baby tortoise home?

[tmacc0]

I am thinking about getting a new russian or a herman hatchling sometime soon. In one of my classes we had to build something out of wood so I decided to try to make a home for my future baby tortoise. I had to make it pretty small for class, but do you think this could work for a baby tortoise? Is there anything I can do to improve it?

(I am going to be adding sides to the upper level also)

 

[chairman]

What are the dimensions?

You may want to add some "speed bumps" to the ramp to give the tort more grip when climbing. Side rails are a necessary addition- just make sure they're tall enough that the tort won't be able to climb them. Instead of protecting him, you'll just be giving him a taller platform to jump from.

 

[Kadaan]

Looks nice! I agree with the railings, torts have a habit of jumping off and flipping over from anything higher than a couple inches. Dimensions look like about 24" x 24" x 18"? That would be fine for a year and maybe 2, which would you time to design and build a bigger one .

For the 'speed bumps' you can glue some small pieces of wood for traction, add some small strips of sandpaper/ourdoor carpet, or spread a thin layer of wood glue over it and cover it with sawdust for texture.

You'll probably want fake plants or logs/tunnels or something up top, if it's completely exposed then your tort will probably want to hide down below all the time. I think a small plant would be perfect for the little cutout in the middle... you could put the pot on the bottom and the leaves would hang over the top level.

Keep us updated with construction/decoration and of your tort when it moves in!

 

[Yvonne G]

It should be ok for a baby, but its very small and as the tortoise grows, you will have to get him into something bigger.

Yvonne

 

[tmacc0]

thanks everyone i will put more pictures up as i add more too it.

I am going to add railings and some sort of grips for the ramp, as well as plants and hide-outs. I am only planning on using this for a baby tortoise, as he grows I will make a bigger and better house for him. Does anyone have suggestions for a substrate? I am planning on getting a baby Herman.

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What are the dimensions?

You may want to add some "speed bumps" to the ramp to give the tort more grip when climbing. Side rails are a necessary addition- just make sure they're tall enough that the tort won't be able to climb them. Instead of protecting him, you'll just be giving him a taller platform to jump from.

the dimensions are 24"x28"x16"

 

[Kadaan]

For the bottom I would use something around 2" deep. Either a mix of topsoil/coco coir and playsand, or some type of mulch (like a bag of orchid bark from a home improvement store.) For the top level I personally would cut some outdoor carpeting to fit, since you won't be able to make it deep. A thin layer of hay/shredded newspaper that you change a couple times a week would work too.

 

[tmacc0]

For the bottom I would use something around 2" deep. Either a mix of topsoil/coco coir and playsand, or some type of mulch (like a bag of orchid bark from a home improvement store.) For the top level I personally would cut some outdoor carpeting to fit, since you won't be able to make it deep. A thin layer of hay/shredded newspaper that you change a couple times a week would work too.

thanks!

 

[tmacc0]

here is an update on my enclosure..

I still have a few more things to do but its getting there. Right now my silk flowers are attached to the floor with duct tape..is that going to be alright? or is there a better way?

http://s982.photobucket.com/albums/ae303/turtsntorts/[hr]
i put it in the wrong album... here http://s982.photobucket.com/albums/ae303/turtsntorts/new baby tort home/

 

[tortoisenerd]

The ramp looks a tad steep to me, but hard to tell. If you do get a young enough hatchling to fit (which is NOT recommended, as they are so fragile, and ideally you will look for one at least 6-12 months old), then you could try it but have a back up Rubbermaid tub for it just in case. Yes, taping plants and flowers to the floor is fine as long as the substrate is deep enough and you don't find the tortoise trying to eat or dig at the duck tape. On the same subject, you would watch the tort at first to make sure they don't find the silk plants tasty (most don't). Looking good! I admire your handiwork. If Hermanns dig (not sure actually), I would recommend much deeper than 2 inches. A hatchling will be at least two inches long, so that gives them zero depth to dig in. For my Russian I use about 3 times as deep as he is long and it works great. As he gets older this will be more like 2 times as deep as he is long though. What other planning are you doing for the future baby? Best wishes.

 

[tmacc0]

The ramp looks a tad steep to me, but hard to tell. If you do get a young enough hatchling to fit (which is NOT recommended, as they are so fragile, and ideally you will look for one at least 6-12 months old), then you could try it but have a back up Rubbermaid tub for it just in case. Yes, taping plants and flowers to the floor is fine as long as the substrate is deep enough and you don't find the tortoise trying to eat or dig at the duck tape. On the same subject, you would watch the tort at first to make sure they don't find the silk plants tasty (most don't). Looking good! I admire your handiwork. If Hermanns dig (not sure actually), I would recommend much deeper than 2 inches. A hatchling will be at least two inches long, so that gives them zero depth to dig in. For my Russian I use about 3 times as deep as he is long and it works great. As he gets older this will be more like 2 times as deep as he is long though. What other planning are you doing for the future baby? Best wishes.

I was thinking the ramp my be too steep! Fortunately it shouldn't be too hard of a fix. I think I am going to go to the store to look for a suitable rubbermaid today just in case. I will try him in this house first, but its not a big deal if it doesn't work for him...I mean it would be nice, but it was mostly done for a school project, and I think I should get an A. I wish I would have been able to make it bigger and with no second level, but I think my teacher probably would have thought that was too easy.

I bought a mercury vapor light, some hides, vitamins, flowers, veggies and everything I could think of to prepare for him to come. After getting advice from a lot of people I have decided to use organic top soil and play sand as a substrate.

Luckily I also know a girl in my neighborhood that is just finishing up her exotic vet degree, so hopefully she will be able to help me decide if his house is going to work as well. I am going to see if she can come check on him periodically to make sure he is doing alright. (She does not specialize in herp but she did have schooling in it)

I am also working on some plans for an outdoor enclosure for when it comes to be warm out again, (I live in MN and it is too cold right now.)

I think he is going to be shipped on the 17th. I am going to have everything set up and ready for when he gets here. I will take pictures and watch him and then post again to see if you guys think I should switch enclosures.

Thanks so much for responding!! I really appreciate the feedback!

 

[tmacc0]

The ramp looks a tad steep to me, but hard to tell. If you do get a young enough hatchling to fit (which is NOT recommended, as they are so fragile, and ideally you will look for one at least 6-12 months old), then you could try it but have a back up Rubbermaid tub for it just in case. Yes, taping plants and flowers to the floor is fine as long as the substrate is deep enough and you don't find the tortoise trying to eat or dig at the duck tape. On the same subject, you would watch the tort at first to make sure they don't find the silk plants tasty (most don't). Looking good! I admire your handiwork. If Hermanns dig (not sure actually), I would recommend much deeper than 2 inches. A hatchling will be at least two inches long, so that gives them zero depth to dig in. For my Russian I use about 3 times as deep as he is long and it works great. As he gets older this will be more like 2 times as deep as he is long though. What other planning are you doing for the future baby? Best wishes.

I got Floyd today! I added more pictures to the same link: http://s982.photobucket.com/albums/ae303...rt home/

It seems to work great for him as a hatchling enclosure, and the ramp actually turned out to be just fine. If you notice anything I need to change, let me know. Otherwise thanks so much for all ur help!

 

[Kadaan]

Your first link went to turtles only, and the most recent one didn't work. I think this one should:

http://s982.photobucket.com/albums/ae303/turtsntorts/new baby tort home/


Looks great, btw!