At long last! Outdoor Russian Pen *Pic Heavy*

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jjsull33

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Finally at long last I was able to finish (mostly anyway) my outdoor russian enclosure.

This pen is for 2 Russians, 1 male and 1 female so it is divided in the middle.

This is the area I had to work with it is 8 ft by 20 ft. The original idea was to make the whole thing a big pen but the enormous roots from the tree at the end said otherwise so for now it is 8 ft by 10 ft. Eventually (when time and money allow) I will do something with the other side.
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For the pen I made a frame out of 2x4s.
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Then I secured it with Wire Mesh, and connected the corners with zip ties.
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Then I dug out the hole and put the pen in place.
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After that I filled it back in and built some hides out of cinder blocks and the toppers buried in the dirt *thanks to Kameya for the idea in a recent post*
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Finally I added the water dishes and seeded everything with a mix of chia, chickory, plantain, crimson and white clover and turnip greens.
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Now to play the waiting game and wait for the seeds to grow...
In the next day or two I will be adding a few heads of lettuce to each side, and before the torts go in I will be securing the lid onto the frame with hinges and locks, as well as blocking the sides with boards or something on the outside so they cant see out.
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I can't wait to get them out into it for the summer.
 
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TommyZ

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Really awesome job, very nice.

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sibi

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Nice outside enclosure! Good way to keep them safe while enjoying the outside.
 

n3rdchik

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This is really helpful with all those pics. Thank you!
 

SpdTrtl

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Great Job! This gave me some good ideas for my next outdoor enclosure.
 

Levi the Leopard

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8x 10 is a great start. And you have so much yard to expand to as time goes on! That's awesome :)

Did you see all those dandelions in one pic??? I bet the Russian's would love them for dinner.

Good job.

Oh, one last tip... try using photobucket or tinypic.com for adding pictures. It's soooo much easier for us viewers to scroll through picture heavy posts when the pics are directly in the thread ;) Just a better way to show us your stuff!
 

lynnedit

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Fantastic! Nice step by step photos (good suggestion from Heather).
If possible, what about putting the wood 'sight blocks' on the inside instead of the outside? That way they won't try to climb up the wire and fall or flip over.
Nice job, really nice.
 

kameya

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Way to go...J...see how easy it is to build the cinder block shelter, I see you've already got three of them built in your enclosure.

And like others have said, it is a good idea to cover up the side fence with solid panel to avoid the Russians trying to climb up the fence.
 

jjsull33

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I was thinking of putting tarps or something along the edges to block the sight, rather than wood, think that will work? I could affix it inside to block them from climbing the wire mesh.

Also there are 4 cinder block shelters, 2 on each side, one of them is fairly hidden because of the angle I put it at (its facing the big wooden fence behind the pen).
 

jjsull33

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I planted some lettuce around the pen today, each side got 2 red leaf, 1 green leaf, 1 romaine and 1 butter lettuce, plus the seeds are starting to sprout, not well enough to be seen in a picture but on the way.

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Tyrtle

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Hello fellow Coloradan! That's an awesome enclosure. You thought of everything. You can plant lots of things in there. Try some hostas or red chard. You can also plant a really nice Rose of Sharon just outside the pen and you'll have hibiscus flowers for them all Summer too.
 

Levi the Leopard

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jjsull33 said:
I was thinking of putting tarps or something along the edges to block the sight, rather than wood, think that will work? I could affix it inside to block them from climbing the wire mesh.

I like the wood barrier vs the tarp idea. I have some tarp on a section of yard fence that is shredding. I could imagine russians ripping it up, eating parts of it or managing to get some nails into it and use it for climbing leverage.

Whatever you choose to use as the barrier, make sure its on the inside so they dont climb the wire.

Have they moved into the pen yet? I can't wait to see pics of them in the new diggs!
 

jjsull33

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I hadn't thought of the tarp deteriorating, I'll use wood then.

They haven't moved in yet, it's still dipping down to the 40s at night, by the end of the month tho they will be out there. Plus this way the pen can develop a root system an might last a little bit longer before they tear it all up lol. I'll also probably plant a few other things in there over the next week, I want to get an aloe plant in there, there as well as spider plant.

Good call on the rose of Sharon outside the pen, I have a Room mate that likes to garden I'll have to get her to grow one for me haha.
 

Joanne

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I used the stuff they put as a damp barrier between bricks when building houses. We had some left over from our extension. It's black, about 5-6" wide and usually on a roll. I tucked it between the wood and the mesh so my Shermann can't get to the mesh. Although I don't know if it would be high enough for a Russian?
 

lynnedit

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Depends on the size of your tortoises.
If you have enough, double it to 10-12" high? Overlap the top layer over the bottom, so they can't get a grip with their nails.
Poke a few holes here and there along it, and use zip ties, tightened on the outside.
 

jjsull33

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Some growth has started! I think it's mostly the crimson clover but its on the way! My mother suggested I put Saran Wrap around the pen for now to make a green house to try to boost the growth rate. I'm gunna buy a roll in a day or two to try it out.

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jjsull33

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I've got a ton of new growth and its starting to fill in nicely, however I think the lettuce I planted died... These things happen ill try again soon, not that I expect it to last once they are in haha.

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The picture doesn't do it justice but its pretty full.
 
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