New tortoise hut almost complete
- Thread starter Oftel101
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- hut outdoor house sulcata
The doorway looks very wide. How big is your enclosure and how big is your tortoise?
Oftel101
New Member
Tortoise is about 85 lbs. His shell is about 18" wide and 24" long. I haven't measured the opening exactly, but it is about 32" wide I think.
Oftel101
New Member
Speedy-1
Well-Known Member
Check out Kane Heat Mats , they have worked well for me . https://www.kanemfg.com/pet-heating/
Oftel101
New Member
I have a Kane Mat ordered already and am going to add some heavy vinyl curtain strips to the doorway. Might add a solar side light for aesthetics. Maybe an American Flag on one side too!
You know the plastic strips they use on walk-in cooler doorways to keep the cool air in and the hot air out? You can hang those on your tortoise doorway and they'll still go in and out of them...
Any reason why you can't leave the pavers where they are? Sulcatas tend to dig and the pavers might deter it...
Any reason why you can't leave the pavers where they are? Sulcatas tend to dig and the pavers might deter it...
Im leaning with @Big Charlie on this. The front opening seems much too wide to maintain heat. Id measure the width of your Sully, and adjust the width of the entrance to be just a few inches wider, and add the flaps as well. Other than thst, looking good!
Heres a close up pix of our sully exiting his house..... He seems to like to tuck in and feel snug and protected and warm.
Heres a close up pix of our sully exiting his house..... He seems to like to tuck in and feel snug and protected and warm.
You could add a few pieces of wood on the sides of the doorway to close it off more, and then remove them later when he gets bigger. I think Charlie's opening is about 2 feet wide. You just need it wide enough for him to be able to get in and out. Are you going to add any heat in the ceiling? Radiant heat panels are good for this. Here in California, I've needed both a radiant heat panel and the Kane mat to keep him warm on colder days.
Oftel101
New Member
I will adjust as recommended. I can make the opening smaller very easily and still maintain the aesthetic I am looking for. It might look even better. I plan on adding the clear vinyl flaps as well. I have been looking at Tom's posts and think I will get the radiant heat panel and the Kane Mat to add to one side of the house with the thermostat on the cool side. I definitely can keep the pavers as they are, but I though he might like it better with a dirt floor.
In my experience, they don't care about the floor as long as they are warm. He will center himself on the Kane mat and not spend much time at all in the rest of the box. I would use whichever flooring is easiest to clean because he is definitely going to make a mess.
Oftel101
New Member
Hmmm. If he is going to center himself on the mat, I wonder if I should get a wider mat than the 18". If I get the 18 inch wide mat and push it to the side, he wont really be able to get totally centered...
I have the 27 x 48. There is still room for him to get off it if he gets too hot.
