Can a tortoise be out of his house too much?

[saulty]

Our three year old Herman's tortoise has a 2x3 wooden Zoo Med Tortoise House. Several times a day, he gets up on his hind legs and scratches at the wall for us to take him out. I don't believe it's from humidity (which can range from 30% to up to 70% at times) or from being hungry. He just likes to walk around the living room. He'll walk around non-stop for a couple hours and sometimes ask to come out a couple hours later, after we put him back. He especially likes it when I am in the living room as he chases after me.

Should I be concerned that he's not under his UV light enough or that he's not staying warm enough? The living room is usually about 66 degrees.

Thanks!

 

[Jacqui]

He may be telling you he wants a larger enclosure. Scratching on the walls, is fairly common with tortoises, especially if the enclosure is new to them. They are testing their boundaries and seeing if they can escape. Sometimes they also do this to escape too much or too little heat and/or light.

I am not a big fan of letting tortoises run loose in homes as there are too many dangers including chemicals used on the floor and tiny things we drop on the floor. Temperature or rather lack of it, especially this time of year is another big potential problem. Walk barefoot or be more daring and lay naked on your floor. It's a bit chilly isn't it?

 

[JoesMum]

Tortoises roam large distances in the wild and I think yours is telling you that it's time to get a bigger enclosure. I agree with Jacqui regarding the hazards of letting them roam free at home. You should be looking at 5' x 3' minimum indoors. Depending on the size of the tortoise, it could be 8' x 4'. Your enclosure is really only sized for a baby.

The best habitat is outdoors when weather permits and then make it as big as you can.

 

[saulty]

Thanks Jacqui and JoesMum. It's not our preference to let him roam around on his own, but as you said, his house is probably too small for him. We try to weigh the risks you mentioned versus his quality of life. And given what he has right now, the walks are a very important part of his quality of life. If we can do something to make his house more appealing as a place to stay for him, that's what we'll do. Having his house outdoors is not an option for us. Also, although we agree that he would prefer a bigger house, we are not completely convinced that a larger house will satisfy him, unless his house was the size of our living room (and had us in it).

He seems to be very healthy. But we are still curious if being away from his UV light and/or heat might for multiple hours per day will damage his health.

I had extended his house by about a foot by adding a cardboard box, but that and originally setting up his Zoo Med House is about the extent of my construction abilities, and it doesn't seem to have an impact on how frequently he asks to come out. I haven't seen any good pre-built options besides the Zoo Med Tortoise House. Maybe I should look at one of the glass ones and just cover up the bottom section (since tortoises don't understand glass)? I was planning on eventually hiring a carpenter, but I was hoping it would be a couple years into the future.

Any thoughts about the best options of getting our tortoise a bigger enclosure? Any recommendations about design specs that I can give to a carpenter? I like the fact that our heat emitter can rest right on the top of the house. Does anyone happen to have a good design for a 2 story house (where the bottom area is for sleeping)? We just don't have the space for an 8x4 house.

 

[theelectraco]

Why dont you just add on a second Zoo Med Tortoise House?

 

[Tortylover_JD]

My tort Sid has quite a big enclosure but he scratches at the sides, and he'll sit and stare at me until I let him out. I think they just like the exercise, and it's healthy for them to have a walk every so often!

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Find an old chest of drawers, bigger is best...lay it on it's back...line it with vinyl or similar...instant tortoise home!