TortoiseDreamer
Member
Hi! I am still in the dreaming/planning stage for getting a Hermann’s or Russian tortoise. I feel like I don’t have a lot of great options for enclosure placement, would love everyone’s opinions on which option you would go with if you were me. P.S I will still be giving him or her as much outside time as possible but we live in WI where the weather is not conducive to keeping a tortoise outside 24/7.
Note that about the same size enclosure will fit in each of these spaces so that’s not the main concern here.
Option 1: The Living room: pros- we’re a calm household and spend a lot of time in this room so we could enjoy seeing him. The ambient room temp could be kept around 70-73•F year round. Cons: it would be right next to the television which is sometimes playing quite loudly... would it scare him? It would involve rearranging our living room furniture which I’m not sure everyone is on board with lol.
option 2: The dining/family room. Pros: nice quiet space with lots of natural light. We also spend a lot of time in here so we could enjoy seeing him. Cons: only heat sources in this room are a fireplace and a space heater which we run at night in the winter for our rabbit and hamsters who live in here too. It drops to about 68/69•F in winter overnight.
option 3: spare bedroom- pros: nice quiet room, we could still easily go in and see him throughout the day each day. Stays nice and warm like the living room in winter. Cons: this is the only option where the enclosure would have to be slightly smaller. Also, This room currently houses my vintage toy collection... and I’m just not sure I want a mixed “vintage toy/ tortoise” aesthetic in there lol.
option 4: The basement. Pros: It’s partially finished down there. Nice and quiet. More humid than the upstairs. Cons: it’s cold in winter, probably about 64•F. I’m not sure if I’d get lazy about going down there daily to feed/check etc.
Note that about the same size enclosure will fit in each of these spaces so that’s not the main concern here.
Option 1: The Living room: pros- we’re a calm household and spend a lot of time in this room so we could enjoy seeing him. The ambient room temp could be kept around 70-73•F year round. Cons: it would be right next to the television which is sometimes playing quite loudly... would it scare him? It would involve rearranging our living room furniture which I’m not sure everyone is on board with lol.
option 2: The dining/family room. Pros: nice quiet space with lots of natural light. We also spend a lot of time in here so we could enjoy seeing him. Cons: only heat sources in this room are a fireplace and a space heater which we run at night in the winter for our rabbit and hamsters who live in here too. It drops to about 68/69•F in winter overnight.
option 3: spare bedroom- pros: nice quiet room, we could still easily go in and see him throughout the day each day. Stays nice and warm like the living room in winter. Cons: this is the only option where the enclosure would have to be slightly smaller. Also, This room currently houses my vintage toy collection... and I’m just not sure I want a mixed “vintage toy/ tortoise” aesthetic in there lol.
option 4: The basement. Pros: It’s partially finished down there. Nice and quiet. More humid than the upstairs. Cons: it’s cold in winter, probably about 64•F. I’m not sure if I’d get lazy about going down there daily to feed/check etc.