INDOOR Underground Housing
- Thread starter Tom
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Did you put the babies in yet? Don't forget pics when you get them in there. A video would be even better
I bet they are going to be gleaming ear to ear with their new home.
I bet they are going to be gleaming ear to ear with their new home.
These are my six holdbacks. I intend to keep and raise these ones for a while just for fun. The two smallest ones are 60 and 61 grams, and the largest (right in the middle of the pic) is 71.
Here they are in the new enclosure. At first they stayed close to the light and food. On the menu today is young mallow, wild onion/garlic and grass.
This one brave little girl walked to the edge and peered down the hole for a bit.
So on day 1, Sunday, nobody wanted to explore the underworld. Well, I should say, I didn't see any of them under there. Here is what I saw on the morning of day 2. They did explore the whole upper level on day 1.
I'm not surprised they didn't take to it right away. Every time I have ever built a new burrow or shelter, it takes time for the tortoises to get used to it. Sometimes weeks. So today I put them all in the lower level a couple of times and let them find their way back to the light on their own. I looked in on them a dozen times and several times I saw one or two on the lower level. No pics yet. I'll try to get some tomorrow. They appear to feel totally comfortable in their new home as even on day 1, their appetite did not slow down even a little.
Here they are in the new enclosure. At first they stayed close to the light and food. On the menu today is young mallow, wild onion/garlic and grass.
This one brave little girl walked to the edge and peered down the hole for a bit.
So on day 1, Sunday, nobody wanted to explore the underworld. Well, I should say, I didn't see any of them under there. Here is what I saw on the morning of day 2. They did explore the whole upper level on day 1.
I'm not surprised they didn't take to it right away. Every time I have ever built a new burrow or shelter, it takes time for the tortoises to get used to it. Sometimes weeks. So today I put them all in the lower level a couple of times and let them find their way back to the light on their own. I looked in on them a dozen times and several times I saw one or two on the lower level. No pics yet. I'll try to get some tomorrow. They appear to feel totally comfortable in their new home as even on day 1, their appetite did not slow down even a little.
This is reallyreally amazing and I'm super excited about it. Why did you wait until after I'd finished my new enclosure!? guess I'll wait a bit and watch how your trial pans out...maybe this summer when I get Levi some sibs
guess I'll wait a bit and watch how your trial pans out...maybe this summer when I get Levi some sibs 
Are they all pretty much staying close to each other besides the occasional explorer?
dmarcus said:
For the first few minutes they did, but by the end of the first day they were all over every inch of the place in typical sulcata fashion.
Okay, guess once they felt safe they started doing there own thing..
How about cleaning? Is it difficult to clean the basement area once the small tortoises start messing it up?
kameya said:
I don't think there will be much need for cleaning down there. My babies all poop in their daily soaks and on the occasion that they poop in the enclosure it is almost always on the basking rock. The food area is also "upstairs" and easy to clean up too. If they do decide to start using the restroom down there, I will have to contort my arms all around to clean it up. Probably make for some funny pictures.
Very clever! I wonder if I could build this in a 40 gal breeder tank....? Think I'll wait to see how yours does...
M
Maggie Cummings
Guest
Hey Tom...great idea, but aren't you worried about them getting too cold down there?
If I were doing this...and I'm not, I'd drill very small holes in the bottom of each PVC pipe...and have a feeder opening at the surface...this way you could pour just enough water from different locations to ensure subterranean moisture. Very ingenious thinking Tom!
, I'd drill very small holes in the bottom of each PVC pipe...and have a feeder opening at the surface...this way you could pour just enough water from different locations to ensure subterranean moisture. Very ingenious thinking Tom!
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Interesting! Did you think about filling the whole bottom with substrate? (whether it be dirt, coco coir, sand, cypress, a mix) That way they can actually try burrowing and making tunnels or something (without the danger of actually being underground where you couldn't help them if a tunnel collapsed or something)
The ramps look kind of steep for their little bodies...are they able to climb up and down on their own or do they just slide down and need help getting up and out?
When I see a double decker enclosure I worry that they'll go down, not be warm enough, find a corner and just sit there, not warm enough to be active and climb back up, eat, bask, drink, etc...
The ramps look kind of steep for their little bodies...are they able to climb up and down on their own or do they just slide down and need help getting up and out?
When I see a double decker enclosure I worry that they'll go down, not be warm enough, find a corner and just sit there, not warm enough to be active and climb back up, eat, bask, drink, etc...
Zamric said:Very clever! I wonder if I could build this in a 40 gal breeder tank....? Think I'll wait to see how yours does...
I've got a 40 right next to this one. I'm thinking about it too.
maggie3fan said:
Have you gone loony on us?
You were in that room, remember? Its the one with the two oil heaters on separate, but redundant thermostats. It never drops below 80 in the whole room. And the thermostat probes are about 2' off the ground so its even warmer than 80 higher up in the room. The only way for them to get cold down there would be if the power failed. Most "normal" people don't like to be in that room for more than a few minutes because its so hot and humid. Not to mention all the roach bins...
pdrobber said:Interesting! Did you think about filling the whole bottom with substrate? (whether it be dirt, coco coir, sand, cypress, a mix) That way they can actually try burrowing and making tunnels or something (without the danger of actually being underground where you couldn't help them if a tunnel collapsed or something)
The ramps look kind of steep for their little bodies...are they able to climb up and down on their own or do they just slide down and need help getting up and out?
When I see a double decker enclosure I worry that they'll go down, not be warm enough, find a corner and just sit there, not warm enough to be active and climb back up, eat, bask, drink, etc...
Usually babies won't actually dig burrows. The smallest ones I've seen actually dig a burrow are 8-10". My little Daisy did it once. She was around 9-10" at the time.
I tried to find a pic that would show the incline of the ramps. They are not steep at all. They sort of corkscrew around in a very gentle slope.
I'm worried that they will stay down too much too, once they get used to it, but my older ones don't do this when they are outside. Time will tell. That's why its an experiment! Even if it does work for me, it still might not work as well for some people or some tortoises. I just think its kind of neat and fun, and if it goes the way I anticipate it will, it should be very good for them too.
M
Maggie Cummings
Guest
Did you just say I was not 'normal'? Yes, Tom, I know I am not normal and I am seriously proud of it!
But that is not the subject at hand...I really don't mean any disrespect. I keep Bob's shed about 80 sometimes higher never lower, however, Queenie is very cold when I get her out of bed. She is always under a large pile of hay with her eyes stuck shut and just very cold. The hay pile is 5 inches away from the black light and under a light test (children don't try this at home) performed just now here are the results, the ambient temp under the hay pile is 70 degrees, the temp against Queenie's carapace is 59 degrees and the overall temp in Bob's shed is 86 degrees. So if the hay pile is 70 and Bob's shed is 86 why is she still so cold? I am not trying to cause any trouble but something does not jibe and I can't figure out what it is right now, but I WILL worry about it until I figure out what it is.
This is what I envisioned, a long tunnel making it's way to a cavern type thing where they will rest eat and poop. The ceiling is low enough that they rub their carapaces against it but then they come to a small cave they had dug out previously, where they can use it for a dining room. I'm sorry Tom, I'm really not trying to cause you any trouble, but I can see that is what YOU are seeing. Perhaps it would be better if I just took my laptop and went home...
But that is not the subject at hand...I really don't mean any disrespect. I keep Bob's shed about 80 sometimes higher never lower, however, Queenie is very cold when I get her out of bed. She is always under a large pile of hay with her eyes stuck shut and just very cold. The hay pile is 5 inches away from the black light and under a light test (children don't try this at home) performed just now here are the results, the ambient temp under the hay pile is 70 degrees, the temp against Queenie's carapace is 59 degrees and the overall temp in Bob's shed is 86 degrees. So if the hay pile is 70 and Bob's shed is 86 why is she still so cold? I am not trying to cause any trouble but something does not jibe and I can't figure out what it is right now, but I WILL worry about it until I figure out what it is.
This is what I envisioned, a long tunnel making it's way to a cavern type thing where they will rest eat and poop. The ceiling is low enough that they rub their carapaces against it but then they come to a small cave they had dug out previously, where they can use it for a dining room. I'm sorry Tom, I'm really not trying to cause you any trouble, but I can see that is what YOU are seeing. Perhaps it would be better if I just took my laptop and went home...
I think it looks good, my only concern, and this is a concern with any two tier habitat is I would always worry about them tumbling down and getting stuck on their backs.
Looks good Tom, I know what Maggie is talking about, my enclosure temps can be high, yet in the hide itself it feels very cold. The moisture and evaporation will cool the air. I have since opened up my redfoots hide so that it gets more air circulation.
But in all reality they are probably not going to stay if it's to cold down there. So you may have to experiment with some heat down there.
Again this is a really neat idea, if it pans out I can see building a custom enclosure that opens up down there for access.
I look forward to following this thread.
But in all reality they are probably not going to stay if it's to cold down there. So you may have to experiment with some heat down there.
Again this is a really neat idea, if it pans out I can see building a custom enclosure that opens up down there for access.
I look forward to following this thread.
Maggie, dear...you ARE home!!!
I think you can solve the heat problem (if there is one) with an under-the-tank heat stick-'em-on thingey.
I think you can solve the heat problem (if there is one) with an under-the-tank heat stick-'em-on thingey.
Great idea, Tom!
I have one small suggestion. I would suspend some sort of light over the rest of the tank. I think if you brighten the whole enclosure more, it would encourage them to explore the "dark" spaces below.
I have one small suggestion. I would suspend some sort of light over the rest of the tank. I think if you brighten the whole enclosure more, it would encourage them to explore the "dark" spaces below.
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