Redfoot enclosure upgrade

[RFTort Mama]

Hey everyone!

I have a 3 year old redfoot tortoise and I am upgrading his enclosure. I got a 6x3 Toad Ranch enclosure. It has the light bar that spans the length (can't show pictures yet cause I have not built it). My question is what is the best way to close chamber this? He is currently in a 4x2 storage tote that I cover with plastic paint drop cloths.

As well, I have Arcadia strip lights for his plants and UVB. What is the best way to hang these from the light bar? Currently his bin is not as wide so they can rest on the sides while spanning across. His heat lamps have clamps so those I am able to clamp to the bar, I am just unsure about the UVB and plant light.


Thank you!

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hey everyone!

I have a 3 year old redfoot tortoise and I am upgrading his enclosure. I got a 6x3 Toad Ranch enclosure. It has the light bar that spans the length (can't show pictures yet cause I have not built it). My question is what is the best way to close chamber this? He is currently in a 4x2 storage tote that I cover with plastic paint drop cloths.

As well, I have Arcadia strip lights for his plants and UVB. What is the best way to hang these from the light bar? Currently his bin is not as wide so they can rest on the sides while spanning across. His heat lamps have clamps so those I am able to clamp to the bar, I am just unsure about the UVB and plant light.


Thank you!

Hi!

Can you send a photo of the bar and enclosure, or maybe a link to Toad Ranch site or a screenshot?

I was sure that Toad Ranch makes only closed terrariums and not open tables... Anyways, a portable greenhouse top should work...

What wattage (or length) of Arcadia Jungle Dawn bar and UVB lamp do you have? Layout will depend on it. But, generally, you either place lights in the middle, leaving perimeter shaded or you shift all light towards one end, making colder/darker and hotter/brighter sides.

 

[Tortellini0000]

Hi!

Can you send a photo of the bar and enclosure, or maybe a link to Toad Ranch site or a screenshot?

I was sure that Toad Ranch makes only closed terrariums and not open tables... Anyways, a portable greenhouse top should work...

What wattage (or length) of Arcadia Jungle Dawn bar and UVB lamp do you have? Layout will depend on it. But, generally, you either place lights in the middle, leaving perimeter shaded or you shift all light towards one end, making colder/darker and hotter/brighter sides.

Hi Alex! Not my post but Im in the works of getting a 4x2x2 closed chamber and figuring out all my lighting. I wanted to get the 22w jungle dawn bar. Can I ask you the best place to put it with a radiant heat panel in the middle and the T5 12% kit and 10in dome with a 50 watt Arcadia solar basking flood bulb?

 

[Fluffy]

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I believe this is the enclosure they're referring to.

 

[COmtnLady]

An adult Red Foot (which yours is, or will be within a year), RFTort Mama, needs as much room as possible. 3X6 is too small, don't waste your money on that size. Minimum size is 4 x 8, with the emphasis on minimum. Tortoises, because their shells are so rigid, NEED to walk. The muscles and ligaments sort of massage their internal organs during exercising, which helps them process food and move things through their gastrointestinal tract. When there isn't enough room to move around it slows all that down and can contribute to blockages and other digestive problems.



Have you had a chance to read through this yet? It will help a lot. I'm concerned you are getting an enclosure that is too small to begin with. 2 feet wide by 4 feet long is only suitable for the first couple years of life, which is pretty much past your Red Foot's stage of life already. 4 x 8 really is the minimum (it can be as narrow as 2 feet wide, but then needs to be 16 or 20 feet long, or have a second story with ramp access that will allow that much exploring room in less linear feet of space). Wider would be better because you can make it more visually interesting and change it around to enrich your tort's experiences more easily.

Housing older red foot/cherryhead

Hello there! In this thread I’m going to go over an example of an appropriate indoor red foot/cherryhead enclosure. As much as it’s encouraged to have tortoises in a safe outdoor enclosure(especially the size these guys get!) I understand being from the uk myself, that some climate’s make it...

tortoiseforum.org

This next link is good background info to know. It was written a while ago, and we have since discovered some things in it we no longer consider "Best Keeping Practices" (for example: never use sand, potting or purchased soil, or any sort of gravel or small stones/marbles/that size of swallowable items inside the enclosure - best substrate is fine Orchid bark, or orchid bark over damp/wet coco coir), but there is a lot of great other info this. The map will help you see that RF evolved in and around the equator, hence the high heat and humidity needed. ~

Redfoot Tortoise Care Sheet

NOTE: I do not keep redfoots, and I only have one tortoise in total. With this in mind, remember that I am in no way an expert, and this should not be used as cold hard proof of how to raise a redfoot. I used information from great keepers on this forum to put everything together. This care...

tortoiseforum.org

Your Red Foot's enclosure also needs to be completely closed to keep the heat and humidity even. RF are a tropical species and need 84F and 84% humidity, or higher, 100% of the time, for their whole lives. You will find rough Red Foots that have been forced to endure colder and dryer conditions, but they are not thriving, they are just trying to survive those lesser quality conditions.
See how this tort's shell looks from being kept too dry?

No only is the humidity inadequate for this poor critter, but look at the bowl in front of it, blocking access to the drinking water!


Don't go with that too small enclosure.

Put the money toward one that will help your tortoise thrive!
Here's a suggestion:
@Markw84 makes amazingly beautiful vivs that come completely ready (except for the substrate, decorations, hides, and dishes, but al the lights and heat are included). Contact him. If you aren't going to make it yourself, his pre-made are really nice.



.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

Hi Alex! Not my post but Im in the works of getting a 4x2x2 closed chamber and figuring out all my lighting. I wanted to get the 22w jungle dawn bar. Can I ask you the best place to put it with a radiant heat panel in the middle and the T5 12% kit and 10in dome with a 50 watt Arcadia solar basking flood bulb?

It depends on heat panel dimensions... yet, very likely, you don't have enough space to fit in everything nicely.... What would I change:

1. Use LED spotlights instead of a single bar, placed on the left and right sides (1 in each corner, for example).

2. Ditch wide dome for the basking floodlight. Bulb has built-in reflector and doesn't need a dome per se, plain socket will work too. A dome can make it more comfortable for you to observe the enclosure (light won't be shooting sideways).

3. Use regular CHE (ceramic heaters) instead of a heat panel, domes are not necessary in a "closed chamber" as well. You can also add some polystyrene insulation to outside enclosure walls and decrease run time of heaters greatly (most foam PVC enclosures benefit from this hack).

Feel free to start your own thread or reach me in DM.

 

[Alex and the Redfoot]

An adult Red Foot (which yours is, or will be within a year), RFTort Mama, needs as much room as possible. 3X6 is too small, don't waste your money on that size. Minimum size is 4 x 8, with the emphasis on minimum. Tortoises, because their shells are so rigid, NEED to walk. The muscles and ligaments sort of massage their internal organs during exercising, which helps them process food and move things through their gastrointestinal tract. When there isn't enough room to move around it slows all that down and can contribute to blockages and other digestive problems.



Have you had a chance to read through this yet? It will help a lot. I'm concerned you are getting an enclosure that is too small to begin with. 2 feet wide by 4 feet long is only suitable for the first couple years of life, which is pretty much past your Red Foot's stage of life already. 4 x 8 really is the minimum (it can be as narrow as 2 feet wide, but then needs to be 16 or 20 feet long, or have a second story with ramp access that will allow that much exploring room in less linear feet of space). Wider would be better because you can make it more visually interesting and change it around to enrich your tort's experiences more easily.

Housing older red foot/cherryhead

Hello there! In this thread I’m going to go over an example of an appropriate indoor red foot/cherryhead enclosure. As much as it’s encouraged to have tortoises in a safe outdoor enclosure(especially the size these guys get!) I understand being from the uk myself, that some climate’s make it...

tortoiseforum.org

This next link is good background info to know. It was written a while ago, and we have since discovered some things in it we no longer consider "Best Keeping Practices" (for example: never use sand, potting or purchased soil, or any sort of gravel or small stones/marbles/that size of swallowable items inside the enclosure - best substrate is fine Orchid bark, or orchid bark over damp/wet coco coir), but there is a lot of great other info this. The map will help you see that RF evolved in and around the equator, hence the high heat and humidity needed. ~

Redfoot Tortoise Care Sheet

NOTE: I do not keep redfoots, and I only have one tortoise in total. With this in mind, remember that I am in no way an expert, and this should not be used as cold hard proof of how to raise a redfoot. I used information from great keepers on this forum to put everything together. This care...

tortoiseforum.org

Your Red Foot's enclosure also needs to be completely closed to keep the heat and humidity even. RF are a tropical species and need 84F and 84% humidity, or higher, 100% of the time, for their whole lives. You will find rough Red Foots that have been forced to endure colder and dryer conditions, but they are not thriving, they are just trying to survive those lesser quality conditions.
See how this tort's shell looks from being kept too dry?

No only is the humidity inadequate for this poor critter, but look at the bowl in front of it, blocking access to the drinking water!


Don't go with that too small enclosure.

Put the money toward one that will help your tortoise thrive!
Here's a suggestion:
@Markw84 makes amazingly beautiful vivs that come completely ready (except for the substrate, decorations, hides, and dishes, but al the lights and heat are included). Contact him. If you aren't going to make it yourself, his pre-made are really nice.



.

OP specifically asked, how to make a cover the enclosure. So she is aware of humidity/controlled temperature requirements.

6x3 can work for a while if it's used with an outdoor pen (I'm not talking about 12-14" tortoises now). Climate in Tennessee is not ideal for redfoots, for sure. Yet it doesn't have to be 86F all year round to take a healthy Redfoot outside for a leg stretch.

P.S. Happy birthday!!!

 

[COmtnLady]

I keep mine as written above and she's doing quite well.

That enclosure costs too much for only a year's use. It would be better to just get a larger one now. Why buy something made for a tortoise that does fine in an open enclosure then have to do a bunch of things to make it work for RF?


(TY for the Bday wish.)