Tortoise House Ideas

[KaijuEmily]

So i started making my hatchling a tortoise house for her enclosure before i even got her. Its pretty much a mini dog house that i made with leftover wood from a wooden dollhouse kit. I never ended up finishing it up though.
I have a couple log hides now, but i still keep thinking about using it eventually, since it seems big enough to outlast her log hides as she grows.
I want to improve it a little before i give it a paint job. Right now its basically a box with a roof on it...

Anybody have any pics of their tortoise house for some ideas?

 

[DangerKittyx3]

I bought a tortoise hutch from the pet store. What you are building is similar to what I bought. She doesn't eat it and it is soft for her to borrow under without getting dirty. She used to live in soil, but she was so dirty and soil was in her eyes, nose, nails, and trapped inside the folds of her skin. She also was scratched up by her previous habitat. The people that owned her before I picked her up had rocks in her habitat. The rocks were tough on her shell and she suffered some scratches. I put a nice soft bedding together for her that will be gentle on her skin and deep enough for her to dig under. Any of the substrate that is soiled on easy to spot and clean up. It's soft wood chips and hay. I pour a ton of chips to make it deep enough to tunnel through. She likes to make tunnels and go deep and cozy. I put a thin layer of hay over the surface. She likes to play with it, but does not try to eat it.

 

[Tort1419]

Great. I'm glad you found a solution. Your setup looks good as of now, but what species of tortoise do you have, a bigger enclosure may be need, and some care might need to be changed.

 

[DangerKittyx3]

I have a Russian tortoise. She is approximately 25 years old. She is not very mobile at the moment. She just comes out to eat and then goes right back to her nest. She is a rescue and is a little weak, but she is making a great improvement already.

 

[Tort1419]

Take a look at this care sheet for Russians. I have a Russian too, if you have any questions just ask. http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

 

[DangerKittyx3]

Thanks =)

 

[DangerKittyx3]

Great. I'm glad you found a solution. Your setup looks good as of now, but what species of tortoise do you have, a bigger enclosure may be need, and some care might need to be changed.

Thanks. We are going to build Donatella a better house when the summer gets here.

 

[Lyn W]

So i started making my hatchling a tortoise house for her enclosure before i even got her. Its pretty much a mini dog house that i made with leftover wood from a wooden dollhouse kit. I never ended up finishing it up though.
I have a couple log hides now, but i still keep thinking about using it eventually, since it seems big enough to outlast her log hides as she grows.
I want to improve it a little before i give it a paint job. Right now its basically a box with a roof on it...

Anybody have any pics of their tortoise house for some ideas?

Hi, there are some great ideas in the Enclosures thread. Also there is probably a good caresheet for your tort under Species Specific section which will yell you all about diet, temps humidity and substrate etc. Straw/hay/wood chips/pellets are not a good choice for most torts because they are too dry and if you try to moisten them they go mouldy; the sharp pieces can also injure a torts eyes and they splinter. Straw and hay can also be a fire hazard. There are lots of better options out there for humidity, especially if your tort likes to dig. Sand is also not recommended because if it is eaten on food it can cause the gut to become impacted.

If you can post a picture of your enclosure other members can suggest improvements you could make - if any.

General rules are to avoid coiled or long thing cfl type bulbs, as these could damage torts eyes, also avoid red bulbs as torts see in colour like to eat red foods so the red light confuses them, and of course the bigger the enclosure the better. Shallow terracotta plant saucers are cheaper and safer than expensive steep sided water dishes and a temp gun is more accurate than the pet store dial type thermometers and easier to spot check your 4 temps. Plants help with humidity and provide security for torts, see www.thetortoisetable.org.uk for tort safe plants for food and enclosures. Hope that helps.

 

[Lyn W]

Hi. Thank you for offering your assistance. I will review all the information you advised to me. I plan to take all that into consideration while building her house. =)

My reply and advice was actually for KaijuEmily who started the thread, but if it helps you and your tort as well that's great.