Outdoor enclosure? Thoughts and ideas?

[catherineannaraye]

I have had our Russian boy since February and I have come to terms with the fact that our tank just isn't big enough...
I am thinking about making him an outdoor enclosure, but not sure if this would be ok for him?
I live in Virginia and we do get snow, but not usually a lot.
We have a deck that is full sun and I have enough room where I could build a good size enclosure for him.

Thoughts? Ideas? Pictures of your enclosures are welcome

 

[pawsplus]

I have a redfoot, so can't comment much on this topic, but Russians hibernate. Controlling his hibernation will be safer than just leaving him out in the enclosure all winter. Go to the section of the forum on Russians and get some info on controlled hibernation. And yeah, a tank is not an appropriate home for any tortoise. You can make him an outdoor pen for much of the year and a large tortoise table type enclosure for indoors. If you choose to hibernate him he may not use that enclosure much, but he will some. Most people do not hibernate longer than 2-3 months.

As for the outdoor enclosure, you don't want full sun and a deck is not ideal. Do you have a yard? You want a planted area.

 

[AgataP]

I had two Russians when I lived in Poland.
they were outdoor from about late April - September. We would bring them home for cool nights. They would dig underground to go to sleep or when it was to hot for them. But other than that ate all the weeds, slugs, whatever they found.
I knew nothing about tortoises back than. We found one half melted in asphalt and one was left alone at neighbors yard so I took him.
We were able to tell when they were slowing down to hibernate so we would make them boxes under our bed - that’s where they wanted to hide. And they would spend few months there coming out for occasional food. I would have something indoor ready for the cold months. When mine were hibernating the space they used was minimal.

 

[catherineannaraye]

I have a redfoot, so can't comment much on this topic, but Russians hibernate. Controlling his hibernation will be safer than just leaving him out in the enclosure all winter. Go to the section of the forum on Russians and get some info on controlled hibernation. And yeah, a tank is not an appropriate home for any tortoise. You can make him an outdoor pen for much of the year and a large tortoise table type enclosure for indoors. If you choose to hibernate him he may not use that enclosure much, but he will some. Most people do not hibernate longer than 2-3 months.

As for the outdoor enclosure, you don't want full sun and a deck is not ideal. Do you have a yard? You want a planted area.

We have a "patio" area under the deck, that is almost all shade (except for a few feet of space)
There are no plants at the moment. But that could easily change

 

[pawsplus]

We have a "patio" area under the deck, that is almost all shade (except for a few feet of space)
There are no plants at the moment. But that could easily change

You want a mixture, so they can come and go from sunny to shady areas. With plenty of places to hide and feel safe. And I would not leave a small tortoise (like a Russian) out at night w/out a securely covered pen. Raccoons, etc.

 

[catherineannaraye]

You want a mixture, so they can come and go from sunny to shady areas. With plenty of places to hide and feel safe. And I would not leave a small tortoise (like a Russian) out at night w/out a securely covered pen. Raccoons, etc.

Thank you! I hadn't thought of critters that could get him

 

[pawsplus]

Thank you! I hadn't thought of critters that could get him

Yup. I live in the country so there are a LOT here. But in town there are raccoons, cats, stray dogs, hawks, and, always, raccoons. A raccoon can pull a full grown chicken through chain link and eat it bit by bit. You do NOT want to fool with them. Until my tortoise was about 6" SCL she had a secure covered pen with a latching top. The current pen has a 4 foot fence (with a taller fence dividing her pen from the dogs' yard). There is a digging barrier all the way around the outside to prevent anything from digging in (hardware cloth coming out 2 feet from the fence, along the ground, staked in) and on the dogs' side there is hardware cloth + pavers. See pix. And I still don't leave her out at night, even though she is 10.5" SCL and nearly 9#. It's easy to bring her in and a lot less risk.

First pic is pen as it is today. Second pic shows the digging barrier going in when I first put up the fence 15 years ago. It's almost invisible now, buried in soil and leaf litter. The third shows the barrier on the dogs' side.

 

[bonsai tortoise]

I have had our Russian boy since February and I have come to terms with the fact that our tank just isn't big enough...
I am thinking about making him an outdoor enclosure, but not sure if this would be ok for him?
I live in Virginia and we do get snow, but not usually a lot.
We have a deck that is full sun and I have enough room where I could build a good size enclosure for him.

Thoughts? Ideas? Pictures of your enclosures are welcome

For one Russian I’d say a 4’x8’ enclosure would be just fine. I wouldn’t put it on a deck though unless you can build a box deep enough for them to borrow and avoid overheating in the summer. I used to keep russians but don’t any longer however I do keep Greeks which have some similar requirements. However Russians will dig so you need to be wary of that. When I build enclosures I use treated 2x12s. I stack them on top of each other which makes 24” but bury roughly 6’ so the total height from the ground is 18”. I also attach chicken wire mesh below ground all along the interior extending about 2’ out and bury that. You don’t see it but it helps with digging and escapes. If you do how I describe you will still have a section in the middle that has no wire barrier but although Russians could dig that long a borrow they likely won’t escape. You should also make sure you give them a dark, cramped hide. This not only makes them feel comfortable but they also use it to escape the heat. It could also discourage digging because if they like it enough they won’t find a need to dig. Don’t forget to cover the corners - they will use them to climb out so you need to ensure you make it so the can’t get out the top. And as a previous post said a lid is ideal. I live next to the suburbs but still get plenty of critters and although anything over 4” is usually safe, you can never be too safe. I don’t have one for my Greeks but I keep all my hatchlings and juveniles outdoors in the summer in a 5x12 enclosure and built a lid out of 2x4s and small chicken wire on hinges.
Planting and landscaping is important as well. Knock out roses, hostas, rosemary, rose of Sharon, and various clumping grasses are all good things. Having plants kind of makes it difficult to do a lid which is why I have no lid on my adult Greeks but at the same time if you have a hide and lots of good plantings they should be able to find cover. And in the springtime throw out a bunch of weed seeds so it’s nice and lush for them when they go out. They’ll eat the weeds over time and it will help build a healthier tortoise.
If you’re in VA it’s a little late in the year to introduce it to the outdoors full time and expect it to hibernate. Hibernation can be tricky and although some people do hibernate them outdoors in northern states (I’m in NJ) it’s best to introduce them to the enclosure in late spring and let them live in it all season while you research hibernation and prep for the fall-winter months. So if you don’t like the tank setup, consider building an indoor tortoise table for the winter. In the meantime you have months to plan the outdoor enclosure.