Bored tort

[ielvinsburrows]

My hermann is bored with her enclosure and I don't really know what to add for tort fun and excitement.
It's pretty bland right now:
Substrate
Hiding spot
Bowl
Light

Suggestions?

 

[clare n]

RE: Bord tort

Spider plants are good to put in, bury the pots, flo is always wandering in and out amongst the leaves, also something like geraniums that they can nibble on and other tortoise friendly grazing plants. Dot a few around, make one clump quite dense so your tort can hide under. Put a cuttle bone in, may show an interest or may not but then its there if he/she ever fancies it. Do you take your tortoise outdoors at all? It may be that it's too small in there, I could be wrong as I have no idea the size of your table

 

[lynnedit]

RE: Bord tort

Yes, is there any chance you can set up something outside, at least for the daytime?
Meanwhile, how big is your tort and how big is its enclosure?

 

[GBtortoises]

RE: Bord tort

My hermann is bored with her enclosure and I don't really know what to add for tort fun and excitement.
It's pretty bland right now:
Substrate
Hiding spot
Bowl
Light

Suggestions?

How do you know that your tortoise is "bored" and needs fun and excitement?
Bored, fun & excitement are human emotions, not tortoises. Tortoises emotions (if you can call them that) are eat, sleep, breed, survive.

 

[ielvinsburrows]

RE: Bord tort

How do you know that your tortoise is "bored" and needs fun and excitement?
Bored, fun & excitement are human emotions, not tortoises. Tortoises emotions (if you can call them that) are eat, sleep, breed, survive.

I guess I could be wrong. My tort just tries to run around a lot outside and then inside there's nothing to do. The enclosure just looks very bare so I'm looking for suggestions that's all.

 

[clare n]

RE: Bord tort

If its just moving about all over, having a look about, it's doing what they do naturally, if it's scaling the perimeter constantly wanting "out" And climbing the walls,it's their way of saying more room please. Apart from the essentials and the little bits and pieces you put in there that are useful for more cover and grazing, whatever you put in there will only please you aesthetically. If it doesnt benefit them directly (can i eat it, or can i sit or hide in it) it may as well not be there.I put "wallpaper" in Phillips, but that's just for me really because 70% of the time it's a big empty box in the lounge... It could just need more room, and would benefit hugely for being outdoors. They certainly don't get "bored" out there but try the plants and extra hides if it turns out that it IS big enough.

 

[Madkins007]

Animals need a certain amount of stimulation in their lives, but what stimulates them varies by species. Wild tortoises are stimulated by the wide-ranging hunt for food, mating, etc.

Indoors, we can offer plants that they can hide under, eat, shove themselves into, etc. We can also offer a good water dish to sit in, plenty of space to move around in, hills and things to climb on, different hiding places, etc.

We can also play with their food. Using good food items for that species, we can do things like hiding food in the habitat (tucking a mushroom in a far corner, sticking a strawberry partly under a piece of bark, etc.). Or we can offer something awkward but tasty to eat, like a chunk of melon rind or corn on the cob. One thing that my guys like when I do it is to make a bundle of greens, then hang them from the side of the habitat (I use a chip clip and hang it on a suction cup hook)

 

[ielvinsburrows]

Just realized I spelled bored wrong... How embarrassing >_<

 

[ashned7]

hey I think we had a bored tort. I posted a few times in the russian section about an inactive russian called Lola. Decided house too small, and not enough to feel mischievous about doing lol. Our russian went into a bigger house and is now a totally happy tort
she went from this:


to this:


and after a few weeks she is so much more active and alert

 

[ielvinsburrows]

hey I think we had a bored tort. I posted a few times in the russian section about an inactive russian called Lola. Decided house too small, and not enough to feel mischievous about doing lol. Our russian went into a bigger house and is now a totally happy tort
she went from this:

to this:

and after a few weeks she is so much more active and alert

Wow that's a really great enclosure. My only question is how do you clean it out without ruining the beautiful landscaping?

 

[ashned7]

haha iv just cleaned her out, its impossible really, just take things out one section at a time. I remove her poos on the surface every day anyway then just mist every day so it doesnt dry out too much.

 

[Laura]

also... when you take a small tort and place it outside.. and its running around.. it might scared and looking for a place to hide. a bit overwhelming.. its best to have a secure enclosure outside as well. One they can get used to and feel secure in.