This is a specific conversation about Reptile setup — getting the environment right — ask about yours and get one honest answer for your exact situation.
inparticular.ai
Your vet has flagged something that really does matter — Russian tortoises come from arid, semi-desert environments in Central Asia, and chronic high humidity is one of the most common causes of respiratory infections and shell problems in captive animals. Reptile welfare is almost entirely determined by getting the environment right: temperature gradient, UV lighting, humidity, and substrate all need to match the species' natural habitat, and getting it wrong causes real, ongoing harm. To point you toward the right fix: how old is your tortoise, what substrate are you currently using, and is this an indoor table setup or a vivarium?
She's about 4 years old. I've got her in a wooden vivarium with the glass sliding doors — I've been using coconut coir as the substrate because I read it was good for tortoises. The vet said humidity was sitting around 70-80% and it should be much lower.
inparticular.ai
That explains it completely. Coconut coir retains moisture — it's great for tropical species but exactly the wrong choice for a Russian tortoise. They need humidity around 30-40%, and coir in a closed wooden viv with glass doors is a recipe for the kind of readings your vet found. The enclosed vivarium is also part of the issue since it traps moisture, but the substrate is the biggest lever you can pull right now. What are you using on top of the coir — any bark, moss, or is it just the coir alone?
Just the coir on its own, about 3 inches deep. I had no idea it was causing the problem honestly.
inparticular.ai
It's a genuinely common mistake — coir gets recommended broadly for reptiles without the species caveat, so you're not alone in this. The fix is straightforward: strip out the coir entirely and replace it with a dry, sandy-loam mix that mimics her natural habitat. The product I'd go with is Komodo Tortoise Substrate — it's a pre-mixed sandy topsoil blend specifically formulated for arid tortoise species, drains well, doesn't hold moisture, and allows natural digging behaviour. Use it at around 3-4 inches depth, keep it dry, and only lightly spot-mist one small corner if you ever need to offer a humidity retreat. You should also leave the viv doors slightly open or add a mesh panel to improve airflow — that will bring your ambient humidity down further and stay down. After the substrate swap, give it 48 hours and recheck with a hygrometer.
That makes sense. Do I need to do anything else, or is the substrate the main thing the vet would want addressed?
inparticular.ai
The substrate is the primary fix, yes. Once that's sorted and you have airflow improved, the humidity should drop into the right range naturally. The one other thing worth checking is your water dish — a large, deep dish evaporates more into the air. Russian tortoises don't need a permanent water dish in the enclosure; a shallow soak two or three times a week outside the viv is better practice and removes another humidity source. If your vet wants a follow-up check, that combination — new substrate, better ventilation, removed standing water — should give them exactly what they're looking for.
Really helpful, thank you. I'll order the Komodo substrate today and get the coir out this weekend.
inparticular.ai
Good — that's the right call and it should make a real difference quickly. Keep an eye on her breathing over the next couple of weeks; if she was at elevated humidity for a while, the vet visit was well timed and the environment change should stop things progressing. If you pick up a cheap digital hygrometer to leave in the enclosure, you'll have ongoing reassurance that you're in the right range. Good luck with her.
