Wrongly advised to buy a viv!! Please help
 

So we’ve had our little guy for about a year now and this evening his basking lamp decided to blow, so I thought I would do a little research into which lamp would be best, only to discover that everyone recommends against vivs. So I am now planning to build him a tortoise table, but I’m unsure how to set one up. Are they the same set up as a viv? In my viv I have the strip light on timer and a habistat runnng the basking lamp which comes on and off to steady the temperature and also on timer to go off at night. Would this be the same set up for a table or is it completely different? Thanks in advance for any advice.

Not everyone recommends against vivs. The reptile vets at Morpeth for example recommend using vivs at least until the torts are 2 years old so that they can get the humidity they require. There are various opinions on what causes pyramiding but they are of the opinion it's lack of humidity in the first couple of years. More info on pyramiding and why smooth shells often belong to those in areas of higher humidity http://www.testudo-farm.de/html/formation_of_humps.html

Hi there. I'd say the answer to your question is basically yes Dan.

I'm not in favour of using a viv for a Mediterranean tortoise.

Tortoises, and especially very small ones, live in microclimates. And they really need to be able to move between microclimates.

One problem with a viv is that it's basically one climate in there - the temperature and the humidity end up being the same throughout. If you put loads of water on the substrate in a viv you end up with tropical conditions which is not good.

My suggestion is for a table set-up with microclimates that you can create and the tortoise can pick and choose.

I am guilty of skim reading again :). There will be lots of ideas for table setups in the housing section but the type of tortoise you have might affect things a little bit. As said above the setup will be similar but without being enclosed

I do agree with what Jonathan has said but you can use a viv in a lot of cases such as torts that need humidity or need very warm and dry but and I will say it's not a thing for a beginner as you do need to get temps humidity and ventilation right which is not easy.
I think a table is your best way and I personally use an arcadia 12%tube along with a basking bulb set up with a dimming stat.

Thanks everyone. He has seemed happy for the last year so it has put my mind at ease a little that vivs are ok for them. I must have got lucky with the temps and ventilation. I think based on the advice that has been given I will definitely be building him a table. Thank you again everyone

As it’s now summer, I would suggest you build and outdoor enclosure, he needs to be outside in the natural sunlight, and fresh air.