outdoor enclosure in england

[matty0071]

hi i am wanting to make an outdoor encloser in england the weather isnt the best however i think she should go outside i have a horsefield tort 4 years old and has been kept indoors for 2 years now but i have been made to feel guilty and should put it outside i live in cheshire england is there anyone out there who has done this or any ideas where to start because i really dont have a clue. thanks.

matty

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Matty:

Please don't feel guilty about anything I told you. It is strictly MY OPINION. There are many, many experienced keepers who keep their tortoises indoors all the time. What I said to you was MY OPINION and works for me.

Even so, its good for you to think about making an outdoor pen for when the weather is good enough for the tortoise to go outside. Just remember that Russians dig and climb very well.

We do have several U.K.'ers here on the forum. I hope one of them will chime in with some suggestions for you.

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Me, too.

You might try PM (private message)ing Stells, who is Kelly, who lives in England and has tons of tortoise experience.

 

[jblayza]

hi i am wanting to make an outdoor encloser in england the weather isnt the best however i think she should go outside i have a horsefield tort 4 years old and has been kept indoors for 2 years now but i have been made to feel guilty and should put it outside i live in cheshire england is there anyone out there who has done this or any ideas where to start because i really dont have a clue. thanks.

matty

If you have had your tortoise indoors for 2 years and she is healthy you are doing fine.

 

[Tom]

Never been to the UK, but I'm sure they have some sort of cinder blocks there. Stagger them and go two high. Make it as big as you want. Make sure there is some shade available at all hours of the day. Check to make sure none of the weeds in the pen are toxic or just pull them if you are worried about it. I like to soak and feed indoors first, so they are less inclined to eat stuff, unless you've got some good weeds for them to eat in there.

Alternatively, they sell "kiddie pools" here for children to splash around in. They are cheap, plastic and around 5' across. You can put some local dirt in there and a potted plant in the middle for shade.

I like to watch them closely the first few times I put them out there. I notice interesting things about them and the environment around the yard. Watch out for wild and domestic predators. You can build a cover if this is an issue in your area or just stay outside with them and enjoy the sunshine yourself.

 

[stells]

Its pretty simple to do over here... i will get some pics up of mine as soon as i have a spare 10 mins...

 

[egyptiandan]

Here are some of Kelly's outside enclosures. I'll let her tell you all about them.

Danny

 

[Tom]

Wow! That tops anything I've ever built by a wide margin. I want to come back as one of Kelly's torts after I die.

 

[stells]

Thanks Danny... would have taken me ages to search photobucket for those

They were very simple to make... most of the wood was recycle from pallets that you find dumped near buliding sites.... all i paid for was the wood and wire for the framework...

The Horsfields enclosure was dug out to a depth of around 3 ft before the enclosure was put in place... the hole was then lined with the chicken wire to stop the Horsfields from digging out... as i have known a few people losing them due to dig outs... so its like an underground cage... then the hole was filled back in with the soil i dug out (blisters)(sore arms).... and the framework built on top... it really was very simple... and last year the Horsfields were outside from late April til mid September... well most of them came in i still have two outside dug down doing a natural hibernation (their choice)....

Plants that were put in were Rosemary... Pansies... Petunia's... Lavender... Lavertera... Iceplant... and loads of weed seeds thrown in for good measure... the pics are when it was first built... so more vegetation in there now....

The Hides are roofing ridge tiles... dug in abit then soil mounded on top.... making a good basking platform.... well they seem to think so anyway...

You won't regret making an outside area for your Horsfield... they really do thrive in an outside enviroment... and are different tortoises when outside...

 

[dreadyA]

Oooh that's neat. Liking the red.

Hey, what Kelly's,is yours. Right Danny? ;]

 

[egyptiandan]

I don't think it works that way Abe

I think it goes, what's Kelly's is Kelly's and what's mine is Kelly's. I'm pretty sure I've got that right.

Danny

 

[dreadyA]

Haha :]

 

[stells]

Yep what Danny said

 

[Stephanie Logan]

I don't remember seeing those pictures before. Those are very impressive enclosures!

Roofing ridge tiles...good idea! All so neat and tidy looking, not to mention the healthy, colorful plants.