Ok, I know there must be numerous threads asking the same question, but I just want to make sure I get the right specific advice for my tort! Barnie is a three and a half year old sully, and I want to make him a new indoor enclosure which is bigger, and with more plants and rocks to entertain him a little bit. I know I need to go big, but I can't decide between a tank or a table, I know there are pros and cons for both. I do currently have a large tank (about 5 foot by 2 foot) laying empty. I was wondering if this would be a good idea for him? He's currently in a rabbit cage (the plastic base) which is about 4 foot by 3 foot which I know isn't big enough! It's also difficult keeping the humidity in, but I'm managing by covering it, but leave the front open so he doesn't over heat or anything. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated, as I'm not particularly handy with building!
Vivs Vs Tables
- Thread starter gg888
- Start date
Sorry, my estimations aren't brilliant (maths is NOT my thing). My boyfriend just measured them and the cage is 3x2.5 foot and the tank is 6x3foot. Haha I'm embarrassed! The aim is to get him a decent indoor enclosure, and when the weather starts picking up in the spring I'm going to build him a rainforest type enclosure in the garden with lots of plants, rocks and hides. It's pointless at the minute, because it's all rain and cold here in England!
6 x 3 is definitely bigger. That would be 18 square feet.
How large is your sulcata? It would have to be quite a small 3.5 year old to manage in the space you currently have. Can you build something larger than the tank so he has more room? 6x3 is quite large for a premade tank, but still small for a large and active tortoise. Homemade enclosures are generally your best bet.
It's massive. Our father in law gave it to us about two years ago to keep our two rabbits in, but we never used it as they already had their own set up. He's big into fish, I think he used to keep baby sharks in it haha. Size wise it's ideal for Barnie, I just wasn't sure if a wooden enclosure would be better. He's got pyramiding going on so I've been following tom's advise and increasing his humidity. The tank would be ideal for that
I haven't actually measured him. We adopted him about two months ago, and his enclosure came with him. I haven't liked it from the start, but wanted to wait until he settled in with us to change everything completely. He used to spend a lot of his time outside when the weather was nice in a large space. But now it's getting cold it's not really possible anymore! I need something that will make humidity easier to maintain, and that's big enough!
He does look quite large. Your winters are long, yes? I can't imagine keeping that big guy in a 6x3 space the entire time. Do you have a spare room, perhaps? You'll need to build something spacious for his winter home.
He isn't really. His previous owner kept him on a poor diet of nothing but butternut squash and kale. I've finally gotten him to start eating hay, and his diet is mostly weeds now so I'm hoping he'll start to develop better! I could do that, and I could introduce plenty of plants to up the humidity for him. At the minute he loves to sit in his water dish and bask under his lamp (he's perked up a lot in the last week or two since I've changed his substrate and humidity)
I'm hoping it'll start to warm up around march when spring kicks in (fingers crossed). I've reserved half of the living room (which is very large) for his new enclosure. Also it's the warmest room in the house, so it seems appropriate.
Closed chambers make it MUCH easier to maintain temperature and humidity where this species needs it, but you need something the size of a whole room. This tortoise is much too large to spend months in something 3x6'. You've got a giant species. It is going to need giant accommodations. You could build an 8x10' closed chamber, but even that is only likely to last another winter, or maybe two if yours is a slow grower.
Your "rainforest" enclosure sounds great, but what is the high on your hottest day of summer? I think you might need some extra heat to pull that off.
Your "rainforest" enclosure sounds great, but what is the high on your hottest day of summer? I think you might need some extra heat to pull that off.
Eventually he's going to have a garage built for him with heating and everything. The idea for his outdoor enclosure is that he'll be coming inside at nights when he sleeps and on colder days. This will hopefully be the only winter he's in the house, next winter we should have the garage ready
Yeah that's not very big. But he won't stay that small for long.
No I know. Now I've changed his diet, I'm hoping he'll start to develop more. He's due a weigh in on Saturday, so we'll have to see!
Start measuring his length too. It's another good way to track growth and will help put his enclosure size into context.
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