Outdoor Enclosure Night Hide

[Falcon70]

Hey everyone,

With warmer weather, I've been looking into keeping my Russian Tortoise outside overnight. The enclosure is secure, but the main problem I have is unlike most others of her species, she isn't a big digger. With spring nights getting into the low 60s, I don't want her to just be out in the open, so I was wondering if I could make a simple human made hide that will act as a burrow without taking up too much room. I do have a plastic box cutout she goes in and clay pot half buried. Are those enough or should I go even further? Any comments/ideas are appreciated!

 

[lismar79]

Low 60's is a bit too low for me but russians are hardy. A insulated wood box with a lock lid would help keep her warm plus keep any night prowlers such as coons from getting her.

 

[Jodie]

I followed Tom's threads for insulated night box for my Russians and leopards. I will see if i can find it for you.

 

[Jodie]

Here you go.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/my-best-night-box-design-yet.66867/

 

[Jodie]

Obviously you would want to scale it down. The one i built, well my husband built, is 2 X 4 feet inside.

 

[Yvonne G]

Because I live out in the country, I like to be sure my animals are all put away at night. So my tortoises have sheds or dog house-type structures that I can lock them into at night. Every evening I go around and make sure everyone has put themselves away, then I close the doors.

 

[Falcon70]

Thanks for the responses! As far as predators go, the enclosure itself is secured. I have read through threads about insulated boxes/hideaways, but am probably not going to go that route since it's easier just to bring her in every night.

With that said, how warm do you suggest it has to be to just leave her out overnight with some basic hides? I live in NC, so in a couple weeks the nights will be around 70.

 

[lismar79]

Lows 70's is fine for an adult but I still would give them the option to pick. Even an igloo cooler with a hole cut out filled with moss would be better than nothing If the hides are not enclosed a lot That is.

 

[leigti]

In the summer I leave my Russian tortoise outside at night if it stays above 55 and is not raining. But she tends to dig down into her hide about 6 inches or so. So I'm sure 70 would be fine.

 

[Tom]

Here is one way to go:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/semi-underground-russian-box.98590/

Just make sure it runs down hill the correct way so that rain doesn't flood it.

What I would worry about with your humidity is cooler temps. I would build a small insulated box with a lockable door and put a small radiant heat panel on the roof with a thermostat. You could set it around 68-70 and that little bit of electric heat will dry it out a bit and keep your high humidity more on the moderate side. In my area, I have to add water to compensate for my excessively low humidity.

I think it would best best if someone from your neck of the woods gave you specific advice about temps and humidity issues. I'm just sharing a little of what I've observed.