The Digging...

[Maggie Cummings]

Bob lives in a 20'X12' heated/insulated shed. He has lived in it for about 7 years. He has never dug. The hottest it gets here on a bad day is 90 degrees. His shed has 2 doors and a window and stays darker with the lights off (burrow-like). In the shed he has a smaller sleeping box with a heat mat in the corner that he sleeps in summer and winter. There's a pile of fresh Oregon grass hay he can free feed at. My point is he thinks that shed is his burrow. It keeps him warm in our snowy winter and cool in the summer. He is happy there so he has no need to look any further to be satisfied. Every night at 6PM he takes himself off to bed. You can set your watch by him.
However, it cost $1200 for a carpenter to finish off the walls and insulation. The floor, walls and roof are insulated. When it's 8 degrees outside, it's a steady 85 degrees in his shed. His yard is surrounded by a 3.5 foot solid cedar fence that cost $1000. I am telling you the cost of these things because I want to show that keeping him safe, happy and healthy comes at a cost, it is not easy or free. I have no problems with him now that he is set up so he is safe and happy. He's an easy keeper and most of what I do, or grow is for him.
Even on the coldest days of winter I open his doggie door and it's his decision if he wants to go out or not. He's old enough and smart enough to know when he needs to go in and warm up. There's a radiant oil heater for ambient warmth and a 250 watt basking light for him to warm up under.
The sooner Tank is set up properly, the easier his care will be for you...

tortoiseforum.org/threads/bobs-shed.20710/

 

[Tank'sMom]

Thanks Maggie
I'm trying to figure out a way to "house" him so that he won't over heat. Any box I put in my yard right now will be an oven inside! Unless I add an a/c unit!
He has stopped digging the burrow, because I haven't been locking him in his pen at night. He now has free roam of the yard 24/7. I made some adjustments and safety related changes to all the possible "escape routes".
I have no problem spending the money to invest in his well being and my husband is in construction.
I'm just not sure what the best thing to do would be. :/ A self-made burrow in a good location, one of Tom's designs, a "shed" like Bob's. I want to build a shed, but I need to figure out how to keep it cool inside.

 

[Dizisdalife]

Most of you guys seem to have problems keeping them warm in the winter. I have the exact opposite problem!!!
(As I stated before, he has access now to a single bay garage that is very cool, but he doesn't go in there much).
I'm wondering if I can build him a house I can keep cool.

For the most part you are right about our problem is keeping them warm in the Winter. My summer temps rarely get near 100°F. Tom's temps, on the other hand, routinely get to that 100°F mark. If I were to put my night box in a sunny location it would heat up to 90-95°F on average summer days and maybe the upper 90's on hot days. But the box is positioned in a shady location and stays around 80° all day and night. Tom, and others in hot climates, have built under ground houses to beat the summer heat and to keep them warm in the winter. See this thread: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/daisys-new-enclosure.28662/
He has also solved the digging problem by starting a burrow where he wants it, and shutting off burrowing attempts in unwanted places. Tom doesn't have to worry about rain storms in the summer, which may be a factor where you live. When the night time temps start to get too low he seals off the burrow and the tortoises revert back to using a heated night box. This is a really cool thread to read because there is a lot of discussion about burrowing solutions. http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/sulcata-burrows.50846/

It might be a struggle, but if you are as stubborn as your sulcata you can eventually get him to dig where you want him to. I think he is going to continue to burrow until the Fall. Then you are going to need that heated box to house him through the winter months.

 

[Tank'sMom]

I am going to build him a house. Just finished designing it. Now I need to buy the stuff and build it.
Have a few ideas for keeping it cool, but if I have to I'll buy a damn window a/c unit!
I put a thermometer in my dogs dog house, it's in the shade, 135 degrees.
This is gonna be a challenge. But with the rainy season coming, hurricane season coming, yikes, I'm gonna try to stay above ground. That way I can also heat it on our 2 cold days of the year.

 

[tortadise]

You say Bob has a cool shed/burrow?? Would you mind elaborating a bit? Do you mean an actual burrow or that his shed is his burrow? And how do you keep the shed cool?
Most of you guys seem to have problems keeping them warm in the winter. I have the exact opposite problem!!!
(As I stated before, he has access now to a single bay garage that is very cool, but he doesn't go in there much).
I'm wondering if I can build him a house I can keep cool.

That's what I have for my guys. No issues keeping warm in winter, and I do get some digging in the corners of the big pair I have in the building but not much. Now the massive male I have in another building has excavated quite a burrow inside the building. He is a very very docile massive male Sulcata and seems to prefer his burrow for safety reasons. He dug it in the winter when temps were just fine, and just kept digging it even today. It's pretty neat actually. But in the shade or in direct sunlight if they feel the need to dig a burrow, they will.

 

[Tank'sMom]

That's what I have for my guys. No issues keeping warm in winter, and I do get some digging in the corners of the big pair I have in the building but not much. Now the massive male I have in another building has excavated quite a burrow inside the building. He is a very very docile massive male Sulcata and seems to prefer his burrow for safety reasons. He dug it in the winter when temps were just fine, and just kept digging it even today. It's pretty neat actually. But in the shade or in direct sunlight if they feel the need to dig a burrow, they will.

So does yours dig in or outside of the building? And what kind of building? How big is your big guy?
I'm just wondering what others are doing for buildings to keep cool...
Thanks!

 

[Tank'sMom]

One thing I did that was cheap and easy to keep him from going to a "dangerous area".
4 $2 yard posts and a 20 ft ladder in two sections stretching 40ft.

The stakes are 4ft long, pounded in, he can't get past. Easy.

 

[tortadise]

So does yours dig in or outside of the building? And what kind of building? How big is your big guy?
I'm just wondering what others are doing for buildings to keep cool...
Thanks!

The big pair female is 130 pounds and male is around 140-50 they will dig outside. But just in the corners in 2 spots under some huge bois d arc trees. The massive male is around 180-200 he digs inside. His burrow is quite deep too. It goes under the foundation of the building.

 

[Tank'sMom]

Ok. It's done. He took to it right away!
We left the front completely open (I hung some fabric in front to make him feel more "secure") and plenty if air spaces on the top and a bit between the boards.
I put it in a spot that gets the majority of shade throughout the day.
I'll be checking temps I. There tomorrow to see how hot it gets inside. I'm hoping with good adoration and plenty of shade, it will stay cool enough.

He went right in and right to sleep. No digging. Not even to settle himself, which he ALWAYS does. I filled it with Bermuda hay.
The bottom is open. So if he wants to dig, he can. But if he digs in there, it's a good spot for him to do so.
So. Wish me luck! That he'll use it every night, when he needs to cool off and when he needs to feel safe.

 

[Tank'sMom]

Aeration not adoration...

 

[KatieandKyle]

My girlfriends sulcata dug so far under the fence he ran into the pool in the yard behind them. They wound up filling the bottoms of his burrows with cement. He seemed ok after they did that but he was only happy being under ground. It didn't seem to matter what they did above ground.

Thankfully Delilah is not a digger and her new house has not gotten past 96 degrees so far. Still monitoring closely however. Where are you in Phoenix?

 

[Tank'sMom]

My girlfriends sulcata dug so far under the fence he ran into the pool in the yard behind them. They wound up filling the bottoms of his burrows with cement. He seemed ok after they did that but he was only happy being under ground. It didn't seem to matter what they did above ground.

Thankfully Delilah is not a digger and her new house has not gotten past 96 degrees so far. Still monitoring closely however. Where are you in Phoenix?

I'm in South Texas. On the Gulf Coast. It's very hot and very humid. He dug a six ft burrow in the past that remained that way for 5-6 years. I think he wanted that again. But I've noticed he seems to do it because he wants a place to sleep and escape the heat.
I'm hoping his new "house" will deter that need. Now he has a comfy, cool spot where he can feel safe.
If he does decide to dig in there, I'll just have to take it one day at a time. If he wants another 6ft burrow, that wouldn't be horrible. As long as I can cover it when needed. If he goes crazy digging to China... that's another story! Lol.

 

[KatieandKyle]

Oh got it, for some reason I had it confused! Hopefully he will be content with his new house! I love the photos you post, he is so unique!

 

[Livingstone]

Something I want to point out for anybody who's going through this sort of thing... I have noticed the tendency for keepers to put the tortoise's "house" up against a fence, this is not a great idea because very often they start a burrow inside the house and then wind up digging under a fence. If you place the house in a more central location then even if they dig you don't have to worry about it being outside of your fenced property.

 

[Tank'sMom]

That is a problem, Livingstone. The two main burrows he's been working on are at the corners of my fences. One leads into my front yard, the other to the huge empty, grassy lot behind us. The fence I put his house against is a division of my property, on both sides. My backyard, obviously, and my husbands garage and "man cave" on the other side.
Now, if I could just get him to use it! He still prefers to sleep in the corner that leads to the back….
Anyone got any tips to get him to use it more?

 

[Livingstone]

How deep is the area he prefers? I would suggest re-creating that depth inside the house you have built because the chances are he goes back to the other location because it's cooler and he can sleep better when his metabolism is slower.