I've been reading through these threads and am getting a little worried that I may be being cruel without meaning to! I have an 18mth old horsfield tortoise that came from the tortoise shop. He was on hemp substrate but I can't get that easily in Cornwall, so I went on the tortoise trust website and have mixed the sand and loam substrate that they recommend which he does love to dig in. I feed him wild flowers that he can have as well as kale/broccoli etc, and he seems to be thriving well he is putting on weight and is very lively. He lives on a tort table that was bought with him, but we are in the middle of making him a larger one with a few more interesting things in it for him to look at! He does go in the garden on warm days and if we are out with him he just follows us around, if we're in he goes in a run as we worry about the seagulls. We bath him as well so he doen't dehydrate and he does seem very happy. But then you seem to hear so many different ways of looking after a tortoise. 1 pet shop told us he had to go in a vivarium, another said not to let him outside til he was 5, so you can see why I am gettin concerned! So any tips greatly appreciated as he is very much part of the family now!

Hiya you are doing the right think putting him in a tortoise table, pet shops just want to make more money out of you by saying use a viv.
I would cut out the broccoli, how much is he gaining weight wise? you should aim for about 2-4g a month.
You seem to be doing well with him. Also what calcium are you using and vitamins?

__________________

opps you have two posts

__________________

He was a 110g last month and he is 124g now is he growing to much? You see such horrible pics of their shells deformed that you really worry about them! He is on Nutrobal supplement that he has on every meal. Can he have veg and stuff that we eat occasionally though because he really seems to love peas from the pod I made the mistake of dropping one when I was eating them after I picked them and I've never seen him move so fast to get it!

Nope no veg at all weeds weeds weeds, yes growing too fast he will end up with a lumpy shell at that rate. Only feed once a day also.

__________________

Have I done to much damage then already or will I be able to reverse it if I give him more weeds now? Does it need to be a varity of weeds or will dandelions do? If he doesn't eat them to begin with will he get used to them? I hate the thought that I've hurt him in some way. We are converting an area in the garden for him with a little wall so he can't escape he can def move for a little lad, which we are encouraging the weeds to grow in but this prob won't be ready now til next year.

I agree with Sarah, please cut out ALL veg, especially peas, they are very, very high in protein.
If he has gained 14gs in a month, that is way too much, this will result in a lumpy shell which tends to thicken on russians and appears 'lumpy'. In the wild russians would both hibernate and estivate (similar to hibernation, but they don't shut down entirely and this happens in summer to escape the heat) and only eat for 3 months of the year. In fact in a recent study it would seem they only eat for 15 hours a year !! No thats not a typo <g> and I'm not suggesting you do this, BUT drastic food reduction is needed. If you really can't bear to miss out 2 feeding days a week, divide the food up and feed only small amounts daily.......only enough that you think would cover the shell if you made him a 'leafy jacket'.......and try to get the weight gain down to 2 - 4gs a month, less if you can, russians really need slow growth.
Russians don't like living indoors much, the are a burrowing species and have a natural instinct to dig.......the depth they require is very hard to achieve in a table top so try and have him in an outdoor enclosure with a dry, waterproof, safe, heated area for him to go to as soon as you can. When your building your enclosure you will have to dig out the first few feet depth and line it with chicken wire.............russians can dig 40ft tunnels no problem, and will, so securing all escape routes is essential. Be careful of putting any plants in corners he could climb on and use as ladders to escape too, they are good climbers.
Put a chicken wire lid over the top too......this will stop the birds and other predators getting at him and you can safely leave him outside.
Go to Tortoise Trust Web - Start Page and read their info on russians which will give you a good insight to what is needed.
Stick with a weed only diet....if you arent sure what to pick go to Tortoises for a great downloadable, colour weed booklet to help you add variety to the diet.........if all you can offer is dandies for the moment thats fine, this is far more preferable to veg.
Hope this helps

__________________
Phoebe

Keeping: Hermanns and Whitei's

Thanks we are going to start the tortoise enclosure as soon as we've been for the chicken wire! He has been going out regularly but we bring him in at night, he is active and seems happy enough but have been to the website and downloaded the wildflower list so shall be foraging tomorrow. I don't mind not feeding him as long as you know its for the best its just when you hear such contradicting advice you get a bit confused at to what is for the best!

i went a little bit overboard on my outdoor enclosure for my 2 hermanns lol

__________________
ANDY B 1

Taken the place of Tops in his absence
Ñ Ç

What ive got0.1.0 '07 Amel corn snake2.1.0 Hermanns Tortoises2.3.0 Cats0.2.0 Guinea pigs

I like it! Do yours dig much? I have an area on my patio that I could convert for my tortoise but I'm not sure how big the area has to be!
He is only tiny though so I guess I could do one are now and enlarge as he grows!!