Queenie is now in her new indoor enclosure at last but I've noticed her doing some things I'm a little concerned about. She's been eating a little of the substrate as she's been going round, I have used the play sand and top soil, is this normal?. Does she just need time to settle in. Also she's wriggling her back legs in the soil to. This is something I've never seen her do before. Have I got anything to worry about?

Hi Winnie, glad to hear Queenie is in her new home.   Nothing to worry about they do occasionally eat the substrate, its because its new to her, try adding cuttlefish bone and large pebbles to distract her!   The same with the wriggling, sounds like she is testing the substrate she will probably start digging down into next.

Keep up the good work! Vivienne

Hi,
It is pretty normal for a tortoise to eat their substrate and many do this if they are lacking in something, i have a female Russian who always eats white stones if she finds them laying around and this is because before i took her on she wasn't given any calcium supplement. Have you got plants and rocks in the enclosure? As for wriggling in the soil this could be her just trying to dig down. How deep have you got your sand soil?

Ali

Hi

Keya does that whenever I change her substrate, she settles down after a couple of days. It is almost like they are putting their scent on it!
Here is to lots of sunny days
Jane

Hi Ali,

I have got rocks in the enclosure of all different sizes. I even put a small flag stone in so I could use it to put her feed on and she's been biting that but I haven't put any plants in yet as was wondering which ones and are they ok to put in if they've been bought from a garden centre. I was looking forward to watching her dig so I put the substrate quite thick (think it would cover a few torts stacked on top of each other). Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Hi,
Mine also bit the stones in their enclosure, at least this keeps the beaks nice and trim . Just make sure she is getting plenty of calcium and supplements.
As for plants, yes i have used plants from garden centres before and i tend to go for ones that they don't devour too quickly (i keep horsfields). My enclosure has lots of different grasses so they can hide and pansy and lavateria flowers for them to munch on. Another good one that is quick to grow is clover and cress, my torts love that.
Good luck
Ali

I seen the ornamental grasses, about 3 different types, are they the ones you use?. Can I put in heathers. Do I leave them in the pots or plant them in the substrate. Do you put in the whole pansie plant or just the flowers. Soz for all the questions but I just want to make it right for her.

ps: mine is also a horsfield

Hi again,
Yes the ornamental grasses are good and i have all different varieties in mine. If you are putting them in an indoor enclosure then i would leave them in the pot but outside they can be planted in the ground. Yes put the whole pansy in, i do.

Ali