Is this at all sufficiant for now?
4. Temp- I have a reptile heat pad on one side of tank, floor temp above pad is 87 at night with no light and 93 with light during the day. The other side of the tank no heat pad, floor temp 80 night 82 day. Is this an acceptable difference?
5. flooring- bought forrest floor cypress mulch, which the little guy promptly starting eating, instead of tort food I purchased. This made me nervous so I covered the mulch with a smaller dryer mix. Does eating these sticks indicate anything besides a hungry tort? Is this safe?
6.Soaking-sounds like a must from what I've read but no one mentions how long to soak him for and I have seen varying answers on how often.
7.UVB- I am aware of replacing light after 9 mo. (thank you forum) and 12 to 14 hours a day. I have stated tank dimentions above and have an 18"long aquarium hood. Would light for hood this size be sufficiant if placed in center of tank?
8. What is pyrmiding and how is it prevented.(sorry abouy the spelling,it's late)

I live in the North West US and this will be an indoor tort for at least 9 months a year. I really want to do my best by him and make him as happy and as comfortable as possable after all, we've got a long time together ahead of us.
Thanks for all your help
PS. ok to crank up the heat to 85 and just let him wander around the house all day?

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: Thanks goodness for this forum. 2 days I never even thought of owning a tort, today heat lamps and uvb bulbs, humidity....Wow. : I was givin what I assume is a red foot, neighbors kid bought him, mom said no way. So Pete's got a red foot, I've done some surfing and have learned alot but I still have a few questions. : 1.He or she,(no idea how to tell for sure) is 6" long and 4" across. Can I assume an age? : 2.On this forums advice I am ordering Annies Pasture mix tonight as well as an opunita cutting, however I know it will take some time to grow and be suitable. The question.What do I feed him in the meantime? (need help on this one fast)Can I just grab some grass from the lawn? Fruits and veggies? He's not eating much of anything now,2 bites of tort food is about all and I'm worried. : 3. Bad newbie...bought glass tank, measures 18"x36". Is this at all sufficiant for now? : 4. Temp- I have a reptile heat pad on one side of tank, floor temp above pad is 87 at night with no light and 93 with light during the day. The other side of the tank no heat pad, floor temp 80 night 82 day. Is this an acceptable difference? : 5. flooring- bought forrest floor cypress mulch, which the little guy promptly starting eating, instead of tort food I purchased. This made me nervous so I covered the mulch with a smaller dryer mix. Does eating these sticks indicate anything besides a hungry tort? Is this safe? : 6.Soaking-sounds like a must from what I've read but no one mentions how long to soak him for and I have seen varying answers on how often. : 7.UVB- I am aware of replacing light after 9 mo. (thank you forum) and 12 to 14 hours a day. I have stated tank dimentions above and have an 18"long aquarium hood. Would light for hood this size be sufficiant if placed in center of tank? : 8. What is pyrmiding and how is it prevented.(sorry abouy the spelling,it's late) : I live in the North West US and this will be an indoor tort for at least 9 months a year. I really want to do my best by him and make him as happy and as comfortable as possable after all, we've got a long time together ahead of us. : Thanks for all your help : PS. ok to crank up the heat to 85 and just let him wander around the house all day?

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