tortoise enclosure

[lee_redfoot_tee]

hi all,

i would just like to post a couple of pictures of my tortoise enclosure for people's opinion's on it.maybe some suggestion's to make it better or tip's on other thing;'s surrounding his enclosure.

please not the wire is the thermometer and hydrometer and its moved now to a suitable location.
thanks for reading this and tia for any replie's

 

[CarolM]

I Would critic only two things, there may be more but the two that stand out the most to me are the water bowl and the red light.

The water bowl I would change to a terracotta plant saucer, it is less of a tipping hazard to your tort, and I would bury it into the substrate so that it is in a better angle for your tort to climb into it.

And the Red light just makes the substrate look red, which in turn would make your tort want to eat it, as red is a favorite food source of theirs.

Otherwise I like the use of the plants and the hide. Well done.

What type of tortoise do you have and how old is it?

 

[Yvonne G]

Besides what Carol has said, for a redfooted tortoise I would have a substrate you can moisten. It looks like you're using dirt, which would turn to mud when you moisten it. If you use coconut bark or fir bark, you can keep it moist for the necessary humidity it provides. Otherwise, it's a pretty nice enclosure for your son's redfooted tortoise!

 

[CarolM]

Besides what Carol has said, for a redfooted tortoise I would have a substrate you can moisten. It looks like you're using dirt, which would turn to mud when you moisten it. If you use coconut bark or fir bark, you can keep it moist for the necessary humidity it provides. Otherwise, it's a pretty nice enclosure for your son's redfooted tortoise!

Aaaah, I missed that it was under the Redfoot section.

 

[Yvonne G]

Aaaah, I missed that it was under the Redfoot section.

No, you're not seeing things. I moved it to the RF section after you posted. Also, I had to research the OP's past posts to find out what species it is.

 

[lee_redfoot_tee]

ok first of thank you carol for the excellent advice. this morning i will go straight out and buy a bowl that you describe, as ii have seen them in other pictures on this forum, so that is the firstthing i will change today. so thank you very much for helping me with this it is massively appreciated!

second of all, you mention the red heat light. well believe it or not the pet shop sold me this as his basking light! what would you recommend me buying to replace it? cash is not a problem when it comes to our baby tort so the best of the best to help him is not a issue?

thanks again for these very helpful replies.he LOVES his new plants around his enclosure.

also, what i used on the floor of his home is 1) reptile sand (pet shop rec)...... 2) orchard wood bark....... and 3) coconut brick what you dump into water and expands like 5x its size and holds moisture really really well.


thanks very much for thaaking your time out of your day to reply and help me with our new redfoot tortoise

 

[lee_redfoot_tee]

also carol the bottom lkayer is reptile sand then wood bark spread around lightly and the rest is coconut husk blocks what expands inwater....i find it amazing at holding water and it keeps the humidity at the perfect level with minimal spraying.


again carol thank you for your brilliant input.i really do appreciate this as im learning all the time!!

 

[lee_redfoot_tee]

that last reply was for everyone, sorry! it isint mud it is reptile sand, orchard bark and coconut husk and it is the ultimate combo for holding water.

please could someone guide me on the light situation? what exactly basking light colour do i need?

 

[lee_redfoot_tee]

my tort is a red foot and he is around 9-12 months old now

 

[Toddrickfl1]

that last reply was for everyone, sorry! it isint mud it is reptile sand, orchard bark and coconut husk and it is the ultimate combo for holding water.

please could someone guide me on the light situation? what exactly basking light colour do i need?

Really you don't need a basking lamp for Redfoots. They aren't typically baskers. What you can do though is replace the red light with a ceramic heat emitter. This will give your tort a warm area to bask should he choose to without the red light.

 

[CarolM]

also carol the bottom lkayer is reptile sand then wood bark spread around lightly and the rest is coconut husk blocks what expands inwater....i find it amazing at holding water and it keeps the humidity at the perfect level with minimal spraying.


again carol thank you for your brilliant input.i really do appreciate this as im learning all the time!!

Hi There.
You can do as Todd suggested and replace it with a CHE (ceramic heat emitter) as your UVB light should provide enough light in the enclosure.
As far as the substrate is concerned the coconut husk bricks works really great and the orchid bark is great to layer over it. I am however not so sure about the reptile sand. Sand creates big risks of impactation in your torts intestines. And I just don't use it too much risk for my tastes.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Pet shops sell "Reptile sand, Red bulbs, coiled compact florescent bulbs" and all kinds of other CRAP.
I'm sorry that you spent good money on some of that. But pet shops sell for a living. Not caring much about what they're selling or taking the time to educate themselves.