Is this Tort Table OK? :)

[Dan Tennick]

Hi all,

Hope you're OK, i'm just wondering if someone can offer me some advice.

I'm looking for a Tortoise Table for my 1 Year old Horsfield Tort. I've found one on good old eBay that i like.

Just wondering if someone could look at it for me to see if it will be big enough for the little fella?

I will be covering the Front Viewing Panel up as i know torts dont like clear things and i will be upgrading to a larger one sometime next year but would it be suitable for the first 12 months?


http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=201060692522


Thanks all! Appreciate your time in looking


Dan

 

[dmmj]

It looks pretty good, are you also in the UK?

 

[Dan Tennick]

Ohh, that's good yeah i am! Lol

 

[StarSapphire22]

It's a bit smaller than I would pick, but it would work. For reference, I have a nine-month hermanns about 2.75"...his space is 48"x18". He uses every single inch and acts like he still wants more room! Since you're looking to house a tort probably roughly the same size in there for another year that is much more active...I'd go bigger if you can. Bigger is always better. Have you thought about building one instead?

 

[Dan Tennick]

Ohh,

Ok, i thought it was a little small.. If its gonna be small enough that it will make my little guy stressed or depressed, i'll have another look.

 

[StuMac]

Hi Dan. I think I commented on one of your other posts. If you feel confident , and have the time, why not try building your own tort table. That way you can go much bigger for much cheaper. I bought wood from B&Q after copying the design of an online table, and built it for less than £50. I had to extend it this year but just built the same again and added it to make an "L" shape. Overall it cost me less than £100 and now my tort has a 6'x4' indoor enclosure.

I added the camo piece to give him an extra hide/place to explore. All I needed were screws to hold it in place. Works a treat.

 

[Dan Tennick]

Hey Stu!

Wow! Your tort table looks amazing!! I love it!

Nice work man!

Dan

 

[Shakudo]

Ohh,

Ok, i thought it was a little small.. If its gonna be small enough that it will make my little guy stressed or depressed, i'll have another look.

I love your enthusiasm, I am a very passionate person myself so I will tell what I know, and perhaps you'll get something useful out of it, I am by no means an expert but I learn everyday, and I'll share what works for me.

Here it goes....

About the tort table:

For that money it seems like a good deal, I read your other post and your getting a baby Russian?
For that price I certainly would have considered that, I think its a bargain, what I see on housing options locally costs double or more.
I think for the first year that could work out , you'll have the time to build your own one or think of something else.
I think it's big enough for a baby to last for a while.

The only thing I would do is get some pond foil or water resistant foil, to cover the bottom of the enclosure...
You could neatly cover the bottom with it and attach it with rust free staples and a staple gun of course.
It's all wood and water is easily spilt, I could cause leakage of moist related issues.
I suggest asking an adult to help you out with that.

Alternative housing
What I also can suggest is a rabbit cage.
I do not have much skill in carpentry nor do I have a lot of money to spend on commercially built tort tables or enclosures but while browsing for housing options, I came across many people who house their tortoises in rabbit cages. So I got myself the biggest one I could find and it works great for me.







The bottom half is closed so my tortoise can't see through, and it's easy access for cleaning and maintenance.
I have a lot of fun with the enclosure .

Substrate
For substrate I use a mix of coco coir/peat with coco fiber, you can get that pretty inexpensive at an Ikea or discount store, you know those blocks of compressed soil ? They aren't hard to find.

This for example
http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/products/90231416/

I took the liberty to browse IKEA uk for you.

I use a little bit of sand, but only because I had some left.
It is a tiny percentage of 50 liters or more coco coir. I have mixed it with coco fiber and what you see on the pictures is the end result.

I have learned here that if you keep a tort on sand it has the risk of becoming impacted in the stomach, and creating all sorts of problems. So better not use that if you can avoid it.

What can I tell you more...

Decoration
Well.. I have place a cork bark hide in it, which was boiled and sterilized of course and some more cork bark as decoration. Russians love to climb, so be sure to take that into account.

Be sure to offer it a water dish even though they might not drink much, they can anyway.
Also, place a piece of rock, for example a piece of slate stone in your enclosure, and a piece of cuttlebone (the white sepia stuff you see in the birdcages) So nails and beak will file of naturally.

Micro climates
In the wild Russians can come from very inhospitable areas, very dry and steppe like habitats.
However, in the wild they can burrow down and make a burrow which has a higher humidity.
I keep my enclosure dry for the most part but make sure to sometimes keep the burrow a little bit misted or I mist a small area of the enclosure, that way the tort can choose for itself, what it wants.
I believe hatchlings and very young torts have different desires on humidity that a juvenile or adult tortoise, but expert keepers can tell you more about that.

Handling
This is my opinion, But I try to minimize handling, I believe torts are very easily can be stressed, but I have also seen handling go very well. Try to look and learn from your tort what works for you both.
Soaking
Commented on that in your other thread, but I would soak the baby a few times a week to make sure he remains well hydrated and his bowel movement will be stimulated.

Those are a few of my opinions and experiences so far.
Take from it what you will, and just be sure to ask a looooot of questions, when in doubt, ask.
Tiny doubt? Aks!

But from what I have read so far you try to do your best so I don't doubt you will inform yourself well.

Take care and good luck


If you are interested in my tortoise and enclosure be sure to check my threads.

Bye!

Joey

 

[countrytortoise]

Hi,
The enclosures above are both interesting. We just bought a russian tortoise a few days ago and he is about 3-4 years old. Came in a cement mixing tub which we believe is far to small for him/her. I have an old train table that I am going to reuse to make a tort table. Any suggestions you have would be incredibly helpful!!