Some of Maggie's enclosures

[Maggie Cummings]

I thought I would post some of my enclosures for y'all to see. I have indoor and out, and I just thought some of you might be interested in how we keep them in Oregon...
This is where Hospital Girl spends her days. Down below out of the picture is a piece of lattice that I use for shade and it's also stone right there and she likes to nap there. She shares the spot with Abscess Nose but he has dug a burrow so that's where he naps. It's planted with seeds from Carolina Pet Supply. It's mostly Sulcata grazing mix and clover and some select other seeds. And you can see their neighbor...

This is where the box turtles spend their days...all my animals are brought in at night because of the raccoons...

This is where Queenie lives. She also has an area outside that I will show next. Look to the far right and that's where her hide is. She's made a nest in there out of Bob's hay. She also has a fixture with a black light bulb in it for cold nights and at the far left side there is a CHE. She has cypress mulch for her substrate and a large pile of hay to make a mess with...

This where Queenie spends her days...

This is Bob's shed. It is insulated and the interior is lined with 3/4 inch plywood made to withstand Bob's temper tantrums. He gets mad and rams the walls and the doors. This picture was taken from my deck...

This is the people door...

I finally got a vent put in so it doesn't stay so hot in there. It makes me and Bob really happy...

This is Bob's sleeping box. Most nights he sleeps in there but on hot nights he sleeps in the pile of hay under Queenie's tort table.

I got his heater moved to a safer place too, and no, it doesn't make the walls too hot.

This is a view of about 1/4 of Bob's yard...

I guess I'm done. Next time I'll take shots of all my indoor enclosures. This was mostly outdoors I guess, and I just couldn't think of anything funny. I'd much rather make a thread on Bob's escapades I guess. Just showing enclosures is pretty boring I think. But I hope you enjoyed it and I hope that you can see that you can make habitats that are good, even tho they are not fancy. The important thing is to make the animal happy and comfortable, it doesn't have to be fancy like Terry' O's it can be plain like mine. You just need to make sure they have water and shade and are safe. It's super important to make sure they are escape proof too!!!
Just ask Bob!

 

[terryo]

If I had all your property Maggie, I would have me a Bob! Your enclosures are great! I can't believe you bring everyone inside at night. I'm tired just thinking about it.

 

[Yvonne G]

I think Bob's two-tracks are much more pronounced than Dudley's. Probably because you get so much rain. Pretty soon he's going to have it worn down so that he's rubbing his plastron on the grass when he walks..next step - high centered!

 

[Tropical Torts]

Very nice enclosures Maggie! I am working on getting a shed for the winter time for my redfoods and need to do the same thing with the shed, basically. How did you insulate it and how do you clean it because it looks like it just has wood floor?, im sure Bob makes quite the mess when he is couped up in there all day!

 

[Torty Mom]

Looks awesome, I love all the different enclosures!! Lou's is boring! He gets the whole back yard! SPOILED

 

[FranklinTturtle]

I love Bob home!!!

 

[CtTortoiseMom]

Your enclosures are great, I would love to see the indoor ones too. I can see where Bob walk's the perimeter of his yard, he is one heavy boy!!

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Very nice enclosures Maggie! I am working on getting a shed for the winter time for my redfoods and need to do the same thing with the shed, basically. How did you insulate it and how do you clean it because it looks like it just has wood floor?, im sure Bob makes quite the mess when he is couped up in there all day!

I hired a carpenter to finish off the interior. The insulation is that fluffy pink stuff and it's in the walls, roof and floor.
I just wash the floor with water and push it out the doggie door. Bob is rarely cooped up in there all day. I open his doggie door even if it's snowing outside. He does throw temper tantrums if I don't open his door. He has made horrible messes in there. But it all cleans out the same. Pick up the pickable stuff and mopping with water and pushing it out the doggie door...

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I love Bob home!!!

Bob's shed

 

[ascott]

That was a fun tour I have to say I love the tortoise trails.....awesome

 

[Momof4]

not boring at all!! It's really nice for us novice folks to see how others keep their tortoises. Can't wait for the inside pics.

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

 

[Jacqui]

I don't recall hearing about Hospital Girl and Abscess Nose, what are their stories and what are they? Love the statue in with the box turtles. Do you get a lot of hummingbirds? Nice enclosures!! Glad you decided to share them all with us!

 

[RV's mom]

very nice maggie. thanks for the tour... looking forward to seeing the inside habitats.

teri

 

[Maggie Cummings]

I don't recall hearing about Hospital Girl and Abscess Nose, what are their stories and what are they? Love the statue in with the box turtles. Do you get a lot of hummingbirds? Nice enclosures!! Glad you decided to share them all with us!

Yes, I do get a lot of hummingbirds. I have one iridescent green one who likes to hover right in front of my face, looking into my eyes. They are not afraid of me and will land on the thing that holds the food, or they will fly around my head. It's quite a thrill.
I got Hospital Girl as a hatchling to head start. She got sick every time I tried to move her out of the hospital into a regular tank. She'd get a bubbly nose every time anything changed, her food or her house. So I kept her in the hospital as she grew and she became one of my favorites. So now she is 3 years old beautiful and healthy. AND, she lives outside during the day and in a 250 gallon AQUARIUM at night.
Abscess Nose was given to me as a hatchling to head start, which I did. Then when I took the next years clutch down he was still there and his sinus cavity was infected. I have posted pix of him as his face is all deformed and he only has one large nostril and a teeny tiny one that may be a nostril. So I have spent the last 2 years trying to rid him of the abscess in his nasal cavity and failed. Every morning I have to open his larger nostril so he can breathe. He has either clear fluid running from his one nostril or a cottage cheesy kind of stuff dripping from his nares. He's gone a round of Naxcel that changed the cottage cheesy stuff to clear fluid, and 2 rounds of Baytril that made him stop eating. He was eating and active and cute and funny until the last round of Baytril. Then he's stopped eating, is very lethargic and acts very sick like he's going to fail. He was better before the Baytril. So I have stopped everything. I clean out his one nostril making sure he can breathe, then I put him outside and leave him alone. I am treating him like a healthy tortoise with the hopes that he will start acting like a healthy tortoise. I don't know what else to do. I do know that he was better off before Baytril. But I thought I could stop the abscess. So now he has clear fluid draining from his nostril. In the morning it's dried over the hole and he can't breathe so he gapes. After I open his nostril I have to watch it because dirt sticks to it and blocks his breathing, Or the fluid hardens and blocks his breathing. He was gurgling for a while and not only gurgled out loud but I could feel the gurgle thru his plastron. The last round of Baytril has stopped that. In the evening I put him on my bed while I watch my shows and he likes walking around biting at stuff. Or I think he likes it, I am probably anthropomorphizing the situation. Then when he gets tired he climbs up on me and curls up in my hair by my ear with his face in my neck. He does it every night, and he always sleeps in the same place by my neck. I think it's sweet, and I hate the thought that he may die but I am kind of at a loss, I don't know what else to do...
I hope those stories answer your questions...

 

[lynnedit]

Loved your pictures. More!

 

[dmarcus]

Bob's tracks are cool, lets you know how much he paces the fence line...

 

[kbaker]

Abscess Nose

I delt with something like this. I got a small Sulcata that had an 'uneven' face when I got her. She would have a clear nose run every once in awhile. Then I gave her a good exam and realized that she had an absess in the roof of her mouth and into her nasal cavity. I cleaned it out and warmed her up. Her face went back to 'normal'.

The sad thing is that she kept going through this cycle. It would be fine and then something would get caught in that area and we start all over again. It got to the point where she lost some of her bone in her upper jaw.

I hope you can get to the point where it will all stop for Abscess Nose.

 

[Tom]

Nice Maggie. It all looks so warm and green. I'm used to hot and brown right now, so its a nice change.

Excellent use of the available space!

 

[FranklinTturtle]

Maggie you are a great person. Thanks for taking care of hospital girl and Abscess nose. God has got to be smiling down on you.

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Maggie just a thought. Have you tried a saline soultion on abscess nose?