Water for bathing

Use this forum to discuss general questions about any aspects of tortoise care.
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llindquist
Posts: 1
Joined: 03 Jan 2022, 23:47

Water for bathing

Post by llindquist » 03 Jan 2022, 23:52

Hello!
My son wants a Russian tortoise for his birthday this year. I want to make sure we get the care instructions correct. I read about bathing the tortoise (daily for young tortoises and every 2-3 days for older). I understand the water needs to be "luke warm." Should I use room temperature bottled water or heat it. Can I use lukewarm tap water, or is the fluoride in the water too toxic?
I appreciate your help!

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Nina
Posts: 2003
Joined: 16 Mar 2017, 11:22

Re: Water for bathing

Post by Nina » 04 Jan 2022, 08:47

Hi and welcome to The Tortoise Table! It's great that you are doing your research before you get your tortoise (so many don't and then are presented with big problems as a result of poor husbandry).

I think it will be fine to bathe the tortoise in water from the tap -- we recommend water that is about the same temperature that you would use to bathe a baby, and put him in a container that he can't see out of (like an old washing up bowl or something) and the water should come just up to where his top shell meets his bottom shell, or his chin. We usually leave them there for 15 - 20 minutes (you might have to replace some of the water or top it up if it cools down a lot), and the added advantage of this is that they often poo and wee in the bath, so there is less to clean up in their enclosure.

Russian tortoises (Horsfields) are a great species of tortoise, with lots of personality. The main thing in preparing for his arrival is to give him a tortoise table to live in indoors (not a glass and wood vivarium), and ensure that he has adequate heat, light and UVB, and the correct temperature at the warm end and the cool end of his table. And he will benefit greatly from an outdoor enclosure when the temperatures are warm enough, as they love being outdoors, and the UVB from the sun is the best source of UVB. Here is a link to a care sheet for Horsfields, and we'd love to see photos of him after he arrives (lol, we never get tired of looking at photos of baby tortoises!).
https://www.tortoise-protection-group.o ... 014New.pdf

Please don't hesitate to ask any questions -- that's what we're here for.

Nina

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