Outdoor Enclosure help

BrunoTheTortoise

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Joined
Aug 10, 2018
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Location (City and/or State)
Florida
Hello! I'm thinking about buying a new outdoor enclosure for my testudo tortoise Bruno. The last one broke, and I had some new questions. Nowadays in Florida, it rains heavily. How can I stop this from hurting Bruno or drenching him when I'm not at home?
 
Joined
Feb 25, 2016
Messages
70
Location (City and/or State)
Manteca, CA
Hello! I'm thinking about buying a new outdoor enclosure for my testudo tortoise Bruno. The last one broke, and I had some new questions. Nowadays in Florida, it rains heavily. How can I stop this from hurting Bruno or drenching him when I'm not at home?
you could try using a transparent Tarp.. Something like what they use on those greenhouses and hang it from one post to another post to deflect the rain. What type of enclosure do you have? It will help if i can get an idea so i could give you some ideas :)
 

ZEROPILOT

REDFOOT WRANGLER
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What kind of enclosure "broke"?
Can you provide/make a framed enclosure out of wood?
Something like a high sided wooden box.
Rain shouldn't be a problem.
I live in south Florida. It's always raining.
Check out my short video on Youtube:
"Redfoot habitat Florida style."
Can you make a small version of that?
It should work for most any species.
 

TriciaStringer

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I’m in Louisiana and it rains a lot here too. It’s fine for my Russian. Make sure that part of the yard drains well. I just provide lots of hides for him if he wants out of the rain. Here is what I have for mind.
 

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BrunoTheTortoise

New Member
Joined
Aug 10, 2018
Messages
24
Location (City and/or State)
Florida
What kind of enclosure "broke"?
Can you provide/make a framed enclosure out of wood?
Something like a high sided wooden box.
Rain shouldn't be a problem.
I live in south Florida. It's always raining.
Check out my short video on Youtube:
"Redfoot habitat Florida style."
Can you make a small version of that?
It should work for most any species.
It was some sort of "cage" environment, with a pool net surrounding it (to prevent snakes and lizards). But its durability was not good, since the sides were made of some hard plastic. I should consider making a wooden enclosure. Thank you!
 

BrunoTheTortoise

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Joined
Aug 10, 2018
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Location (City and/or State)
Florida
I’m in Louisiana and it rains a lot here too. It’s fine for my Russian. Make sure that part of the yard drains well. I just provide lots of hides for him if he wants out of the rain. Here is what I have for mind.
Wow your enclosure is amazing! Upon further pondering, it's no wonder my enclosure broke, since the sides were made of some hard plastic. But isn't being wet not ideal for tortoises? I do have 2 hiding places for him, (a tunnel and a cave), but he'll be drenched if he's out in the open for too long. Or is it just not that bad for tortoises? Also, one more question, in the winter, Florida's temperature goes down maximum 50 degrees. This, in my knowledge, is FREEZING for tortoises. How do I heat the enclosure if it's out in the open?
 

BrunoTheTortoise

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Florida
you could try using a transparent Tarp.. Something like what they use on those greenhouses and hang it from one post to another post to deflect the rain. What type of enclosure do you have? It will help if i can get an idea so i could give you some ideas :)
That's smart! I don't have that much wood to build a large enclosure (nor that much space; we don't have a private yard), so I was looking at some outdoor dog pens, and would this be ideal? Other websites were offering two story level enclosures, which isn't ideal for a tortoise, so I had to look up some sort of playpen.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZI6TAI/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
 

TriciaStringer

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Location (City and/or State)
Louisiana
Wow your enclosure is amazing! Upon further pondering, it's no wonder my enclosure broke, since the sides were made of some hard plastic. But isn't being wet not ideal for tortoises? I do have 2 hiding places for him, (a tunnel and a cave), but he'll be drenched if he's out in the open for too long. Or is it just not that bad for tortoises? Also, one more question, in the winter, Florida's temperature goes down maximum 50 degrees. This, in my knowledge, is FREEZING for tortoises. How do I heat the enclosure if it's out in the open?
Here are some of his hides. He has about five. The large pot has a smaller identical one that is his favorite and protects him from the rain. It is in the corner with the large basil tree, which also gives him protection from the weather. This is our first winter with him. His previous Florida owner had an indoor enclosure that he used in colder weather. I am almost done building him an insulated house for him to warm up in on cold days and to stay locked in and warm with a CHE on a thermostat at night. He will have a basking light for daytime. The house will go in the other part of his enclosure.
 

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Joined
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Messages
70
Location (City and/or State)
Manteca, CA
That's smart! I don't have that much wood to build a large enclosure (nor that much space; we don't have a private yard), so I was looking at some outdoor dog pens, and would this be ideal? Other websites were offering two story level enclosures, which isn't ideal for a tortoise, so I had to look up some sort of playpen.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZI6TAI/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
I wouldn't really recommend that since the tortoises will try to climb it.. Tortoise surprisingly can actually climb and could hurt themselves getting caught on the meatal. you could try lining the sides of the cage with some wood.
 
Joined
Feb 25, 2016
Messages
70
Location (City and/or State)
Manteca, CA
That's smart! I don't have that much wood to build a large enclosure (nor that much space; we don't have a private yard), so I was looking at some outdoor dog pens, and would this be ideal? Other websites were offering two story level enclosures, which isn't ideal for a tortoise, so I had to look up some sort of playpen.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZI6TAI/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
Heres some you could also try. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N07EQG0/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
 

ZEROPILOT

REDFOOT WRANGLER
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It was some sort of "cage" environment, with a pool net surrounding it (to prevent snakes and lizards). But its durability was not good, since the sides were made of some hard plastic. I should consider making a wooden enclosure. Thank you!
Snakes and lizards shouldn't be a concern in the future.
 

Yvonne G

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Hello! I'm thinking about buying a new outdoor enclosure for my testudo tortoise Bruno. The last one broke, and I had some new questions. Nowadays in Florida, it rains heavily. How can I stop this from hurting Bruno or drenching him when I'm not at home?
Instead of wood, make his new shelter out of cement blocks, with a nice plywood roof that overhangs the blocks a tiny bit to discourage the rain from going under the plywood. Build it up on a slightly elevated pad.
 

BrunoTheTortoise

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Location (City and/or State)
Florida
Instead of wood, make his new shelter out of cement blocks, with a nice plywood roof that overhangs the blocks a tiny bit to discourage the rain from going under the plywood. Build it up on a slightly elevated pad.
Unfortunately, I don't have a private yard. If I use anything disturbing to the environment, my community will file a bill. It was a smart idea though!
 
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