- Joined
- Mar 25, 2015
- Messages
- 37
Hi, I am a redfoot owner and am looking to upgrade Chip's indoor tortoise enclosure. I got him when he was a little guy around 6 years ago, and he is roughly 12 years old. During the summer he is in an outside enclosure placed around a shrubby treed area where he can hide under cover or bask in the sun. I bring him in the house nightly due to the wildlife that regularly passes through my yard...coyotes, foxes, racoons, opossums, hawks, owls, turkeys, and cats to name a few. Chip is an escape artist and has escaped many times, and has caused me great anguish and a couple sleepless nights. He doesn't dig out of his enclosure, but he rams the walls until he moves them enough to slip out. I put bright tape on his back so he is easily spotted. I also know where he tends to hide, but he moves way faster than anyone can anticipate and he covers much ground in a short time. I also do not leave him outside if I am not home, so sometimes between work and errands, he doesn't always get outside on a daily basis.
Because chip is rather large now, and weighs over 10 lbs., I am looking to drastically improve his indoor enclosure, as well as his outdoor. However, because he is inside for another 5-6 months I really need to make improvements to his indoor enclosure first. I am hoping the many tortoise experts and tortoise lovers on this forum can give me some great suggestions.
Presently Chip has his own bedroom. His enclosure is a 6' x 3' wooden enclosure with 18" walls. He is in the house roughly October through May. I have done many things to try to "embellish" his enclosure, such as plants, water features, etc., but he tends to trample the plants and either spill all the water out or poop in any water fixture. I know he does not get enough humidity when indoors, but I try to spray him or pour warm water daily. He does have basking lights and a ceramic heat lamp in his enclosure as well as a portable heater in his room to keep it at a constant 80 degrees.
I would like to know what kind of materials I can use to make life a little simpler. His enclosure is made of plywood and I line it with plastic. However, Chip likes to rip the plastic sides and go behind the plastic. Water has leaked out and ruined my hardwood floors. I tried plexiglass sides inside the box with silicone sealer, but did not work. He is also very destructive, so pretty much everything I do to try to make it nice is destroyed.
My plans are to increase the size of the enclosure by a few feet both lengthwise and widthwise as well as put a hinged entry/exit area where he can leave the enclosure when he feels like walking around the room. This way, if he gets bored, he can go in and out. I also want to put a stationary hinged hide area in his box so he cannot move it around the enclosure, and I have easy access to clean it.
Any suggestions on what kind of materials to use? Also about what size should it be? Best way to add some extra humidity to the enclosure? I might add that Chip is still growing and I know he needs the room to walk around, and that is why I want to make the little hinged drawbridge so he is not cramped all day and bored.
I feel bad that he is imprisoned in a box all winter long. I want to make it so his quality of life during the winter months is as good as when he spends most of his summer days outdoors. I have been researching enclosures on Pinterest, but they all seem to be for smaller tortoises as well as mostly warmer climate tortoises. Can I force him into any type of hibernation so he doesn't have to be so bored for so many months?
Again, just trying to improve his quality of life for the long winter. Any suggestions offered will be greatly appreciated.
Because chip is rather large now, and weighs over 10 lbs., I am looking to drastically improve his indoor enclosure, as well as his outdoor. However, because he is inside for another 5-6 months I really need to make improvements to his indoor enclosure first. I am hoping the many tortoise experts and tortoise lovers on this forum can give me some great suggestions.
Presently Chip has his own bedroom. His enclosure is a 6' x 3' wooden enclosure with 18" walls. He is in the house roughly October through May. I have done many things to try to "embellish" his enclosure, such as plants, water features, etc., but he tends to trample the plants and either spill all the water out or poop in any water fixture. I know he does not get enough humidity when indoors, but I try to spray him or pour warm water daily. He does have basking lights and a ceramic heat lamp in his enclosure as well as a portable heater in his room to keep it at a constant 80 degrees.
I would like to know what kind of materials I can use to make life a little simpler. His enclosure is made of plywood and I line it with plastic. However, Chip likes to rip the plastic sides and go behind the plastic. Water has leaked out and ruined my hardwood floors. I tried plexiglass sides inside the box with silicone sealer, but did not work. He is also very destructive, so pretty much everything I do to try to make it nice is destroyed.
My plans are to increase the size of the enclosure by a few feet both lengthwise and widthwise as well as put a hinged entry/exit area where he can leave the enclosure when he feels like walking around the room. This way, if he gets bored, he can go in and out. I also want to put a stationary hinged hide area in his box so he cannot move it around the enclosure, and I have easy access to clean it.
Any suggestions on what kind of materials to use? Also about what size should it be? Best way to add some extra humidity to the enclosure? I might add that Chip is still growing and I know he needs the room to walk around, and that is why I want to make the little hinged drawbridge so he is not cramped all day and bored.
I feel bad that he is imprisoned in a box all winter long. I want to make it so his quality of life during the winter months is as good as when he spends most of his summer days outdoors. I have been researching enclosures on Pinterest, but they all seem to be for smaller tortoises as well as mostly warmer climate tortoises. Can I force him into any type of hibernation so he doesn't have to be so bored for so many months?
Again, just trying to improve his quality of life for the long winter. Any suggestions offered will be greatly appreciated.