Box turtles

[Angi]

I need advice on housing box turtles. This is my situation. I have two baby desert torts that I keep in the house. My brother wants me to care for his box turtle for an unknown amount of time. He ( my Bro) is between homes. He has kept then in an indoor encloser for about 8 years (not a very attractive one)as he has never had a yard. I have a large yard. I also live in a pretty warm climate (Ramona, Ca) north east San Diego county. Should I keep them inside or build them an outdoor home? If I build them an outdoor home do I need to provide heating or will they just go underground when it get cold. I have looked at several websites on box turtle and have not found an answer to my question. I know that they need cool miost areas, but I am stumped about heat.

 

[kimber_lee_314]

I live north of you - in the Inland Empire - and leave my boxies out year round. Just be sure to protect them from predators. They also need more humidity so you will need to spray down their enclosure once or twice a day depending on the weather. Since your yard is large, you probably don't want to give them the entire run of it. Perhaps you can build a suitable area for them. You can look on the enclosures section - or email me and I will send you pics of mine. Good luck! What kind of box turtles are they?

 

[Tropical Torts]

If you still havent found the answer to your questions you will probably get some helpful information as well as exceptional pictures at turtletails.com. Hope you find what you need!

 

[terryo]

I keep my boxies inside in a planted vivarium until them are about 3 years old. In the summer they go out when it's warm. After that they go outside for good. When making your enclosure, just try to mimic the forest floor or wherever your boxies natural range is. I put lots of plants for hiding under and shade, and on one side I loosen up the dirt, and add peat moss and on top of that lots of leaf litter. When it's cold they will go in there and dig under. It's it too hot they will also use that side to stay cool. I put a very large water dish for soaking and drinking. I also coppied many of my enclosures from turtletails.com. Tom is very helpful and will answer all your questions.
Some pic. of my enclosure from last summer. Hope this helps a bit.

 

[kimber_lee_314]

Great pictures! You can also try boxturtleinfo.org - a very good site!

 

[Angi]

Thanks for the info. Terry your turtle garden is beautiful. Are all those plants okay for turtles to eat? Will you post what is planted? My brother said his turtles have to be kept inside because he worries about them if they are outside. I do have a LOT of predators where I live so I will make a play area for them that they can be supervise in. I will also see what I can do to come up with a more attractive habitat for them in my house. I will check out the web-sites. They are moving in Friday