The Mighty Odin's indoor oasis-The Build

[Odin's Gma]

I am still figuring out how to use it, but today I set up my old iPhone as a remote camera so I can peek on Odin when I am upstairs or away from home! I have video and sound! WHOO!
It has motion detector video and apparently I can speak through the mic too, but I don't have a clue how yet. I am going to test that feature to scare the bejesus out of my son when he gets home.

 

[Anyfoot]

I am still figuring out how to use it, but today I set up my old iPhone as a remote camera so I can peek on Odin when I am upstairs or away from home! I have video and sound! WHOO!
It has motion detector video and apparently I can speak through the mic too, but I don't have a clue how yet. I am going to test that feature to scare the bejesus out of my son when he gets home.

Nice. Put the video of your scared son on. Lol. That's funny. I did it to our daughter some years back.

 

[Odin's Gma]

Nice. Put the video of your scared son on. Lol. That's funny. I did it to our daughter some years back.

If I can figure out how you bet I will!

 

[Amron]

Fantastic mansion, fantastic pics and fantastic writing, what a lucky tort

 

[Oxalis]

@Odin's Gma, how is your spring planting coming? Do you have any sunshine yet? Ours is off and on. I'm so patient for bigger plants!

 

[Odin's Gma]

Fantastic mansion, fantastic pics and fantastic writing, what a lucky tort

And a spoiled one! While prepping this years outdoor playpen, I am already thinking ahead for next winters indoor expansion. It never ends.

@Odin's Gma, how is your spring planting coming? Do you have any sunshine yet? Ours is off and on. I'm so patient for bigger plants!

Ours is pretty meh. A good deal of sunshine, but the temps aren't much above frost stage at night, so it is slow going.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/odins-playpen-expansion.140349/
I want his jungle back!
Of course Odin is thrilled to really stretch his legs and, of course, to eat everything green. Unfortunately, when he gets tired he paces for a place to hide. His last years cave is no more, and his new one isn't complete, and with no big plants yet he can get a bit salty.
The dandelions help.

 

[Cheryl Hills]

Well, I am planing my outdoors enclosure. It is going to be at least 10 X 30 with possibilities ti enlarge if I need to. Hopefully I can put all my Russians in the one enclosure but if I need to, I can separate them within the enclosure. Then I have to build an area for my box turtles too. Can't wait for the weather to get a bit better so I can start t I still have restrictions on what I can do. Dang back surgery! My boyfriend will do what I can't though.

 

[Jenny & Tort]

Wow your enclosure is great! I have ordered my greenhouse and am going to work soon to make my own sulcata a fabulous home like you have. If you had anything you would do differently what would it be? Also, I am worried about my little guy digging into the plastic and making holes in it. He is a ferocious burrower and I don't want to end up with a damaged carpet. Have you had any problems with your tort making holes in the plastic? Also did you use treated or untreated wood? Also can they eat the Wandering Jew? I have one in my house but never realized it could be a snack source! Thanks!

 

[naturalman91]

Which is why I chose today to upset his apple cart, I mean, how much more of a jerk can he be? Right?

I removed the old topper and was greeted with a vicious hiss.
View attachment 162683

I moved him to the dry box where he proceeded to seethe with murderous rageView attachment 162684
And quickly pulled out and replanted the poor, half-dead hibiscus and installed the new topper. The same as before but about twice the size
View attachment 162685 View attachment 162686

I don't know if the hibiscus will recover, but I am hopeful. It continues to put out new growth on the few stems he hasn't destroyed.View attachment 162687

I then brought him up for a bath and his weekly scrub and check-upView attachment 162688

Where he continued to poutView attachment 162689

And then fill the sink with rage-poop. I kid you not, it was an easy 4-6 ounces of poo, I have never seen anything like it. I cleaned it up, rinsed the sink and picked him up to scrub his belly. The turd-nado continued, unabated. I could feel him getting lighter! I have seen 6 pound humans poop less!View attachment 162690

I brought him back down, set him in the dry box, and he proceeded to storm into the middle box, ram his face against the wall, and plot my death underneath his MVB
View attachment 162693 View attachment 162694

Until he realized I had made him a snackView attachment 162695

And begrudgingly took a break from his assassination planning to storm down the ramp to eatView attachment 162696

He looked like he was considering not eating just to spite me....View attachment 162697

But eventually gave inView attachment 162698


Now he is rage eating so he can make more poop to shoot at me View attachment 162699


Oh, and the answer to my original question? He can be A LOT bigger jerk.

what kind of grass seed do you grow in there? that looks awesome

 

[Odin's Gma]

Wow your enclosure is great! I have ordered my greenhouse and am going to work soon to make my own sulcata a fabulous home like you have. If you had anything you would do differently what would it be? Also, I am worried about my little guy digging into the plastic and making holes in it. He is a ferocious burrower and I don't want to end up with a damaged carpet. Have you had any problems with your tort making holes in the plastic? Also did you use treated or untreated wood? Also can they eat the Wandering Jew? I have one in my house but never realized it could be a snack source! Thanks!

Funny you asked, I WOULD NOT (and I cannot stress that emphatically enough) use an under-soil coil heater!
Here is the story:
Thursday at just before 4PM my husband called me at work and told me to get my *ss home, because the tortoise was burning down the house.
That was a tortuously long drive home.
He got home from work and the house was filled with fumes! I still don't know if Odin clawed or bit through the wire heater or if if shorted out or what, but it was slowly burning and melting the plastic mesh cloth we used to adhere the wire underneath the dirt.
It has been days of clean-up.
Imagine the lingering stench of melting plastic and burning, damp soil......
I had to remove all of the plants, the plastic landscape cloth, wire heating element most of the soil, the greenhouse cover and much of the other items that were in the room. Everything had to be turned off for the room to cool down and the windows were left open for days. Odin was kept in a plastic box for 2 nights before we felt it was safe enough for him to go back into his home, and he is still refusing to enter the greenhouse.

I am still stressed, and so is he.

On the plus side, he is well, no visible injuries, still eating well, getting extra long baths daily and spending as much time outside and out of his enclosure and room as time allows.

I'm a mess, not gonna lie.

Other than that, I am SUPER glad I bought a back-up greenhouse and had everything I needed on hand to gut and rebuild the whole thing on short notice. It is all reseeded and planted, and the residual smell gets better every day, so ALWAYS have a back-up plan and extra supplies on hand and DON'T USE UNDER SOIL HEATERS!!!!!!!

Other than that, I am terribly happy with the whole thing!

what kind of grass seed do you grow in there? that looks awesome

A bunch!
Here is this past winters gardening thread, with a link to last years. Post number 5 has the list of all the plants and seeds. Happy torting!

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...ndoor-winter-gardening-thread-sulcata.126673/

 

[bryson white]

very cool setup and Odin is huge .

 

[Odin's Gma]

very cool setup and Odin is huge .

Thank you, and he is getting bigger by the minute it seems! I haven't weighed him for over a month, but he is at least 4 pounds I think, and somewhere between 9-11 inchesnow (?)
I will try and wrangle him long enough to be more precise soon, but he is kind of in a mood this week, obviously.

 

[Jenny & Tort]

Funny you asked, I WOULD NOT (and I cannot stress that emphatically enough) use an under-soil coil heater!
Here is the story:
Thursday at just before 4PM my husband called me at work and told me to get my *ss home, because the tortoise was burning down the house.
That was a tortuously long drive home.
He got home from work and the house was filled with fumes! I still don't know if Odin clawed or bit through the wire heater or if if shorted out or what, but it was slowly burning and melting the plastic mesh cloth we used to adhere the wire underneath the dirt.
It has been days of clean-up.
Imagine the lingering stench of melting plastic and burning, damp soil......
I had to remove all of the plants, the plastic landscape cloth, wire heating element most of the soil, the greenhouse cover and much of the other items that were in the room. Everything had to be turned off for the room to cool down and the windows were left open for days. Odin was kept in a plastic box for 2 nights before we felt it was safe enough for him to go back into his home, and he is still refusing to enter the greenhouse.

I am still stressed, and so is he.

On the plus side, he is well, no visible injuries, still eating well, getting extra long baths daily and spending as much time outside and out of his enclosure and room as time allows.

I'm a mess, not gonna lie.

Other than that, I am SUPER glad I bought a back-up greenhouse and had everything I needed on hand to gut and rebuild the whole thing on short notice. It is all reseeded and planted, and the residual smell gets better every day, so ALWAYS have a back-up plan and extra supplies on hand and DON'T USE UNDER SOIL HEATERS!!!!!!!

Other than that, I am terribly happy with the whole thing!




A bunch!
Here is this past winters gardening thread, with a link to last years. Post number 5 has the list of all the plants and seeds. Happy torting!

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...ndoor-winter-gardening-thread-sulcata.126673/

Oh my... Good to know! I will not use the heater!

 

[bryson white]

Thank you, and he is getting bigger by the minute it seems! I haven't weighed him for over a month, but he is at least 4 pounds I think, and somewhere between 9-11 inchesnow (?)
I will try and wrangle him long enough to be more precise soon, but he is kind of in a mood this week, obviously.

well just keep us posted he is a very interesting tortoise .

 

[naturalman91]

Funny you asked, I WOULD NOT (and I cannot stress that emphatically enough) use an under-soil coil heater!
Here is the story:
Thursday at just before 4PM my husband called me at work and told me to get my *ss home, because the tortoise was burning down the house.
That was a tortuously long drive home.
He got home from work and the house was filled with fumes! I still don't know if Odin clawed or bit through the wire heater or if if shorted out or what, but it was slowly burning and melting the plastic mesh cloth we used to adhere the wire underneath the dirt.
It has been days of clean-up.
Imagine the lingering stench of melting plastic and burning, damp soil......
I had to remove all of the plants, the plastic landscape cloth, wire heating element most of the soil, the greenhouse cover and much of the other items that were in the room. Everything had to be turned off for the room to cool down and the windows were left open for days. Odin was kept in a plastic box for 2 nights before we felt it was safe enough for him to go back into his home, and he is still refusing to enter the greenhouse.

I am still stressed, and so is he.

On the plus side, he is well, no visible injuries, still eating well, getting extra long baths daily and spending as much time outside and out of his enclosure and room as time allows.

I'm a mess, not gonna lie.

Other than that, I am SUPER glad I bought a back-up greenhouse and had everything I needed on hand to gut and rebuild the whole thing on short notice. It is all reseeded and planted, and the residual smell gets better every day, so ALWAYS have a back-up plan and extra supplies on hand and DON'T USE UNDER SOIL HEATERS!!!!!!!

Other than that, I am terribly happy with the whole thing!




A bunch!
Here is this past winters gardening thread, with a link to last years. Post number 5 has the list of all the plants and seeds. Happy torting!

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...ndoor-winter-gardening-thread-sulcata.126673/

Thanks! making me jealous over here lol did you let it grow before putting your tort in it ?

 

[kelii]

How do you get your grasses to grow so well? Mine reaches a certain size and just dies.

 

[Taylor T.]

Thank you, and he is getting bigger by the minute it seems! I haven't weighed him for over a month, but he is at least 4 pounds I think, and somewhere between 9-11 inchesnow (?)
I will try and wrangle him long enough to be more precise soon, but he is kind of in a mood this week, obviously.

Four pounds! He is growing very quickly and nicely.

 

[Odin's Gma]

well just keep us posted he is a very interesting tortoise .

I snagged him after my son brought him in from his daily dinner al fresco, and he is @ 8.5 inches long and 4.7 pounds!

Thanks! making me jealous over here lol did you let it grow before putting your tort in it ?

Yes, for several days, but I also started a bunch of plant flats weeks prior and transplanted a lot so he didn't destroy everything immediately (it took at least a week or so for that!)

How do you get your grasses to grow so well? Mine reaches a certain size and just dies.

Mine do too, even with the grow lights, and if they don't he eats them, so either way I am reseeding at least once every two weeks. I buy in bulk.

Four pounds! He is growing very quickly and nicely.

Yeah he is! I have to step up my gardening game!

 

[Jenny & Tort]

I used your enclosure as an example to make my own! Mine is not as big as yours but it should be good enough for another year or two, then Ill just use it as an actual greenhouse!

 

[Odin's Gma]

I used your enclosure as an example to make my own! Mine is not as big as yours but it should be good enough for another year or two, then Ill just use it as an actual greenhouse!

Beautiful! That is my plan for ours eventually too, possibly as soon as next year the way Odin is growing!