WartoleDaTortle
New Member
We rescued an 11 year old Russian tortoise in September. Unfortunately my husband lost his job around Thanksgiving and due to COVID has only now found a new one. Due to this we moved into a small apartment and are trying to figure out a good set up for him. During the winter we had him indoors in a temporary bin enclosure. But now that its warming up we want to do our best to make him an enclosure on our balcony. Space is a major issue. Our balcony is about 8'x4' but not all of it can be used for his enclosure. I grow plants on the balcony and the pots take up space,and sometimes we let our cats on the balcony to enjoy the sun.
What kind of enclosures would work for the balcony? If we can't provide him the 8'x4' space recommended, can he still be happy? He lived in a 40 gallon with no uvb for his first 11 years of life. Sometimes they would let him wander on the floor, but they kept their AC down often. We know this because we went to their house to pick him up and it was cold in there and they admitted to us how they kept him. I want his life going forward to be happy, and so I feel bad we can't give him the space he needs but my husband adores him and we don't want to give him up. He's become a major part of our family.
If we make an enclosure for him on the balcony, can we have part of it be a dirt enclosure, with a ramp down to the wood floor and then have him able to crawl around there? He would have about 2.5'x5' dirt area, and then a carefully tortoise proofed wooden deck for the rest of the area. We could set up some extra water bowls for him outside too.
Another concern is hawks. We have a ton of hawks and have already seen many of them on the roof of the building next door. Will they attack him? If we need to hawk proof, would having bird proof netting (like for fruit trees) around a pvc frame work to keep him safe? We need something movable if we do need a net.
Any examples would be very much appreciated!
What kind of enclosures would work for the balcony? If we can't provide him the 8'x4' space recommended, can he still be happy? He lived in a 40 gallon with no uvb for his first 11 years of life. Sometimes they would let him wander on the floor, but they kept their AC down often. We know this because we went to their house to pick him up and it was cold in there and they admitted to us how they kept him. I want his life going forward to be happy, and so I feel bad we can't give him the space he needs but my husband adores him and we don't want to give him up. He's become a major part of our family.
If we make an enclosure for him on the balcony, can we have part of it be a dirt enclosure, with a ramp down to the wood floor and then have him able to crawl around there? He would have about 2.5'x5' dirt area, and then a carefully tortoise proofed wooden deck for the rest of the area. We could set up some extra water bowls for him outside too.
Another concern is hawks. We have a ton of hawks and have already seen many of them on the roof of the building next door. Will they attack him? If we need to hawk proof, would having bird proof netting (like for fruit trees) around a pvc frame work to keep him safe? We need something movable if we do need a net.
Any examples would be very much appreciated!