My runaway sulcata

[Kymberlyn]

I had left my 1 year old sulcata in a chain link pen, with flight netting over the top, alone for about 1 hour. I take my buddy out on any day that is over 70 degrees. He is often left alone.

Yesterday, for reasons I don't understand, my buddy was not in the pen when I returned. I walked 7-8 acres of the yard looking for him/her. The grass was recently cut and he's large enough to be seen from a distance. Once it was dark I stopped looking. Distraught, I went in the house to cry.

I set a heat lamp out in his pen just in case he returned. This morning I went outside as soon as the sun came up. No tortoise. I continued to check periodically.

The moment it hit 70 degrees outside I went out to look for him again. There he was!! He was in his pen the whole time. I guess the little fellow had just burrowed down too deep for me to see him. Nonetheless, my little buddy will not leave my sight until he's much larger and easier to find.

Does that ever happen? Or does he just get stronger, burrow deeper, and fun faster as he gets older?

 

[Lyn W]

Phew what a relief!
My tort doesn't burrow but it's surprising how fast they can be when they want to.
I'm so pleased you found him - its a horrible feeling when they aren't where you think they should be!

 

[Kymberlyn]

Yes it’s a huge relief. I bet he was so scared and I was so worried about him being safe.

 

[Tom]

I had left my 1 year old sulcata in a chain link pen, with flight netting over the top, alone for about 1 hour. I take my buddy out on any day that is over 70 degrees. He is often left alone.

Yesterday, for reasons I don't understand, my buddy was not in the pen when I returned. I walked 7-8 acres of the yard looking for him/her. The grass was recently cut and he's large enough to be seen from a distance. Once it was dark I stopped looking. Distraught, I went in the house to cry.

I set a heat lamp out in his pen just in case he returned. This morning I went outside as soon as the sun came up. No tortoise. I continued to check periodically.

The moment it hit 70 degrees outside I went out to look for him again. There he was!! He was in his pen the whole time. I guess the little fellow had just burrowed down too deep for me to see him. Nonetheless, my little buddy will not leave my sight until he's much larger and easier to find.

Does that ever happen? Or does he just get stronger, burrow deeper, and fun faster as he gets older?

Its normal for any tort to dig down to avoid sun, predators, exposure to the elements etc... Sulcatas are actual burrowers, so they will tunnel and make themselves a nice place to live. You'll have to watch for that as the tort grows. If you catch the tortoise digging, simply pull it out of the hole, fill the hole in and block that area with something big and heavy like a sheet of plywood, cinder blocks, and old tire, big rocks, etc... Usually after a couple of weeks, you can remove the barrier. Some sulcatas are more persistent diggers than others. Usually when they have a heated night box they feel comfortable with, they will use that as their "burrow" and be less inclined to dig. Usually...

If you had asked us the day this happened, my or Yvonne would have told you to get down on your hands and knees and crawl around the entire enclosure feeling the earth with your hands. Russians are notorious for this. I had a colony of 20 and I "lost" at least one or two of them this way every day in their outdoor enclosure. I once "lost" an 80 pound sulcata this same way too. He was there the whole time, but I could not find him after ours of searching. They are amazing at hiding.

If you are going to use chain link, you need a protective visual barrier around the bottom. 16" tall strip of plywood will work, or something similar that is smooth and not see-through. Sulcatas will unjure themselves incessantly pacing and rubbing on chain link, and they can push under it too. I've seen them bloody their faces and rub their leg scales right off.

 

[Ink]

I'm so happy he is safe

 

[RhodaE]

I had left my 1 year old sulcata in a chain link pen, with flight netting over the top, alone for about 1 hour. I take my buddy out on any day that is over 70 degrees. He is often left alone.

Yesterday, for reasons I don't understand, my buddy was not in the pen when I returned. I walked 7-8 acres of the yard looking for him/her. The grass was recently cut and he's large enough to be seen from a distance. Once it was dark I stopped looking. Distraught, I went in the house to cry.

I set a heat lamp out in his pen just in case he returned. This morning I went outside as soon as the sun came up. No tortoise. I continued to check periodically.

The moment it hit 70 degrees outside I went out to look for him again. There he was!! He was in his pen the whole time. I guess the little fellow had just burrowed down too deep for me to see him. Nonetheless, my little buddy will not leave my sight until he's much larger and easier to find.

Does that ever happen? Or does he just get stronger, burrow deeper, and fun faster as he gets older?

We have a good sized yard with lots of hiding places. Our leopard tortoise gets the run of the yard during the day, but we always have to find him and put him in his hut at night if he doesn't go in it by himself (always in the summer he wants to camp outside ha). So a couple years ago we bought a tracker disk and my husband glued it to his side/rear area. He painted it to match his leopard spots so he didn't look ridiculous. With an app on our phone, it works like a charm to locate him quickly. Before that, sometimes we would be searching for an hour, in the dark sometimes, because he loved to find new hiding places every time!

 

[Tom]

We have a good sized yard with lots of hiding places. Our leopard tortoise gets the run of the yard during the day, but we always have to find him and put him in his hut at night if he doesn't go in it by himself (always in the summer he wants to camp outside ha). So a couple years ago we bought a tracker disk and my husband glued it to his side/rear area. He painted it to match his leopard spots so he didn't look ridiculous. With an app on our phone, it works like a charm to locate him quickly. Before that, sometimes we would be searching for an hour, in the dark sometimes, because he loved to find new hiding places every time!

Hello and welcome to the forum. Can we see a pic? What type of disc? Is it water proof? How long does the battery last? I think your idea can help many people, and I'd love to know more about it. I think EVERY Russian tortoise should get one of these trackers!

 

[RhodaE]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07W9BBCTB/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
In case the link doesn't go through, I use the Tile Mate tracker. I accidentally forgot about it and gave our tortoise a bath in his baby pool with the water quite high, and it kept on working afterward. Usually I just give him a shallow bath, and I get him wet with hose and sprinklers all the time. BTW, his favorite thing is when my kids were younger and they'd get out a Slip 'n Slide. I have video of him taking his turn with the girls over and over. He didn't slide though he just marched down it while they patiently waited. He's kind of famous in the neighborhood.

 

[Kymberlyn]

Its normal for any tort to dig down to avoid sun, predators, exposure to the elements etc... Sulcatas are actual burrowers, so they will tunnel and make themselves a nice place to live. You'll have to watch for that as the tort grows. If you catch the tortoise digging, simply pull it out of the hole, fill the hole in and block that area with something big and heavy like a sheet of plywood, cinder blocks, and old tire, big rocks, etc... Usually after a couple of weeks, you can remove the barrier. Some sulcatas are more persistent diggers than others. Usually when they have a heated night box they feel comfortable with, they will use that as their "burrow" and be less inclined to dig. Usually...

If you had asked us the day this happened, my or Yvonne would have told you to get down on your hands and knees and crawl around the entire enclosure feeling the earth with your hands. Russians are notorious for this. I had a colony of 20 and I "lost" at least one or two of them this way every day in their outdoor enclosure. I once "lost" an 80 pound sulcata this same way too. He was there the whole time, but I could not find him after ours of searching. They are amazing at hiding.

If you are going to use chain link, you need a protective visual barrier around the bottom. 16" tall strip of plywood will work, or something similar that is smooth and not see-through. Sulcatas will unjure themselves incessantly pacing and rubbing on chain link, and they can push under it too. I've seen them bloody their faces and rub their leg scales right off.

Thanks for the tips. I will get a visual barrier put up before I bring him outside again.