Ok This Is my Plan

[TortoiseAddict]

Ok this is what my habitat is at the moment except the plant isn't as lush at the moment.... Oh and i forgot that bucket is not there it is a little burrow/cave

What i am thinking of doing is dumping everything out of there filling it half and half. One with soil and one with cypress mulch. I was thinking i could plant plants in there and get rid of the pots for easier accessibility, shade, and gives more room. I was wondering how do your tortoises like plain old soil? I imagine it is much easier to dig around in and cooler.

 

[jojodesca]

Hello,

I have box turtles, so what I did today was add a bag of TOPSOIL from the hardware store and mixed it with the coco coir from Petco. I think my turtles like is..that cypress mulch looks like it would be hard to dig in...not to mention pointy if it got near the eyes of your tortoise. I put a lot of plants (fake) all over my vivarium and i have a few logs in there to hide in...
here's a few pics...

 

[Jacqui]

Looks like your using a sheep water tan for your enclosure, it's what a lot of mine are too. I am not a big fan of the cypress mulch for my smaller/younger tortoises. You can use the soil, just be sure there is nothing harmful in the dirt. I myself use the coir with a bit of sand combo. Plants do well in it, too.

Do you have the pots buried or sitting with the top rim high above the substrate?

 

[TortoiseAddict]

Looks like your using a sheep water tan for your enclosure, it's what a lot of mine are too. I am not a big fan of the cypress mulch for my smaller/younger tortoises. You can use the soil, just be sure there is nothing harmful in the dirt. I myself use the coir with a bit of sand combo. Plants do well in it, too.

Do you have the pots buried or sitting with the top rim high above the substrate?

yes the pot is buried underneath the substrate. And yes i was not really liking the substrate thats why i was planning on changing it

---

Hello,

I have box turtles, so what I did today was add a bag of TOPSOIL from the hardware store and mixed it with the coco coir from Petco. I think my turtles like is..that cypress mulch looks like it would be hard to dig in...not to mention pointy if it got near the eyes of your tortoise. I put a lot of plants (fake) all over my vivarium and i have a few logs in there to hide in...
here's a few pics...

awesome thanks and these fake plants what are they made out of? And where did you get them?

---

i also just googled coco coir petco and the only thing that came up was
Cocunut Bark...

 

[jojodesca]

Hello,

here is what i used...you can get it in packs of 1 or 3, I by the 3 pack..and you add water to it and it expands....

http://www.petco.com/product/10813/...te.aspx?CoreCat=MM_ReptileSupplies_Substrates


I got the plants at a few places..to get the variety...I bought some at the DollarTree..Michaels, Jo-Ann fabrics....Some of them are plastic, some are like a silky fabric, and some are like a plastic coated fabric...I bought them by the bunch, and just stuck them down in the dirt...i bent the stem of a few and hung them down to create a draping effect... I have another feed where i posted alot of pictures in section (american box turtles-WORK IN PROGRESS) if you want to view more photos. I made it look more natural for them and they are very active climbing all over in the vivarium

 

[TortoiseAddict]

Hello,

here is what i used...you can get it in packs of 1 or 3, I by the 3 pack..and you add water to it and it expands....

http://www.petco.com/product/10813/...te.aspx?CoreCat=MM_ReptileSupplies_Substrates


I got the plants at a few places..to get the variety...I bought some at the DollarTree..Michaels, Jo-Ann fabrics....Some of them are plastic, some are like a silky fabric, and some are like a plastic coated fabric...I bought them by the bunch, and just stuck them down in the dirt...i bent the stem of a few and hung them down to create a draping effect... I have another feed where i posted alot of pictures in section (american box turtles-WORK IN PROGRESS) if you want to view more photos. I made it look more natural for them and they are very active climbing all over in the vivarium

awesome thanks! and should i be worried about Jenny maybe trying to take a bite out of a plastic plant?

 

[jojodesca]

I dont seem to have a problem with them, its hard to cut thru them, plus they dont have a "tasty " scent so they just climb thru them. however you can also buy the edible plants for your tortoise, I dont know what kinds, but there are alot of ppl on here that do...

 

[ascott]

I use organic fertilizer free soil, clean yard dirt and coco coir (the block type that was mentioned previously) for the two little RFs.....it works great...one of the RFs loves to dig down and sink herself hiding and she especially loves to do this when I have added warm water to the substrate.....I also use a bunch of silk plants in each of their enclosures in place of a hide....the one RF really loves to chill in his silky forrest ..and they both move in and out of their bunches all day....

I was worried at first too about if they would munch the plants .....but it has proven to be not worrying about....

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

Nice! Don't forget a heat source. My one problem with this however will be that it will be nearly impossible to maintain a decent humidity level necessary for the little ones to survive...

 

[Jacqui]

Nice! Don't forget a heat source. My one problem with this however will be that it will be nearly impossible to maintain a decent humidity level necessary for the little ones to survive...

Actually depending on how warm they keep that area and what they use for light, they may not need additional heat. Why should there be a problem maintaining humidity? Once more a lot will depend on the humidity in the house, if they use like a humid hide, and other factors. I have been raising Redfoots in this manner for years and have not had an issue.

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

Don't know about redfoots, but for sulcatas they need about 80% humidity. I would hope no ones house is that humid... Haha

 

[Jacqui]

Don't know about redfoots, but for sulcatas they need about 80% humidity. I would hope no ones house is that humid... Haha

The entire enclosure does not have to be a high humidity level.