Hello! We have an adult Hermann (about 60 years old, been in the family 58 years) who is outside most of the summer, but indoors early spring and fall (and winter when he’s not hibernating). We don’t currently have an enclosure for him - he’s used to walking around in the house (no commentary please). We’ll be renovating part of our house and want to build an indoor enclosure for him as part of this — several feet wide by 6-8 feet long. We’re thinking of recessing it into the ground, although not sure yet. It will be in a room not exclusively devoted to him, but part of a larger room the family will use, and I’m looking forward to planting fun plants in his enclosure to provide greenery in the room.
I read posts about getting bugs to help address the poop/pee — but should we expect a lot of odor? (If he poops on the floor now, we know it immediately!) Do the bugs take care of it enough that you don’t have to shovel out the substrate and replace it very often? And do the bugs tend to get out and spread through the house?
We could consider a faucet/hose in the enclosure and a drain to help with 1) refilling a soaking area and 2) cleaning — would this be useful?
What would you recommend building / lining it with? I’m thinking tile with the substrate over it for easy cleaning, but perhaps there are better ideas?
I’ve seen a lot of posts that talk about enclosed enclosures, but I don’t think such a high humidity level is necessary for an adult Hermann, is it? As we’ll have plants (and substrate) in there, we’ll mist and water regularly. So think it is fine for the top to be open?
Any and all suggestions welcome! We’re in the early stages of planning our renovation, so still not 100% sure where we’ll position this in the room, so there’s flexibility. We’re thinking under the stairs, so we can hang the necessary lamps from the underside of the stairs. Anyone done anything similar and have pictures to share?
Thanks for the input and suggestions!
I read posts about getting bugs to help address the poop/pee — but should we expect a lot of odor? (If he poops on the floor now, we know it immediately!) Do the bugs take care of it enough that you don’t have to shovel out the substrate and replace it very often? And do the bugs tend to get out and spread through the house?
We could consider a faucet/hose in the enclosure and a drain to help with 1) refilling a soaking area and 2) cleaning — would this be useful?
What would you recommend building / lining it with? I’m thinking tile with the substrate over it for easy cleaning, but perhaps there are better ideas?
I’ve seen a lot of posts that talk about enclosed enclosures, but I don’t think such a high humidity level is necessary for an adult Hermann, is it? As we’ll have plants (and substrate) in there, we’ll mist and water regularly. So think it is fine for the top to be open?
Any and all suggestions welcome! We’re in the early stages of planning our renovation, so still not 100% sure where we’ll position this in the room, so there’s flexibility. We’re thinking under the stairs, so we can hang the necessary lamps from the underside of the stairs. Anyone done anything similar and have pictures to share?
Thanks for the input and suggestions!
