Tips for planting in cage

[Tortski]

First if all, sorry if I'm confusing. I know I usually can't put my thoughts into words and have it make sense, but I'm also super frazzled today.

I would like some tips on how to get plants to grow in a tort cage. My bulldozer just tramples everything, and plants are never able to get past the sprout stage. My main concern is grass and dandelions. He loves dandelions, and I just got him to take his first bite of grass (Bermuda) today. Unfortunately, I think it's because of how green it is, but the green doesn't last long. The backyard minus his cage is also getting sprayed for ticks (pet safe) and that includes the little grass that we have. Thank you!

Hopefully you guys can understand me well enough

 

[JoesMum]

The trick to putting plants in an enclosure is to leave them in their pots.

Sink the plant pot into the substrate with maybe an inch of rim showing above the surface.

Plants grow better in pots than in the substrate anyway and the step of the rim deters torts from marching straight over them. When they are past their best, it is easier to replace them too.

Tortoises like to patrol the boundaries, so if you leave a tortoise size gap between any plant, food or water dish and the wall of the enclosure you will find there is less damage too.

My Joe lived in the garden and I only have 3 types of plant there: edible, trampled and too big to be trampled or eaten to the ground.

 

[Tortski]

The trick to putting plants in an enclosure is to leave them in their pots.

Sink the plant pot into the substrate with maybe an inch of rim showing above the surface.

Plants grow better in pots than in the substrate anyway and the step of the rim deters torts from marching straight over them. When they are past their best, it is easier to replace them too.

Tortoises like to patrol the boundaries, so if you leave a tortoise size gap between any plant, food or water dish and the wall of the enclosure you will find there is less damage too.

My Joe lived in the garden and I only have 3 types of plant there: edible, trampled and too big to be trampled or eaten to the ground.

Thank you! I will try to find some pots to put in. I don't know how well it would deter him though, he loves walking on stuff (especially my mom's feet.) One reason why I call him bulldozer is because he would immediately flatten a mound of substrate I put in.

 

[JoesMum]

Thank you! I will try to find some pots to put in. I don't know how well it would deter him though, he loves walking on stuff (especially my mom's feet.) One reason why I call him bulldozer is because he would immediately flatten a mound of substrate I put in.

Your tort shouldn’t be around people’s feet. If they’re out of their enclosure they are away from the heat and humidity they need to be healthy.

They are also at risk of escape or being stepped on; you only have to be distracted for a moment. We have had more than one distraught owner in this forum because of these accidents

Another risk is that your tort will ingest something it shouldn’t - dust bunnies and hair cause gut blockages and they are attracted to brightly coloured things thinking they’re edible. They aren’t very clever; my tort once tried to eat red circles printed on a newspaper [emoji849].

Tortoises are happiest, least stressed and healthiest with all 4 feet on the ground in a proper sized enclosure where they know there is nothing trying to eat them or challenge them for territory.

 

[Tortski]

Your tort shouldn’t be around people’s feet. If they’re out of their enclosure they are away from the heat and humidity they need to be healthy.

They are also at risk of escape or being stepped on; you only have to be distracted for a moment. We have had more than one distraught owner in this forum because of these accidents

Another risk is that your tort will ingest something it shouldn’t - dust bunnies and hair cause gut blockages and they are attracted to brightly coloured things thinking they’re edible. They aren’t very clever; my tort once tried to eat red circles printed on a newspaper [emoji849].

Tortoises are happiest, least stressed and healthiest with all 4 feet on the ground in a proper sized enclosure where they know there is nothing trying to eat them or challenge them for territory.

I know. He only gets put inside when the weather is too bad for him. He's currently at the size where it's pretty much impossible to not see him, and then step on him. He mostly just stays locked up in the kitchen and falls asleep by the fridge or the doggy door. Yes, he does get stepped on by a dog when he sleeps there, but it's a 4 pound Chihuahua that could do no harm. If he is wandering the living room, it's because we put the gate down when he's sleeping and someone woke him up, but he usually goes back and sleeps.

 

[Minority2]

I know. He only gets put inside when the weather is too bad for him. He's currently at the size where it's pretty much impossible to not see him, and then step on him. He mostly just stays locked up in the kitchen and falls asleep by the fridge or the doggy door. Yes, he does get stepped on by a dog when he sleeps there, but it's a 4 pound Chihuahua that could do no harm. If he is wandering the living room, it's because we put the gate down when he's sleeping and someone woke him up, but he usually goes back and sleeps.

A 4 lb chihuahua can still bite and tear a tortoise's exposed flesh apart if enraged. A defensive bite from a tortoise may cause a dog to lash out. The dog's presence and unwanted physical contact may trigger the tortoise's need to defend themselves. Anything can happen. Long time tortoise forum members have seen this time and time again. This is why many of us strongly recommend against allowing a single tortoise together with other tortoise and or animals. Someone always loses, usually the tortoise.

A substrate-less and unheated floor is no place for a tortoise. If you want the best the best for your tortoise, give them a proper enclosure with enough space for them to exercise in. And if one is unable to do so, consider re-homing the tortoise to someone that is able to do so.

 

[Tortski]

A 4 lb chihuahua can still bite and tear a tortoise's exposed flesh apart if enraged. A defensive bite from a tortoise may cause a dog to lash out. The dog's presence and unwanted physical contact may trigger the tortoise's need to defend themselves. Anything can happen. Long time tortoise forum members have seen this time and time again. This is why many of us strongly recommend against allowing a single tortoise together with other tortoise and or animals. Someone always loses, usually the tortoise.

A substrate-less and unheated floor is no place for a tortoise. If you want the best the best for your tortoise, give them a proper enclosure with enough space for them to exercise in. And if one is unable to do so, consider re-homing the tortoise to someone that is able to do so.

My Chihuahua has almost no teeth and his snout is too small for any toy, if he were to get angry, I doubt he will do much. We have any outdoor cage for Tort, he just gets put inside when it's too dangerous for him outside, which doesn't happen very often here.

 

[Cheryl Hills]

You Re not getting the point. Tortoises need constant heat, floors are not heated and your tortoise could die. No matter what you may think, this can and has happened quite often. They belong in an enclosure where they are safe. If he eats hair, it will entangle in him intestines and kill him.

 

[drew54]

As far as planting inside the enclosure. I think no matter how you do it your tort will temple it. If you grow the plants in a pot or something similar first and wait until it's grown and put in your tort will most likely trample it also, but at least it will get eaten. I grew a sulcata mired in my enclosure and my hatchling just used it for cover. Not once was it eaten unless I cut it and put it on her dish hoping she would I guess understand she could eat it. You could also get some cat grass from a pet store or an organic food store and put it in there and see how that goes while you're growing your plants.

 

[Tortski]

You Re not getting the point. Tortoises need constant heat, floors are not heated and your tortoise could die. No matter what you may think, this can and has happened quite often. They belong in an enclosure where they are safe. If he eats hair, it will entangle in him intestines and kill him.

I'm not going to leave him outside when it's hailing or his cage is flooding. He is too big to have an indoor enclosure. Thankfully that doesn't happen often here, so he only comes in a few times per year. The times that he does come in, he is locked up on tile, and he falls asleep next to the fridge that blows hot air.
His shed doesn't have a door yet, so he tends to come out and stand in the worst place that he can. I understand that I could leave him in there during flooding, as his shed stays dry, so far, but he stands in the lowest point, touches his metal bars, while there is a huge electrical storm going on, I'm not going to leave him in that.

We are trying to come up with a way to close his shed, but currently he has something draped over the door, above his reach.

I know you guys are trying to help, but there is not a whole lot I can do at the moment. We are trying to get a door that we could close and he could be relatively safe.

 

[Tortski]

As far as planting inside the enclosure. I think no matter how you do it your tort will temple it. If you grow the plants in a pot or something similar first and wait until it's grown and put in your tort will most likely trample it also, but at least it will get eaten. I grew a sulcata mired in my enclosure and my hatchling just used it for cover. Not once was it eaten unless I cut it and put it on her dish hoping she would I guess understand she could eat it. You could also get some cat grass from a pet store or an organic food store and put it in there and see how that goes while you're growing your plants.

Thank you. I was going to try to get some of that grass next time I go to the pet store, but at the moment we have "lots" of green grass that will die off soon