# Olive the Redfoots Indoor Enclosure...



## Shelli (Aug 22, 2009)

Remember she is a Redfoot I know many people don't like Terrariums for tortoises but this one actually has very little glass on the two sides the rest is a vent grate...
I have been struggling with humidity for her even with several sprayings, a fogger and just pouring water and mixing it up in her ex Rubbermaid Enclosure, our house is just soo dry (I had no idea how dry it was until I got the temp therm & Olive) and will only get worse in the dry Canada winters with the heating going non stop..
So honestly I agonized over many different possibilities and humidity, size and cat issues just kept me from purchasing or making anything else..
When I saw this without being ALL glass I had to get it for her.

The white ugly plastic around the edges I am going to change to black the white is kind of ugly.. 
Also she is getting a new water dish in 3 days...

Ok enough of the speech... I just don't want you to think I ran out and got the first thing I could find without putting a lot of thought and time into it..

Here's a picture to show what the two sides look like..


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## Candy (Aug 22, 2009)

I love Olive's new enclosure Dale also has a glass enclosure, but I am switching soon only because he's getting bigger. Anyway someone on here once suggested that I put a wet towel on half of the top so it keeps the humidity in and it helped a lot.


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## tortoisenerd (Aug 22, 2009)

Thanks for sharing! How's she settling in? Are you planning to add more hides, plants, etc? What do you feed her on?


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## Traveller (Aug 23, 2009)

Nice setup Shelli.
I'm struggling with humidity levels also and like you it will only get 
worse once the woodstove goes on this fall.
I've decided to move Rosy to a tank to and see how that works.


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## Isa (Aug 23, 2009)

what a nice encloure , I am sure Olive is really happy in it.


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## terryo (Aug 23, 2009)

I think it great! I am all for glass vivariums for humid loving torts and turts. I have tried everything and nothing keeps the humidity up as well as a glass viv with lots of plants. In the Fall I am redoing Pio's viv and putting all new plants. I think it s great and your little guy will thank you when he grows nice and smooth.


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## Maggie Cummings (Aug 23, 2009)

There are a lot of experienced keepers who are against glass tanks for tortoises. But being the rebel that I am I used aquariums to keep tortoises in and kept numerous tort in them. Not a 10 gallon or a 20 gallon, but a 150 gallon or a 200 gallon and they grew just fine. I really like the way this tank looks even with the white. I think it's a great habitat...


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## DoctorCosmonaut (Aug 23, 2009)

How does your humidity hold up?


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## Meg90 (Aug 23, 2009)

I like it...a few more plants would probably help reduce stress and add to the aesthetic. Nice job!


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## Shelli (Aug 24, 2009)

I am working on more plants I am really hoping to make it as well planted as I can, also I have two shallow dishes one of Orchard and one of Timothy grass to put in so it will just be part of where she walks as I will bury the dishes... 
The humidity what I like is the temperature doesn't drop drasitically when I add water spray etc like it did in the rubbermaid making more of a cold damp environment with this it keeps it warmer and humid and it is a lot easier to control... however it still takes some work it still dry's out of course and needs to be helped.
I added another hide too and made a bridge across because Olive likes to climb up stuff and go down the other side.. 

I think an all glass vivarium would keep humidity and temps in more than this I think the vented sides do contribute to a loss but then the air get's replenished too so it's good and bad... 

Thanks for the all the comments they really have encouraged me to make a go of it and make it beautiful for her!!

I'll be back when she's bigger to help find something else... haha


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## Millerlite (Aug 24, 2009)

Looks good, THe moss doesnt look very moist, and substrate doesnt look very deep, both those things will bring up humidity. deeper substrate that moist all the way through will make it a lot easier to keep humidity up.


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## terryo (Aug 24, 2009)

You could also put some ground cover..Creeping Jenny, Time etc..I have baby tears and creaping jenny. They really hold the humidity and when they walk on them, they pop right up again.


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## Shelli (Aug 27, 2009)

Shelli said:


>



I have added her new water dish it's styled to go in the corner so that corner is like a big walk in bath. I am going to try and find some ground cover I hope i'm not too late in the season to get some...


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## Yvonne G (Aug 27, 2009)

That's a beautiful habitat for your little tortoise! I only see what I feel to be one problem, and that is that the sides are so high that the lights are too far away. Have you measured the temperature down at ground level? and is it in the ok range?

Everyone take note: a picture of a habitat that also includes the inhabitant of said habitat is much better for us viewers than an empty habitat. Good Job!

Yvonne


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## terryo (Aug 27, 2009)

You have created an interesting and natural environment for your Redfoot. I love the little corner water dish. It doesn't take up all the middle space. Really nice. If your temperatures aren't reaching the bottom of the enclosure, you could always add more substrate to raise the bottom up a little. It really looks good.


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## Shelli (Aug 27, 2009)

I get 85 on the heat emitter side, but only about 79 under the blue lamp where the fogger is, I think it's our AC too it really is going to need adjusting when we turn it off as this will be all new to me, she isn't near it it's in the other room but it still effects it because this morning my husband didnt' put on the AC until later and he said her humidity was at 99% or something where normally it's at about 79%. I am not sure what the temp was in her enclosure as he only told me about the humidity but i'm sure it was warmer too.. as the weather cools off and we don't use the Ac so much I will beable to find out if I need to lower the lights or not..

Terry in my other thread in the photo room you asked about her rock where she eats, it's granite I think, it was in our yard, then it lived in our fish tank then it left the fish tank and lived on the patio and now it's Olive's.. lol..


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## terryo (Aug 27, 2009)

I don't know weather or not your temp's should be any different, but that is just about what mine are in Pio's enclosure. When he was little he always stayed on the warm side. His hide is under the heat emitter. On the cooler side I have a long tube UVB 10.0 (the size for a 20 gal tank) that doesn't give off any heat. Now that he is older I will find him on the cool side a lot during the day, and at night he will go in his hide on the hot side.
I really love that idea for feeding...a little piece of granite. My kids own a tile store and instillation business, and now I'm going to ask for a little square piece of granite. I always put a dish in there and they end up stepping on the edge and tipping it over. Thanks for that great idea.


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## tortoisenerd (Aug 27, 2009)

I think you may want to start brainstorming ideas for more adjustable lighting/heating, as because when your room temperature changes, you should be adjusting bulb height to modify the temperature. Great enclosure! I love seeing the scale of the enclosure and tort. Just be careful Olive isn't like my little guy and insists on walking the perimeter of the enclosure, whether there is space or not (he fell into the water which was up against a wall and was found upside down, but ok).


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## khira02 (Aug 29, 2009)

I absolutely adulation that abstraction for feeding...a little section of granite. My kids own a asphalt abundance and beverage business, and now I'm traveling to ask for a little aboveboard section of granite. I consistently put a bowl in there and they end up dispatch on the bend and angled it over. Thanks for that abundant idea.


_________________
Event tent


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## Yvonne G (Aug 29, 2009)

khira02 said:


> I absolutely adulation that abstraction for feeding...a little section of granite. My kids own a asphalt abundance and beverage business, and now I'm traveling to ask for a little aboveboard section of granite. I consistently put a bowl in there and they end up dispatch on the bend and angled it over. Thanks for that abundant idea.



Welcome to the forum! Are you from Greece?

Yvonne


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## tortoisenerd (Aug 29, 2009)

Welcome to the group Khira! Feel free to start an introduction thread (for you and any torts) so we all can give you a proper hello.


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## Kadaan (Aug 30, 2009)

Is the cover you use across the top of the tank the plastic sheets used to cover fluorescent lights? Is it strong enough to withstand the heat of having the lamps sit right on top of it? Seems like that would be a pretty inexpensive cover to maintain humidity in any enclosure, I like it .


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## Shelli (Aug 31, 2009)

Kadaan said:


> Is the cover you use across the top of the tank the plastic sheets used to cover fluorescent lights? Is it strong enough to withstand the heat of having the lamps sit right on top of it? Seems like that would be a pretty inexpensive cover to maintain humidity in any enclosure, I like it .



It all came as a complete set up it feels like a thin aluminum mesh type material though..

For those worried about the heat.. I did drop a light in but I had to lower the wattage as it got too hot but good to know for when it gets cooler that I can up it if I need too..
It's all still a work in progress it's still new so we are figuring out our temps and humidity every day to try and get it just right..
Here's a pic sadly Olive wasn't up for being in the shot she is in the half flower pot I have no clue how she squeezes in there and turns around so her head pokes out but she does.. (you can just see her tiny head to the very left corner inbetween a piece of sphagnum moss.. haha


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## Meg90 (Aug 31, 2009)

What is that smoke from? Below the orange lamp???


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## Shelli (Sep 1, 2009)

It's from the repti-fogger it's fog... it's on for 45 minutes every 1.5 hours.


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## Traveller (Sep 1, 2009)

How are you liking the repti-fogger?
I was thinking of investing in one but have read they can
sometimes cause more headaches than they're worth?


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## Shelli (Sep 1, 2009)

Well they seem to work too well like when I had mine on the lowest setting my humidity without AC on went up to 99% and it was going through a good 3/4 of the bottle they give of distilled water in an 8 hour period (I was shutting mine down at 7pm)
Now I have it on a digital timer that has 8 on/off settings so it goes off for a half hour period every 45 minutes..
It's harder to keep warm temps with all that humidity but if that's not a big deal for you then I think they are good..
I know they may cause respiritary problems but so long as your tortoise can get away from it and it's not cold.
Olive has definately been more active with hers and her shell looks good all the time now before it would look dry and I was always misting her... 
So yeah... we did make one with a $15 piece off ebay but after we got her new enclosure we splashed out on the proper one no difference if you can rig something up though..
I'm definately no expert on it,, my husband 'HAD' to get if for her.. I was not really wanting one either...


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## Traveller (Sep 2, 2009)

Thanks for the feedback Shelli.
I'm still sitting the fence on purchasing one.
Our house is an old farmhouse, hard to heat
so the warmth is a factor for us.


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