# Water Bowl/pond Advice on what to build



## viperdrake (Jun 13, 2012)

Hello guys its been a while since ive posted... last time i posted torko seemed to be recovering he even began to ate... but sadly he passed away... and so did ruby... same Respiratory infection... 

well i finally moved, bought a hose with a decent patio and i bought some decorative cinder blocks to make the tort pen, but im stuck on how to supply water... since Terra the Adult Redfoot can reach the water bowl i currently have for her but Perl and Cobol struggle... so i thought maybe i can dig a shallow hole and line it with cement? maybe make it 3 inches deep? i also have a TV Dish that's like 5 feet across and the deepest part is approx 3 inches deep. also thought of digging a small hole to place the dish in and make it even with the ground and use the dish as a shallow "pond" what do you guys think??

ohh and btw.. could i put my baby leos in the backyard also? they are small around 2 - 3 " but there are no known predators in my backyard.... ( would a species of eagle eat baby torts? i know they eat chicken and baby cats/dogs when ever they can but .. dunno about torts )


thanks in advance!


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## terryo (Jun 13, 2012)

What is this? "TV Dish that's like 5 feet across and the deepest part is approx 3 inches deep" It sounds good to me. I have a small round pond that I put some river rocks in to make more shallow for my Cherry Head. I dpn't have a filter, I just run the hose in until it's clear.


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## ascott (Jun 13, 2012)

A dug out shallow in the dirt lined with a layer of concrete does work...just be sure to pay special attention to smoothing all of the edges of the pond where it meets the dirt (you would not want the shell to be worn down)...also, I have seen lots of folks use new(unused) paint trays, you could use it and be sure to sink it into the ground level and then as Terry shared, place river rock in the tray to bring the depth to the level safe for your torts....

Um, yeah what is a TV Dish? Do you mean an old Satellite Receiver dish? The round shallow ones? That would work well too...but I would be worried about the stuff they use to paint on them the satellite company name and such....


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## wellington (Jun 13, 2012)

I have a pond and a plastic plant dish. The dish is easier, the pond looks nicer. In my pond I placed a sink drain. As for the leopards. No, they should not be left outside at night. You can put them out on warm days. Yes, the eagles will eat them. Give them their own enclosure, species should never be mixed. And make a chicken wire cover for it. Sorry about your other torts, that's sad


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## terryo (Jun 13, 2012)

My friend uses the cover of a garbage can. It's nice and big too. She put in some quick dry cement and smoothed it out and put moss around it. Looks like a small round pond...perfect height too.


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## viperdrake (Jun 13, 2012)

terryo said:


> My friend uses the cover of a garbage can. It's nice and big too. She put in some quick dry cement and smoothed it out and put moss around it. Looks like a small round pond...perfect height too.



thats a nice idea! do you happen to have pictures of it?

Wellington thx for condolences, it was a vary sad moment...

thanks all for your input, what i was talking about is a Satellite Receiver Dish like ascott said.

here is a pic of the temporary pen for the redfoots, this weekend ill start digging the perimeter to level each block and what not lol... the pen will be much larger the final messuraments will be 14'x10'.







as for the leos, i wasnt going to put them in the same enclosure i was going to build a smaller version of the redfoots enclosure, ill just wait till they are bigger then .


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## lynnedit (Jun 15, 2012)

14'x10' is a good size. Love the color of your cement blocks, they remind me of Fruit Loops 

Haven't done it myself, but I always thought a shallow dish (like the garbage can lid, lined with cement or stones) with a sink drain epoxied in to a hole in the bottom is a nice idea. If the dish is nested on a bed of gravel, then you can remove the plug, drain, hose it out and refill.
Sometimes I like to empty my water dishes and let them bake dry for a few hours to cut down on algae, etc.
However, just hosing them out does seem to work well too.


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## Itort (Jun 15, 2012)

I use a washing machine drain pan from a home improvement store. It measures about 3' x 3' x 3". I holds up well even in Midwestern winters.


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## terryo (Jun 15, 2012)

I don't have a picture of her's, but it looks a lot like mine. I just have a small round pond with river rocks. Her's looks a lot like this too.




I have to clean up some of the creeping jenny. It's so invasive and goes into the pond.


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## Jacqui (Jun 15, 2012)

I use a garbage can lid for the sulcata boyz currently. It's held up for several years now. Mine is just sitting sunk into the ground, so I can take it out and hose it off daily and let it dry.

Terry have you saw any of your turtles/tortoises eating the creeping jenny?


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## terryo (Jun 15, 2012)

Jacqui said:


> I use a garbage can lid for the sulcata boyz currently. It's held up for several years now. Mine is just sitting sunk into the ground, so I can take it out and hose it off daily and let it dry.
> 
> Terry have you saw any of your turtles/tortoises eating the creeping jenny?



No, I've never seen anyone turtles/tortoises eating the creeping jenny. The only time I ever saw a box turtle eating anything I planted is in the very early Spring when they first come out from hibernation...they will eat the little sprouts of the hosta's coming up or other little sprouts. Once I start feeding them, they don't touch any plants. The Cherries will nibble on some dandelion, or any flowers that come up, or if they are sitting under a hosta they will nibble on a leave, but nothing else.


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## Laura (Jun 15, 2012)

I use the plastic garbarge can lid.. metal gets too hot.. I also have a concrete depression.. same size as the lid. both work..


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## terryo (Jun 15, 2012)

This is a big terra cotta dish that goes under a plant pot. $5 at Home Depot. I use this in my turtle garden in case someone doesn't want to go into the pond. As you can see it's a nice size for a few turtles to have a drink.


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## Jacqui (Jun 15, 2012)

Terry that group of four is simply beautiful.


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## terryo (Jun 15, 2012)

Thanks Jacqui. Some are rescues from Julie M.


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## viperdrake (Jun 23, 2012)

Love your box turtles!! i don't see boxies over here in Puerto Rico they are pretty rare, most tortoises you see around here are sulcatas followed by redfoots.

thank you all for all your comments/info!

for the mean time i just bought a $2.50 Pot water dish thats about 12inches in diameter and 1" deep and dug a hole to make it flush against the grass. this will be temporary since i need to start working on their final enclosure and then planting the enclosure so they have nice shade and pants to play/hide in. i will post pictures once i finish their new home , btw found a 14" male clown face bought it.. hes remarkably healthy and has an awesome smooth carapace! and.. hes kind of a ladies man.. not 2 hours into the enclosure and he was mounting terra and making clucking noises lol.


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