Redfoot experts please help!

[EJ]

Treat your RF as you would any other tortoise. Provide a temperature gradient. Provide a humid hide. They require no more or no less protein than any other tortoise. Formulated diets are a major plus in providing for your tortoise as far as diets go.

Vivs work well as they do for any other tortoise. As long as you have a temperature gradient... not a problem.

[Alan1]

What about the light Ed? I've seen people say not to use a mercury vapour bulb with redfoots. Is that simply because they don't need it or because it does them harm?

[EJ]

When I did use it for my redfoots I didn't have any problem as long as they had a temperature gradient. I don't use them anymore only because it got too expensive.

Originally Posted by caledonia

What about the light Ed? I've seen people say not to use a mercury vapour bulb with redfoots. Is that simply because they don't need it or because it does them harm?

[NATURALIS]

Originally Posted by kreacher

Morning all,

I have had a teeny tiny weeny redfoot come in to work today that was found living with a bearded dragon! They didnt actually realise he was in the viv with the dragon till they moved a stone, poor little thing!
My whole family has fallen deeply madly in love with him and now want to keep him but I'm not convinced...
I know absolutely nothing about this species, can anyone recommend a good care sheet?
Are they better kept in a viv rather than table?!
How quickly do they get big?

Any advice is very gratefully received...

Ames xxx

Talking from experiance there far better kept in a viv at this age , the humidity is far easier to keep up

[EJ]

You really don't want high ambient humidity. Similar to the temperature gradient... you want to offer the tortoise a choice. If the ambient temperature is too high you increase the risk of promoting shell fungus. It is best to offer a humid hide and all the tortoise to escape the humidity if it needs to.

[NATURALIS]

Originally Posted by EJ

You really don't want high ambient humidity. Similar to the temperature gradient... you want to offer the tortoise a choice. If the ambient temperature is too high you increase the risk of promoting shell fungus. It is best to offer a humid hide and all the tortoise to escape the humidity if it needs to.

I would strongly recomend keeping hatchling red foots in a viv , they need high humidity.

[EJ]

The opinion of another keeper suggests that providing a humid hide is a much better and healthier option than providing a high ambient humidity.

Redfoots normally occur in relatively dry habitats spending the dryest part of the day in burrows or burried in as moist a substrate as they can find. During the dry season throughout their range this can be at least 6 months out of the year moist substrate can be hard to find.

Originally Posted by red foot marg

I would strongly recomend keeping hatchling red foots in a viv , they need high humidity.

[NATURALIS]

Originally Posted by red foot marg

I would strongly recomend keeping hatchling red foots in a viv , they need high humidity.

I can only recommend as above through my own experience , breeding and raising many many red foot hatchlings over many many years

[EJ]

...and I can only base my recomendation on keeping and raising many redfoots over many years.

I didn't try to get into breeding Redfoots until about 10 years ago and the babies are just starting to produce eggs.

So... the op has some pretty solid information from two pretty successful keepers. They seem to have a choice.

[joanna]

As said I prefer vivs, but have used open topped enclosures in the past. TBH I went back to using vivs after the 1st winter of keeping them open, got to say I saw a huge difference especially in the general activity of the younger torts. In the past hatchlings that I've sold to those using tables have got in touch saying they had changed to a viv. I know a temp gradient is needed but with keeping open you will need the whole room heated more than norm, if you have a room heated purposely for reptiles go for it.