Turtle Poo- yea I said poo

[borjawil]

So i am getting a sulcata and have heard they tend to defecate quite a bit. I will be housing him indoors on a tort table that is pretty big- about 100 sq ft. I was wondering what others do to keep their tort tables clean? He is 50lbs as well. To help i will be making one side to each section/level flip down so be able to clean it out.

Ive had torts before and usually just scooped the poop out until the entire bedding needed changing. These were smaller torts though.

 

[Yvonne G]

50lbs in a tort table????? Oh my.

Well, you pick up the poop just like you would if it were a pony or a dog. You rake it into some sort of scoop and dump it. At 50lbs, you can even pick it up in a paper towell. It should be nice and firm and full of grass, so very easy to handle.

But a 50lb tortoise is going to be very hard to live with cooped up in a tort table...even one as big as the one you are making. They just plain don't like being cooped up. He's going to dig and scratch and try to climb the sides...slide, bump!! It will drive you crazy!

Good luck and be sure to show us pictures when you have it all built and he's in there.

---

I can't remember if I ever welcomed you to the forum. We're glad you found us. I'm sure your tortoise's antics are going to help enlighten all our members who have smaller sulcatas.

Welcome!!

 

[Maggie Cummings]

I cannot imagine a 50 pound Sulcata kept in the house. Bob lives in a shed about 100 feet or more from my house. My bedroom is at the back of my house and every night as Bob is trying to arrange the plywood of his sleeping box all I can hear is slide bump crash. I think it is foolish to think you can keep such a large animal in the house. Bob is 80 pounds has his own shed and pen and is still a pain in the butt. He poops all day long and if I am in my bedroom I can smell the fresh poop. Good luck with it and please keep us posted. BTW they pace all day long so your guy will pace and scrape on the walls of his table trying to get out. In my opinion that just is not a workable situation...

 

[TKCARDANDCOIN]

I could not even imagine my sulcata at 50 some pounds living on a tortoise table.Somehow I cannot see him being very happy indoors on a tort table.I really dont think you are going to enjoy the smell when he relieves either, especially inside. I can't even imagine!Good luck.

 

[chadk]

Maybe you should consider a gold fish? Beta fish? They do great in small spaces

Seriously, it is a bad idea. That is great space for a Tort SHED, but not his full time 'exercise' area. I'd say a 1000sq ft yard with 100sq ft heated tort shed would be ideal for a 50lber.

 

[Missy]

Thats going to be a lot of poo

 

[borjawil]

Well it will be in the basement so the noise/smell wont be such a problem. Im sure he wont like being cooped up but Hopefully it works out and i'll make it as big as i can if he doesnt enjoy it!

 

[OurZoo]

Well it will be in the basement so the noise/smell wont be such a problem. Im sure he wont like being cooped up but Hopefully it works out and i'll make it as big as i can if he doesnt enjoy it!

Oh Dear! I hope you take time to really re-think this! Tortoises, Sulcatas especially, are persistent in their insistence to see if the "grass is greener on the other side of the fence".

 

[borjawil]

Well If i decide to build an outdoor enclosure to provide more room how big should it be? I could probably do 300sq ft. maybe more.

 

[Laura]

you will HAVE to build an outdoor enclosure.. a 50 pound tortise kept in a basement will kill it.
When you say 'table' do you mean something up off the floor? your tort will get out and fall onto the floor and get hurt.
I know we are all starting to sound negative,, but we have these animals, and WE KNOW what they need and are capable of. I think more homework needs to be done on your part before you bring this tort home. Can you carry a 50 pound squirming rock up and down the stairs to the basement safely? He is going to get twice that big.. what are your basement walls made of? concrete or boards? Where is this tort coming from? What is he used to?