Poop pickup tools

[Caso]

Hi,
I have 2 - three year old Sulcatas who ONLY poop on our cement patio. Then (if I'm not home to pick up right away) they proceed to walk back and forth through it until it's smashed into the concrete! I hate being so graphic, but there is no other way to describe. I'm having a heck of a time picking/cleaning it up and it's staining the cement. Does anyone have a heavy duty pooper scooper/scraper or something they recommend to clean it up? How do you all do it?

Sorry if this has been asked before. I looked, I swear!

Thank you!

 

[dmmj]

sorry this thread made me laugh. I would suggest a scrub brush of some kind and lots of elbow grease

 

[Caso]

sorry this thread made me laugh. I would suggest a scrub brush of some kind and lots of elbow grease

I know, it is funny...unless you're the one cleaning it up! uggh.... I'm currently doing the scrub brush and elbow grease thing, but they're getting BIGGER which means BIGGER you know what!

 

[AZSid]

I would suggest picking up the "pieces" first and then using a power sprayer to deep clean the concrete.

 

[Odin's Gma]

I would go with a high pressure nozzle on your garden hose and spray all those wonderful nutrients right back into the grass.

 

[Len B]

I have some specialty tools just for sulcata poop cleanup .Flat shovel, small leaf rake, stiff bristle kitchen broom, and a Byron Nelson, #4 Iron club, I really don't have a problem with the poop getting smashed into the concrete, but if it does I clean up what I can and then a little water and the broom cleans the rest.. Mostly they poop in their houses, which is fine with me.

 

[Big Charlie]

Mine loves to poop on the patio too. I usually shovel it onto the lawn, then hose the rest of it down. You'd think the lawn would be lush and green with all that fertilizer!

You could put more obstacles on the patio to give them less room to poop and drag it around.

 

[dmmj]

what about putting a layer of dirt on the cement so it doesn't stick to it?

 

[Tom]

I use a flat shovel like Len. Scrapes it up nicely. I also use those pooper scoopers with a scraper that you get at pet shops or feed stores for dogs, but those will bend under a "heavy load". Still they are good for smaller torts.

A couple of things I noticed:
If their stools are gooey and messy, it could be an indicator that there needs to be more fiber in their diet. Do they eat much grass? Grass hay?

They should not be on concrete too much. Is most of the yard not concrete? Be careful with this. We've seen plenty of bloody feet that were rubbed raw by concrete.

Sulcatas should not be housed in pairs. Almost everyone who does this thinks its not a problem. It IS a problem. They need to be separated, or you need to add another one or two to the group after a suitable quarantine period.

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

sorry this thread made me laugh. I would suggest a scrub brush of some kind and lots of elbow grease

My baby fills it's diaper and if I don't change him right a way he sits in it . What do you reca mend ?

 

[dmmj]

My baby fills it's diaper and if I don't change him right a way he sits in it . What do you reca mend ?

I recommend no diaper

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

I recommend no diaper

And spred dirt on the floor or let the baby spread it's dirt

 

[Yvonne G]

I have one of these blue things in every single one of my tortoise yards. Every morning and every evening I go around and pick up poop:

 

[AZSid]

Geez. I just use a plastic fork in Remi's enclosure. lol Oh, the things I have to look forward to in the future!

 

[tinkerbell1189]

I have a Russian tortoise... So this is technically not a problem to me. But... I do have a horse, so I understand your problem, except horse poop smells a lot better lol.

I'd go with the bedding idea, a thin layer of bedding, to help absorb? And keep a pooper scoop to hand for when you are about. Also the obstacles in the way is a good idea, say a plant here and there etc, to stop them trampling so much

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

I have a Russian tortoise... So this is technically not a problem to me. But... I do have a horse, so I understand your problem, except horse poop smells a lot better lol.

I'd go with the bedding idea, a thin layer of bedding, to help absorb? And keep a pooper scoop to hand for when you are about. Also the obstacles in the way is a good idea, say a plant here and there etc, to stop them trampling so much

 

[Caso]

I have some specialty tools just for sulcata poop cleanup .Flat shovel, small leaf rake, stiff bristle kitchen broom, and a Byron Nelson, #4 Iron club, I really don't have a problem with the poop getting smashed into the concrete, but if it does I clean up what I can and then a little water and the broom cleans the rest.. Mostly they poop in their houses, which is fine with me.

Good suggestions, thank you!

 

[Caso]

Mine loves to poop on the patio too. I usually shovel it onto the lawn, then hose the rest of it down. You'd think the lawn would be lush and green with all that fertilizer!

You could put more obstacles on the patio to give them less room to poop and drag it around.

At least I'm not alone ;-) Thanks for the idea.

 

[Caso]

I use a flat shovel like Len. Scrapes it up nicely. I also use those pooper scoopers with a scraper that you get at pet shops or feed stores for dogs, but those will bend under a "heavy load". Still they are good for smaller torts.

A couple of things I noticed:
If their stools are gooey and messy, it could be an indicator that there needs to be more fiber in their diet. Do they eat much grass? Grass hay?

They should not be on concrete too much. Is most of the yard not concrete? Be careful with this. We've seen plenty of bloody feet that were rubbed raw by concrete.

Sulcatas should not be housed in pairs. Almost everyone who does this thinks its not a problem. It IS a problem. They need to be separated, or you need to add another one or two to the group after a suitable quarantine period.

I'm about to buy a pooper scooper from an online retailer. Looks to be sturdier than what I've seen in the pet stores locally. The shovel will come next.

Currently they are eating the grass we have in the backyard, weeds, dandelions and dandelion leaves, grape leaves, hibiscus, escarole and tortoise pellets we soak for them. They don't like hay (yet). We have timothy hay and orchard hay, but neither will touch it.

Yard is 25% concrete, 75% grass, but they do prefer to walk around on the concrete. Didn't know that about their feet, so we'll keep our eyes open.

As far as housing them together....we had heard it wasn't a good idea, but so far, they are buddies. They sleep together at night in the same house right next to each other. During the day they mostly cruise separately around the yard, but they seem to enjoy following each other around and often fall asleep together, again, side by side. Hoping this continues....

Thank you for all of your information, it's appreciated.

 

[Caso]

Geez. I just use a plastic fork in Remi's enclosure. lol Oh, the things I have to look forward to in the future!

You will be amazed....