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What's the cleanest and safest substrate for my Hermann's tortoise?

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hermann's maintenance substrate tortoise tortoise table
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9.7K views 6 replies 5 participants last post by  Claxx  
#1 ·
Hi there!

I've had my tortoise for a few months now and I feel like the current substrate I'm using is a bit of hassle as I need to clean my tortoises water very very regularly and it seems to be creating a bit of a smell. It's quite a sandy substrate (of course, it's not sand) which also means his shell gets dirty quickly. I'd like to have a substrate that isn't a danger to his health and is easier to maintain a, doesn't require as much cleaning and doesn't in his face as much. I was going to try some sort of again bark which would be great but I was using during the first couple of weeks but then I read it was bad for the tortoise so I replaced it which came with the extra maintenance im not too fond of. Any help would be greatly appreciated :) Thanks
 
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#3 ·
There is no such thing really, as its tortoises that make the mess:0)
Too sandy is not good as tortoises like to dig into soil. If its too sandy they cant do that.
Once the threat of frost is gone, then being outside is far better and less smelly for you:0)
 
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#4 ·
Moss around the water bowl can make a huge difference - it does for me anyway - as when they walk over it to get to the water it cleans them off so the water is a lot cleaner. You can either use sphagnum moss pressed down into the substrate around the bowl, or you can use live moss pillows - usually find some on eBay for not much. If your substrate and conditions are right it will grow well, it looks good and keeps things clean. I used to have to clean the water bowl several times a day now I just clean it once a day and even then it's not really dirty.

Substrate depends on the breed to some extent as they have different requirements, most people seem to use coco coir and / or top soil though. I use forest floor floor in some sections which is a bark, some stuff is bad for them though so do your research.
 
#6 ·
Think of what your tortoise would have in the wild. Soil, soil and more soil. Put some pebbles or flat stones around the dish, which knocks off bits of substrate before they go into the water. Keeping torts super clean is not a good idea as they need to build up a good immunity which they won't do if kept in sterile substrate etc. Milly coddled torts are usually the ones that end up in vets surgeries where they are often given antibiotics which lowers the immunity even more. Much better to treat them like the wild animals they are. If you are looking for short cuts I'm afraid there are none. Tortoises need maintenance the same as all animals ***128521;
 
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