ghostdance
New Member
Hi all! I'm new here but decided to make an account because I'm worried about my Russian tort, Arnie.
I built him a new outdoor enclosure (8 ft long, 3.5 ft wide, 3 ft high) with a lid on top. I introduced Arnie to it (with supervision) for a short periods for a few days because he's never had an outdoor enclosure, but then left him out there yesterday for most of the day.
When I came back a few hours later, I couldn't find him at all, but the lid wasn't disturbed. I think he's probably digging, but usually I can see where the substrate is turned up and I can't this time. I've brushed off the top layer of substrate and still nothing. There's probably about 3" of Cypress bedding & another 1-2" of Coco fiber before it becomes hard dirt and rocks. I literally had to use an axe to break up the rocks when we built the enclosure.
I'm worried because we're forecasted to get some rain this evening. Since he isn't used to digging outside, is it possible he dug himself down and won't know how to get out? Could he drown if he doesn't get out before the ground gets too wet? Should I spend today removing the stuff in the enclosure to look for him?
Any advice or thoughts would be helpful, thanks.
I built him a new outdoor enclosure (8 ft long, 3.5 ft wide, 3 ft high) with a lid on top. I introduced Arnie to it (with supervision) for a short periods for a few days because he's never had an outdoor enclosure, but then left him out there yesterday for most of the day.
When I came back a few hours later, I couldn't find him at all, but the lid wasn't disturbed. I think he's probably digging, but usually I can see where the substrate is turned up and I can't this time. I've brushed off the top layer of substrate and still nothing. There's probably about 3" of Cypress bedding & another 1-2" of Coco fiber before it becomes hard dirt and rocks. I literally had to use an axe to break up the rocks when we built the enclosure.
I'm worried because we're forecasted to get some rain this evening. Since he isn't used to digging outside, is it possible he dug himself down and won't know how to get out? Could he drown if he doesn't get out before the ground gets too wet? Should I spend today removing the stuff in the enclosure to look for him?
Any advice or thoughts would be helpful, thanks.