Hello from Massachusetts

[Ashley87]

Hello, my name is Ashley and I'm from southern Massachusetts. We are expecting a sulcata hatchling at the end of next week and are working hard to finish up our indoor and outdoor enclosures. I've been reading as much as I can, and there is a lot of great advice here. I look forward to learning more and seeing the adorable tort pics.

 

[Gillian M]

Hello, my name is Ashley and I'm from southern Massachusetts. We are expecting a sulcata hatchling at the end of next week and are working hard to finish up our indoor and outdoor enclosures. I've been reading as much as I can, and there is a lot of great advice here. I look forward to learning more and seeing the adorable tort pics.

A very warm welcome to the forum!

Please post pics of your tort and his/her enclosures asap. And ask any question whenever in need of help or when in doubt.

 

[Ashley87]

I'm working on the indoor one today but it's a 50 gallon aquarium that will have partial top soil/grasses and part Cyprus mulch. I know he/she will quickly outgrow this setup but we already had this tank so we might as well utilize it for a season while we work on a more permanent indoor solution. This is a photo of the outdoor enclosure. It is not completely finished yet and I'm still debating the current setup. I will upload a pic once he/she arrives later this week as well. Any critiques are welcome, we want to make the best spot possible. Also, how deep down should we be placing barriers to prevent the tortoise from digging out? I've read a lot of articles and threads this morning but haven't seen it addressed yet. Thanks!

 

[Speedy-1]

Hi and welcome Ashley !

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hello Ashley

 

[KaitlinKeefe_]

Welcome! beautiful outdoor enclosure, my only fear is that if the little one is outside without supervision something my come across it. do you plan on building anything to protect it? i would also suggest building a couple of hides as well, maybe some more vegetation to hide in. deff a great start!

i also cant really tell what types of plants you have in there, are they tortoise friendly and pesticide free?

 

[Ashley87]

Hi Kaitlin, all plants are tortoise safe and pesticide free. The circle of dirt in the back is going to be a rock cave/hide contraption that my poor husband is in the middle of creating haha. I ordered a grass mix from sulcatafood.com today so that will be added inside as well as out. There will also be two doors on top of the outdoor enclosure that will be covered with chicken wire. If that makes sense. Hopefully. Haha. Thanks for the input! do you think digging out will be a concern? I just don't know how deep down we should be putting some type of barrier.

 

[KaitlinKeefe_]

thats great youve really done your research! digging out could deff be an issue, i know my russians are BIG diggers. if you look in the enclosure threads im sure there is alot of info about what to do about the exterior of the enclosure to prevent an escape

 

[Ashley87]

I'll take a look, thanks!

 

[BrianC]

Hello and welcome to the forum

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome!

 

[Ashley87]

I was wrong, he/she arrived today! Hubzilla made the travel arrangements . Super excited! He got a quick soak (ten minutes) and went back into his house to hang out and acclimate. The kids picked him/her some clover from the yard and added some spring mix in case he/she got hungry. thought I'd share the photo.

 

[KaitlinKeefe_]

congrats on your new addition! what a cutie!

 

[crimson_lotus]

Welcome, I'm in MA as well. Downside is my tortoise can't spend the winter outside

 

[Ashley87]

True! We are in the process of making half our basement into an indoor enclosure haha. What do you do during the winter for your torts?

 

[crimson_lotus]

True! We are in the process of making half our basement into an indoor enclosure haha. What do you do during the winter for your torts?

I have a heated indoor enclosure with a built in sprinkler system, electric bill can get pretty high with a tortoise and turtle