Outdoor enclosure for Redfoots?

NDevon

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As it warms up I want to give my 4 Cherryhead hatchlings some time outdoors. They are hatchlings so need to be safe, I won't leave them out for long it's just to get some sun. Looking for any pictures people have of what they have done.

My enclosed back garden is about quarter of an acre and mostly grass, I was thinking I could either move them round the garden every few days or if it was better to I could build something in one area. I don't mind something more permanent but I've got bigger plans for the future so I wasn't too fussed for this year. I'm wondering about substrates - just on the grass or different substrates for them to spend time on? Hide/shade - if it's just heated by the sun that will be ok won't it? Do I need to be checking temperatures? What sort of size would people have for 4 hatchlings to yearlings for a few hours a day or so?

I've looked through so many threads but wanted to start something myself for some up to date info.

So my two options are something like a rabbit run that I can just move round the garden and the questions connected with that, or something more permanent really, I wanted ideas for both so I can make a choose.

If I go for something more permanent I could obviously plant it up for them too. I'm just not sure how much time they can spend in it, I know it's down to the temperature and conditions, I don't want to start installing heating really, it seems pointless for something at will be replaced next year, and they have a home indoors obviously.

I'm in North Devon in the UK, temperatures fluctuate, I guess on a nice day it's 70 degrees rising to early 80s? Never really monitored temperature that closely if I'm honest! In the sun it would be warmer of course.

What do you all do?
 

Anyfoot

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As it warms up I want to give my 4 Cherryhead hatchlings some time outdoors. They are hatchlings so need to be safe, I won't leave them out for long it's just to get some sun. Looking for any pictures people have of what they have done.

My enclosed back garden is about quarter of an acre and mostly grass, I was thinking I could either move them round the garden every few days or if it was better to I could build something in one area. I don't mind something more permanent but I've got bigger plans for the future so I wasn't too fussed for this year. I'm wondering about substrates - just on the grass or different substrates for them to spend time on? Hide/shade - if it's just heated by the sun that will be ok won't it? Do I need to be checking temperatures? What sort of size would people have for 4 hatchlings to yearlings for a few hours a day or so?

I've looked through so many threads but wanted to start something myself for some up to date info.

So my two options are something like a rabbit run that I can just move round the garden and the questions connected with that, or something more permanent really, I wanted ideas for both so I can make a choose.

If I go for something more permanent I could obviously plant it up for them too. I'm just not sure how much time they can spend in it, I know it's down to the temperature and conditions, I don't want to start installing heating really, it seems pointless for something at will be replaced next year, and they have a home indoors obviously.

I'm in North Devon in the UK, temperatures fluctuate, I guess on a nice day it's 70 degrees rising to early 80s? Never really monitored temperature that closely if I'm honest! In the sun it would be warmer of course.

What do you all do?

To have a run you can move about easily, it may be too small for your herd to get exercise and venture away from each other.
Because they are small they will cool quicker, so quite a lot of the time in our climate you may only have them out 1hr at a time, longer on hotter days obviously.
Personally I'd get 4 off 8ft long boards and make a static temperory 8ft sq area, with shaded area to. I'd put mulch over the grass in small areas, and soil in others to mix it up. Stick some plants in there to, nothing hard to keep, pansys, spider plants even some herbs so they can walk amongst foliage, clumps of longer grass maybe in areas.
I'm guessing you have wild animals encroaching your property living on a farm. So a wire mesh cover too.

Just thoughts for you to go at.
 

NDevon

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Cheers @Anyfoot that sounds simple enough. I guess I'm just anxious about the temperatures for them really. We don't have a fox problem as they know better or have already been 'moved along' one way or another, we have a stunning pair of buzzards who live on the land and could easily pick up a tortoise if they felt inclined, they spend a lot of time keeping an eye on us as it us so I wouldn't risk the tortoises without some kind of roof. We also have dogs but they wouldn't get near, even so I'd keep their toiled covered.

I think an hour at a time would be fine anyway, gets them out in the sun and gives them something to explore.

Not thought about herbs for them, I will look on tortoisetable later but do any spring to mind as good or bad?

Thanks for the tips :)
 

Pearly

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Hey there! I'm keeping my babies in very warm/very humid 40 gal terrarium their first year. They get to go out almost daily during warmest part of day. Their outings have been pretty short (about 1 hr) bcs there's 2 of them and they require very close supervision. I had already lost one of them and he was gone for 4 wks! Never want to go though that again. As soon as their tort garden gets enclosed I'll start putting them out there for longer and unsuprvised. Of course I'm in Texas and we are approaching summer which here it lasts till october. My babies are about 3 and 3&1/2 inches now. One guiding thought for me has been that "temps should not be below 80F for babies". My temp gun has been getting lots of good use
 

theguy67

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You can always get a small green house kit, and place it outside. This will help with temps and keep the birds away. Of course, you may need to reinforce it, and/or weight it down. Just be careful on the warmer days.
 

NDevon

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I followed you when you lost your littlun @Pearly and it must have been so horrible, so I want to make sure mine are secure. It's a lot milder here than in Texas, last summer was lovely from early June right through until late September and October was mild, the summer before I don't remember seeing the sun! I'm looking at wood so I can make a frame, it will be around 8'x8', I'm not sure of the height.... I know they are only low to the ground but it doesn't feel right just making it 6" off the ground, so I think I'm going to build boards up to make it higher. My wife laughed at me saying it needs to be tall, my justification is for the plants I want to grow!

@theguy67 I may get a small cold frame actually, good thinking thanks, I think I could coo bind it wih the wooden frame, if I put it on one end - it wouldn't be 8', more like 4' I guess - it gives them another option when outside, the tops tilt open so I could keep it ventilated so it didn't get too warm. I could either put it on the grass and cut a hole in the front, or seat it on the wooden frame so it's more like a roof - better ventilated at the bottom and easier for them to get in and out.

Lots to think about, thanks guys :)
 

NDevon

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My wife just laughed at me again, this is meant to be a temporary thing for this summer, it's looking like a monster build now, she asked me if I was going to install a hot tub and BBQ for them. I said I hadn't decided yet... :p
 

Yvonne G

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My wife just laughed at me again, this is meant to be a temporary thing for this summer, it's looking like a monster build now, she asked me if I was going to install a hot tub and BBQ for them. I said I hadn't decided yet... :p

Pictures or it didn't happen!
 

Anyfoot

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Not sure which herbs are tort tasty, there are many. Ones I've grown for my own use and do well over here are thyme, chives, coriander and basil(this one not as hardy).
I believe wild garlic is OK for torts to. This is found all over in the UK. There's a woods near us that the ground gets covered in wild garlic. I should try it sometime.
 

N2TORTS

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My wife just laughed at me again, this is meant to be a temporary thing for this summer, it's looking like a monster build now, she asked me if I was going to install a hot tub and BBQ for them. I said I hadn't decided yet... :p
Tell her .... "Both" ;)
 

Pearly

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You can always get a small green house kit, and place it outside. This will help with temps and keep the birds away. Of course, you may need to reinforce it, and/or weight it down. Just be careful on the warmer days.
That's an awesome idea! I would so totally do it! But wait! First would have to be married to a different man this one (of 23 years) is so against any pets, gardening that spending even a dime on that sort of stuff creates a big civil war over here. One must chose her battles. But greenhouse sounds like great choice for cold climate zone. I think @Yvonne G did something like that with greenhouse and I know another member did too can't remember who
 

NDevon

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Been a while, I've had to give my son all my time for a while as he hasn't been well. The weather is so nice here now I really want to get on with this and get the tortoises outside. I've had them out in the garden a few times, but it's hard to keep an eye on 4, I'm paranoid I'll lose somebody so I don't let them walk more than a few feet and that's no fun for them.

I was going to have something I could move around, but I want to landscape and make it more permanant. It's a nice size area and won't be used for long each day, but I will be making something bigger in the future as I'm aware tortoises grow!

So here are some pics of the area. I've chosen it as it's not really used, it's a small portion of the garden. It has sun (when it's sunny) from around mid morning and some of the area not in the shadow of the structure adjacent to it will be sunny until sunset. I like it because it will be at waist height when standing down on the lower level. It also has a nice slope, which will help as I want to make the landscaping interesting with hills, tunnels and a stream.

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In theory I can use most of that area, from the front wall to the structure on one side, the steps on the other. I'm not sure how far up I will go, the tree isn't moving (it's a little Christmas tree we planted and it's positioned perfectly so we can see it from our living room). I could build a box round the tree, or more likely I will stop the enclosure at the edge of the tree. It won't be a square box, it will follow the lines of the area to fit in - the garden is very informal. As a challenge I'm going to try and make it for as little as possible, I'm going to collect up some pallets sitting around the farm and break them down to use the wood, I already have pond liner and a pump, I have some wire mesh for the roof. I think it will be fun to see if I can make this for next to nothing, I can afford to spend some money on it but if I can save money my partner will be happy as we can spend the money on our wedding. Oh, and I've already spent a fortune on equipment for their new vivarium I'm still planning, so I need to make amends!

I'm open to ideas for this enclosure. I can dig it up, leave it, create hills, valleys, anything really. What do you think?

Lastly, I'm so bad at this weeds thing. I must confess I buy their food, which isn't too bad as they are so small, but they will get bigger and eat more. As I live in a very rural part of the country I'm sure there is every type of weed around, I've tried to identify them from pics on the tortoise table but I just don't see them, they don't look anything like I have in my garden apart from dandelions! I will take pics of anything 'weedy' and maybe you can tell me what they are and what is safe. I've heard about people buying seeds online for weeds, are these available in the uk? I'm also going through the threads @Pearly and @Anyfoot have made as you bo list lots of plants I can hopefully find and grow.
 

Anyfoot

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Been a while, I've had to give my son all my time for a while as he hasn't been well. The weather is so nice here now I really want to get on with this and get the tortoises outside. I've had them out in the garden a few times, but it's hard to keep an eye on 4, I'm paranoid I'll lose somebody so I don't let them walk more than a few feet and that's no fun for them.

I was going to have something I could move around, but I want to landscape and make it more permanant. It's a nice size area and won't be used for long each day, but I will be making something bigger in the future as I'm aware tortoises grow!

So here are some pics of the area. I've chosen it as it's not really used, it's a small portion of the garden. It has sun (when it's sunny) from around mid morning and some of the area not in the shadow of the structure adjacent to it will be sunny until sunset. I like it because it will be at waist height when standing down on the lower level. It also has a nice slope, which will help as I want to make the landscaping interesting with hills, tunnels and a stream.

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In theory I can use most of that area, from the front wall to the structure on one side, the steps on the other. I'm not sure how far up I will go, the tree isn't moving (it's a little Christmas tree we planted and it's positioned perfectly so we can see it from our living room). I could build a box round the tree, or more likely I will stop the enclosure at the edge of the tree. It won't be a square box, it will follow the lines of the area to fit in - the garden is very informal. As a challenge I'm going to try and make it for as little as possible, I'm going to collect up some pallets sitting around the farm and break them down to use the wood, I already have pond liner and a pump, I have some wire mesh for the roof. I think it will be fun to see if I can make this for next to nothing, I can afford to spend some money on it but if I can save money my partner will be happy as we can spend the money on our wedding. Oh, and I've already spent a fortune on equipment for their new vivarium I'm still planning, so I need to make amends!

I'm open to ideas for this enclosure. I can dig it up, leave it, create hills, valleys, anything really. What do you think?

Lastly, I'm so bad at this weeds thing. I must confess I buy their food, which isn't too bad as they are so small, but they will get bigger and eat more. As I live in a very rural part of the country I'm sure there is every type of weed around, I've tried to identify them from pics on the tortoise table but I just don't see them, they don't look anything like I have in my garden apart from dandelions! I will take pics of anything 'weedy' and maybe you can tell me what they are and what is safe. I've heard about people buying seeds online for weeds, are these available in the uk? I'm also going through the threads @Pearly and @Anyfoot have made as you bo list lots of plants I can hopefully find and grow.
I'm far from an expert on plants, but I'm pretty sure buttercups are toxic for Tortoises if consumed in volume. If that's the case(hoping someone verifies that) I would dig out an area to bare soil that you are going to dedicate to your torts(and plant from scratch), then create a boarder around that area. I seem to remember you live on a farm where predators are probably a high risk. If your wanting to leave these to wander alone whilst you do your daily chores on warm days you are going to have to cover them, which means for now I would not go too big, later when they are too big for predators you can make a huge enclosure as it won't need covering.
When I make my enclosure for the hingeback torts(a small species) I'm going to build something that looks more like an aviary. So I can walk in it and they are protected from foxes etc. Just a thought, but probably OTT for you because you only need something temperory until they get of some size. I'm thinking for now you should keep it simple, have a look at some of Toms enclosures for his small testudo species, and don't forget because they are small they won't be able to stop outside for long unless it's a very warm day. Small torts get cold quicker if it's not warm enough. My juveniles are about 2yrs old now and are just getting some serious weight to them, they can spend quite a bit of time out on warm days now, even as low as 15°c on clear sunny days. At 18months they could not IMO.
You need to make sure you pick a spot that is a sun trap, but also provide deep shade.

First you could do with some of your plants identifying. So maybe get a thread started on your plants/weeds and any weeds you have access too. Then this may give you an idea in which area to use for your juveniles. For example, I don't know what that bush is hanging over the fence, but if it's toxic you can't have you enclosure under that bush, or ditch the bush.

Finally, why does it look like you have a drain pipe running from a bush. Lol.
 

JoesMum

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I'm far from an expert on plants, but I'm pretty sure buttercups are toxic for Tortoises if consumed in volume.
There are toxins in buttercups that is true.

Whether or not they are actually toxic to torts is another matter.

I would not plant them. I would not pick them to feed an indoor tort.

However, Joe has been eating them as part of his varied grazing in the garden for the last 46 years. He likes to go round from flower to flower just eating the flowers. His real favourite for grazing is white clover though.

I have long since given up trying to eradicate buttercups from my British lawn - purely because I would prefer grass not because of the toxins - it's impossible to do it.

All this said, Joe is Greek and buttercups undoubtedly form part of his wild counterpart's diet. Red foot I cannot speak for.

If that's the case(hoping someone verifies that) I would dig out an area to bare soil that you are going to dedicate to your torts(and plant from scratch), then create a boarder around that area.
Scraping all that healthy graze out seems excessive to me.

seem to remember you live on a farm where predators are probably a high risk. If your wanting to leave these to wander alone whilst you do your daily chores on warm days you are going to have to cover them, which means for now I would not go too big, later when they are too big for predators you can make a huge enclosure as it won't need covering.
When I make my enclosure for the hingeback torts(a small species) I'm going to build something that looks more like an aviary. So I can walk in it and they are protected from foxes etc. Just a thought, but probably OTT for you because you only need something temperory until they get of some size.
Very much depends on where you are and the size of the torts. A large fox could walk off with a small tort or do the dog thing of using it as a chew toy.

Bigger birds of prey are few and far between in the UK. Red Kite and and possibly Buzzard may take an interest in a smaller tort.

I'm thinking for now you should keep it simple, have a look at some of Toms enclosures for his small testudo species, and don't forget because they are small they won't be able to stop outside for long unless it's a very warm day. Small torts get cold quicker if it's not warm enough. My juveniles are about 2yrs old now and are just getting some serious weight to them, they can spend quite a bit of time out on warm days now, even as low as 15°c on clear sunny days. At 18months they could not IMO.
You need to make sure you pick a spot that is a sun trap, but also provide deep shade.
Try this thread as well
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/outdoor-accommodation-in-a-colder-uk-climate.140866/
First you could do with some of your plants identifying. So maybe get a thread started on your plants/weeds and any weeds you have access too. Then this may give you an idea in which area to use for your juveniles. For example, I don't know what that bush is hanging over the fence, but if it's toxic you can't have you enclosure under that bush, or ditch the bush.

Finally, why does it look like you have a drain pipe running from a bush. Lol.
There will be some stuff you want to pull out. Dock for example. As Joe has access to such a large space, I only get rid if stuff that's offending me.

With a smaller enclosure, I would make sure it's carefully chosen not to be in a particularly wet spot and to get the sun. Turf is hard to cut in a smaller enclosure, so you may decide it easier to remove it and torts do like bare earth as well as grass.

Please keep in mind that my experience is with Testudo. The red foots need different care and conditions so you will need to make some fine tuning for them especially in our climate!
 

Anyfoot

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There are toxins in buttercups that is true.

Whether or not they are actually toxic to torts is another matter.

I would not plant them. I would not pick them to feed an indoor tort.

However, Joe has been eating them as part of his varied grazing in the garden for the last 46 years. He likes to go round from flower to flower just eating the flowers. His real favourite for grazing is white clover though.

I have long since given up trying to eradicate buttercups from my British lawn - purely because I would prefer grass not because of the toxins - it's impossible to do it.

All this said, Joe is Greek and buttercups undoubtedly form part of his wild counterpart's diet. Red foot I cannot speak for.


Scraping all that healthy graze out seems excessive to me.


Very much depends on where you are and the size of the torts. A large fox could walk off with a small tort or do the dog thing of using it as a chew toy.

Bigger birds of prey are few and far between in the UK. Red Kite and and possibly Buzzard may take an interest in a smaller tort.


Try this thread as well
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/outdoor-accommodation-in-a-colder-uk-climate.140866/

There will be some stuff you want to pull out. Dock for example. As Joe has access to such a large space, I only get rid if stuff that's offending me.

With a smaller enclosure, I would make sure it's carefully chosen not to be in a particularly wet spot and to get the sun. Turf is hard to cut in a smaller enclosure, so you may decide it easier to remove it and torts do like bare earth as well as grass.

Please keep in mind that my experience is with Testudo. The red foots need different care and conditions so you will need to make some fine tuning for them especially in our climate!
I agree its excessive if the plants/weeds that are there are ok. What about daisies? I couldn't find any info on TTT on them. I noticed Ndevon has lots of them too.
 

JoesMum

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I agree its excessive if the plants/weeds that are there are ok. What about daisies? I couldn't find any info on TTT on them. I noticed Ndevon has lots of them too.
Not considered good to eat by torts. Joe completely ignores them. I don't try to get rid of them either. Again, you won't get a British garden without them and Testudo will be used to them in the wild.
 

NDevon

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Thanks @Anyfoot and @JoesMum - I appreciate the advice and thoughts.

I'm struggling to decide what to do. When I put them in the garden they are off like [very slow] rockets, and it's great to see them exploring. They are not trying to hide, they seem to be enjoying checking out the garden. I want to make it big enough for them to get some good exercise, but not too big that I never finish it. I'm wondering how long they can even go out for now, it's difficult to know isn't it. They range from 7 months to 4 months, they are al doing well but spend their time in a vivarium wih the temperature and humidity going through a cycle each and every day. These last few days it's been between 20 and 22 degrees at its warmest in the garden, I felt they could have a couple of hours out in those sort of temperatures but are they a bit young for that long?

To answer your questions @Anyfoot the plant to the left with the long hanging flowers is a wisteria and toxic but the enclosure wouldn't sit right under the plant, it will stop before so any falling flowers won't land in the enclosure. That said the flowers won't be on for much longer, they don't last long. As for getting rid of it my other half would get rid of me! It's her favourite plant, and we think this one is 20 years old and has firmly welded itself into the structure it's growing on! The other plant on the end of the structure is a honeysuckle. Normal honeysuckle is 'feed in moderation', I just need to confirm its not a different toxic type. As for the drainpipe, it's for that 'structure' as it has a large roof. We call it he BBQ area, it's semi enclosed, it's big (18'x14' I think) and it means we can sit out at night if it's cooler or raining. I have a couple of BBQ's in there hence the imaginative name. I had to put a tarpaulin inside as the wisteria ate the roof, but now it's pretty dry in there unless it's raining sideways and comes through the gaps in the walls.

I could dig all the grass up, but in all honesty I bed I'd have buttercups and Daisy's back before any grass grew. Having so many fields and so much countryside around means weed control is a never ending task, the grass in the garden looks lush and green but looking close its full of weeds, more weeds than grass I reckon. Hence I need to check out the weeds and what they can and can't eat. I may have to dig it all up if that's what's needed, I don't mind if I do.

I like the idea of the walk in aviary type enclosure. We have a fruit cage, I did suggest I use that but I got a look that made me realise it was a silly suggestion. I guess I will have to keep it covered at all times, we have a pair of buzzards who live in a wood I can see from our garden, never seen them land in the garden but they are out hunting most days, I won't risk tempting them.

I'll get some pics of each and every weed tomorrow, firstly those in the grass so I can ensure they can eat what they walk on, and then those in and around the garden so I know which if any they can eat.

Thanks again for the advice tough guys, I really appreciate it :)
 

JoesMum

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Thanks @Anyfoot and @JoesMum - I appreciate the advice and thoughts.

I'm struggling to decide what to do. When I put them in the garden they are off like [very slow] rockets, and it's great to see them exploring. They are not trying to hide, they seem to be enjoying checking out the garden. I want to make it big enough for them to get some good exercise, but not too big that I never finish it. I'm wondering how long they can even go out for now, it's difficult to know isn't it. They range from 7 months to 4 months, they are al doing well but spend their time in a vivarium wih the temperature and humidity going through a cycle each and every day. These last few days it's been between 20 and 22 degrees at its warmest in the garden, I felt they could have a couple of hours out in those sort of temperatures but are they a bit young for that long?

To answer your questions @Anyfoot the plant to the left with the long hanging flowers is a wisteria and toxic but the enclosure wouldn't sit right under the plant, it will stop before so any falling flowers won't land in the enclosure. That said the flowers won't be on for much longer, they don't last long. As for getting rid of it my other half would get rid of me! It's her favourite plant, and we think this one is 20 years old and has firmly welded itself into the structure it's growing on! The other plant on the end of the structure is a honeysuckle. Normal honeysuckle is 'feed in moderation', I just need to confirm its not a different toxic type. As for the drainpipe, it's for that 'structure' as it has a large roof. We call it he BBQ area, it's semi enclosed, it's big (18'x14' I think) and it means we can sit out at night if it's cooler or raining. I have a couple of BBQ's in there hence the imaginative name. I had to put a tarpaulin inside as the wisteria ate the roof, but now it's pretty dry in there unless it's raining sideways and comes through the gaps in the walls.

I could dig all the grass up, but in all honesty I bed I'd have buttercups and Daisy's back before any grass grew. Having so many fields and so much countryside around means weed control is a never ending task, the grass in the garden looks lush and green but looking close its full of weeds, more weeds than grass I reckon. Hence I need to check out the weeds and what they can and can't eat. I may have to dig it all up if that's what's needed, I don't mind if I do.

I like the idea of the walk in aviary type enclosure. We have a fruit cage, I did suggest I use that but I got a look that made me realise it was a silly suggestion. I guess I will have to keep it covered at all times, we have a pair of buzzards who live in a wood I can see from our garden, never seen them land in the garden but they are out hunting most days, I won't risk tempting them.

I'll get some pics of each and every weed tomorrow, firstly those in the grass so I can ensure they can eat what they walk on, and then those in and around the garden so I know which if any they can eat.

Thanks again for the advice tough guys, I really appreciate it :)
Hi

Your torts are very small at the moment. I read on another thread yesterday, Tom suggesting a max of an hour outside for every inch of shell which seems as good a guide as any.

Red Foots are South American and our weather hasn't exactly been toasty over the last few days. Unlike the Testudo, they don't hibernate and, I suspect, handle the chilly days less well. I think the outside time needs to be kept for the good weather days unless you have a heated shelter of some sort.
 

Anyfoot

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UK Sheffield
Thanks @Anyfoot and @JoesMum - I appreciate the advice and thoughts.

I'm struggling to decide what to do. When I put them in the garden they are off like [very slow] rockets, and it's great to see them exploring. They are not trying to hide, they seem to be enjoying checking out the garden. I want to make it big enough for them to get some good exercise, but not too big that I never finish it. I'm wondering how long they can even go out for now, it's difficult to know isn't it. They range from 7 months to 4 months, they are al doing well but spend their time in a vivarium wih the temperature and humidity going through a cycle each and every day. These last few days it's been between 20 and 22 degrees at its warmest in the garden, I felt they could have a couple of hours out in those sort of temperatures but are they a bit young for that long?

To answer your questions @Anyfoot the plant to the left with the long hanging flowers is a wisteria and toxic but the enclosure wouldn't sit right under the plant, it will stop before so any falling flowers won't land in the enclosure. That said the flowers won't be on for much longer, they don't last long. As for getting rid of it my other half would get rid of me! It's her favourite plant, and we think this one is 20 years old and has firmly welded itself into the structure it's growing on! The other plant on the end of the structure is a honeysuckle. Normal honeysuckle is 'feed in moderation', I just need to confirm its not a different toxic type. As for the drainpipe, it's for that 'structure' as it has a large roof. We call it he BBQ area, it's semi enclosed, it's big (18'x14' I think) and it means we can sit out at night if it's cooler or raining. I have a couple of BBQ's in there hence the imaginative name. I had to put a tarpaulin inside as the wisteria ate the roof, but now it's pretty dry in there unless it's raining sideways and comes through the gaps in the walls.

I could dig all the grass up, but in all honesty I bed I'd have buttercups and Daisy's back before any grass grew. Having so many fields and so much countryside around means weed control is a never ending task, the grass in the garden looks lush and green but looking close its full of weeds, more weeds than grass I reckon. Hence I need to check out the weeds and what they can and can't eat. I may have to dig it all up if that's what's needed, I don't mind if I do.

I like the idea of the walk in aviary type enclosure. We have a fruit cage, I did suggest I use that but I got a look that made me realise it was a silly suggestion. I guess I will have to keep it covered at all times, we have a pair of buzzards who live in a wood I can see from our garden, never seen them land in the garden but they are out hunting most days, I won't risk tempting them.

I'll get some pics of each and every weed tomorrow, firstly those in the grass so I can ensure they can eat what they walk on, and then those in and around the garden so I know which if any they can eat.

Thanks again for the advice tough guys, I really appreciate it :)
Yeah, I agree with joesmum. There will be days when you can leave them out for quite a while, but days when they can only have a hour outside. 20°c is fine as long as it's not really windy, the wind chill will drag temps down, that's why I said pick a sun trap area, the other day I had my adults out in 22°c, there actual carapaces were 32°c(I think, forgot exact figure). This is because the area was shelter from winds. You'll be amazed how different colours and materials absorb the infrared spectrum of the sun. Soil on that day was reading nearer 40°c. Get a heat gun and just randomly check objects outside, you'll see what I mean. Will made a comment a few weeks ago about one of his dark coloured torts absorbing heat on cooler days, makes sense. So in this country with your species(tropical) you'll be better creating a sun trap area with deep shade for cover.
If I was you, I would create a manageable area that you can cover for now. For the next yr or so they can use that. During this time as they grow you can work on your huge enclosure at your own leasure. It sounds like you are ambitious in what you want to build, this will take time. 12months+. So if you knock something together to get them through this summer, maybe by next summer you'll have your dream enclosure complete. That's what I would do.
 

NDevon

Active Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2016
Messages
152
Location (City and/or State)
North Devon, UK
Great advice again, thanks @JoesMum and @Anyfoot - really helpful. The spot is a sun trap. I was out at 9am and the whole area was sunny, it's now half 4 and still in full sun. I'm going to mark out an area and see how it look, I'm keen on the pallet idea, and a cover will be easy enough. I think I'll make two frames for the cover rather than one bigger one, it will be stronger then.

I've posted a new topic with my weeds, I think there are 32 pics so I'm not expecting many replies!
 
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