# How tall of an enclosure for Greek tortoise?



## animalkeeper (May 28, 2011)

How tall should an enclosure be for a Greek tortoise? I have 15' of 24" tall wire and about 9' of 36" wire but don't know which to use?


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## Jacob (May 28, 2011)

The Biggier The Better


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## Kristina (May 28, 2011)

Wire is not a good choice. If you use the wire, you are also going to have to run boards or something around the inside to make a sight barrier. The tortoise will constantly try to get through the wire, and can hurt itself, and can also climb the wire and escape. Also, a Greek will easily push or tunnel under a wire fence.

The rule I use for pen height is at least 1 1/2 times the length of the tortoise, with an overhang so they can't climb out.


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## GBtortoises (May 29, 2011)

I agree with Kristina that wire is not a good choice, for one if a tortoise does a lot of pacing back and forth against the wire it can cause abrasions. Secondly, many tortoises are suprisingly good climbers and may be able to either climb over or fall from the wire attempting do so. If it does climb over, it's definitely going to fall down the other side. Either can result in injury. At the very least if you use wire, you should have some type of solid barrier, as Kristina says, at least 1 1/2 times the height of the tortoises carapace length. 
A more secure way to go would be something with solid sides. Cement blocks work good are quick to erect and heavy enough that they can't be moved by most tortoises. You can always fill them with stone for added stability. But they are also very abrasive so if you have a tortoise that is an extreme pacer that should be a consideration.
Wood takes a little more to install, but works as a solid barrier and much less abrasive and if pressure treated is used will last for a very long time. A top rail around the inside is always a good idea to prevent climbing over. With this you can even go with sides that aren't quite as high too. Just to give you an example: my outdoor enclosures are 3/4" pressure treated wood sides with 4" buried in the ground and 12" above ground. I've never had an escape.


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## Terry Allan Hall (May 29, 2011)

animalkeeper said:


> How tall should an enclosure be for a Greek tortoise? I have 15' of 24" tall wire and about 9' of 36" wire but don't know which to use?



Forget the fencing wire, for the reasons already explained...

Landscaping timbers are easy to build with, not too spendy, and will last a very long time. I go 5 layers, then build an overhand at the top.

Stagger each layer thusly:





and nail them together w/ 8" nails. 

Easy to assemble in an afternoon, once the ground is level. And the best part is that, once done, it stays done, yet can be disassembled if you move and rebuilt at your new location.


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## Kristina (May 29, 2011)

I built this pen out of landscape timber for my Russians. The top board is a 2"X12" that keeps them from climbing out. The base of the pen was dug out and filled with broken pieces of concrete, to allow for drainage and to keep them from digging out. I used all recycled materials, and it cost $11 to build.












You can see step by step building process by going here - http://s285.photobucket.com/albums/...urtle Enclosures - Outdoor/Russian Tortoises/


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## animalkeeper (May 29, 2011)

I posted an add on craigslist looking for cement blocks but so far no luck. If I can't find any I will probably just use wood or something.


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