Temporary outdoor enclosure feedback needed.

Hi there, looking for some pointers on my temp enclosure. At first I had my tort only in the gravel area with the chain link fence which is about a 4x5 area. I had the gate open and had blocked off a small grassy area for him there, but he got into too much trouble with that setup trying to escape.
Now with the pictures attached I decided to stretch it out the other way to give him more access to stay on the grass instead of the gravel. I noticed him only a few times in the gravel area now, but I still keep his original water dish in there.
I built him a hide/sleep box outside and got a layer of coco coir in there.
Should I be worried or try to monitor temperatures for my RT? I live in hawaii, nightly temps right now are in the mid 60's to low 70's and humidity maybe 40%. Daytime temp is in the low 80's and humidity anywhere from 60 to 80%. There is also a pretty constant breeze that comes from behind his hide, so that kinda makes the temp a bit lower.
I'm still deciding on a area with more sun light to build, and get new materials for more protection against cats.

The grassy areas definitely better. Those walls need to be at least 1 foot tall. are you bringing your tortoise inside at night? That is the best way to protect from predators. if not then I would put hardware cloth below and above the enclosure. 60s and 70s is not too cold. sunny areas are great but make sure there was also shade.

Those temps/humidity sound perfect for adult russsians! That's it, I'm moving to Hawaii!

Yup, agree with the above at finding some way to protect it at night. You could even build a hide and lock him in there at night.

leigti said:

The grassy areas definitely better. Those walls need to be at least 1 foot tall. are you bringing your tortoise inside at night? That is the best way to protect from predators. if not then I would put hardware cloth below and above the enclosure. 60s and 70s is not too cold. sunny areas are great but make sure there was also shade.

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Thanks. Yes he comes in at night.

Tyanna said:

Those temps/humidity sound perfect for adult russsians! That's it, I'm moving to Hawaii!

Yup, agree with the above at finding some way to protect it at night. You could even build a hide and lock him in there at night.

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Lol, thanks. That is going to be my next project, to build a hide with a lock.

Bringing them in at night is always the easiest. Even with my enclosure that is built like Fort Knox I was nervous leaving mine outside overnight. I brought her in every night the first year but the second year kept her out most of the time.

Leigti touched on it, but I would like to say it again so you don't come up missing a Russian tortoise some day. Russian tortoises are great climbers. If they can get a toe hole, they can climb. And one cinder block really isn't tall enough to keep him in if he really tries to get out.

I love all the different types of plant you are able to grow there. Lovely yard and great-looking little habitat for a tortoise. More sun is always better when it comes to Russian tortoises.

Yvonne G said:

Leigti touched on it, but I would like to say it again so you don't come up missing a Russian tortoise some day. Russian tortoises are great climbers. If they can get a toe hole, they can climb. And one cinder block really isn't tall enough to keep him in if he really tries to get out.

I love all the different types of plant you are able to grow there. Lovely yard and great-looking little habitat for a tortoise. More sun is always better when it comes to Russian tortoises.

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Thanks, I will keep that in mind about raising it more. For now I'll probably put more potted plants on top.
I wish we had more edible weeds here. I'm having some trouble identifying the ones in my yard, with hawaii's list online.

You can download the app called Garden Compass. Then send them pictures of the weeds and they will tell you what they are. I have had good luck with them.

Awesome! Thanks for the tip.

Looks great! Nice yard. Russians are not big grass fans, so maybe plant a few weedy spots?

Yellow Turtle01 said:

Looks great! Nice yard. Russians are not big grass fans, so maybe plant a few weedy spots?

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Meaning they don't really eat grass unless they have to.

Yellow Turtle01 said:

Looks great! Nice yard. Russians are not big grass fans, so maybe plant a few weedy spots?

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Thanks. I'm waiting for my RT seed mix to come in so I can start growing it in some grass trays, then I can just leave in the enclosure for him to graze naturally. I have quite a few weeds growing in the grass but nothing I can identify as safe. I could say one draw back of living here.