Reptile & Amphibian Forums

ok well i posted this in the other one but people seemed to stop answering my questions so here i go....ok well now ive decided to just make the cage and connect a 50 gallon rubbermaid roughtote tub to a 31 gallon rubbermaid roughtote tub....i talked to this one girl that has a lot of three toeds and she said it was fine...i would be able most likely to put her outside but i dont thin ki am going to because she might get scared and die since shes not used to it...she might get like fleas or some kind of bug...and more.....so thats why and the girl i talked to doestny let her turtles live outside because she says that she feels bad and that they might get hurt or something...also i would have to bring her in for the winter but if i did wat happens if she would get fleas and brought them in my house....plus i think she would like it better inside...i know u are all gonna say no put her outside more room and she would like it better....but i cant just stick her out there and say ok here ya go got a new home bla bla bla shes just not used to it that much.....but newayz how is te cage idea for her?

putting her outside wont kill her, she wont even get scared.. if anything she'd be overjoyed and try to take off, whoever told you she'd get scared needs to do some research.. and I'd like to know how she'd get hurt..
as for fleas, I've never had a flea problem with my turtles.. my dogs sure, never my turtles, turtles can get ticks and chiggers but they both fall off after they've had their fill of blood/body tissue, and fleas/ticks/chiggers fall off in water in fear of drowning, I dont think a roughtote would be okay outside, it would over heat and become an oven, why dont you go with a kiddy pool/wadding pool it'd probly have alot more floor space, putting her in a small 5x1? area would be like you living in a 36"x24" closet, ouside living isn't just for the turtle to have room, it's alot better for their health and well being, it gives them something to do, like hunting for bugs, running around to stretch their legs, and burrowing down to cool off from mid day heat, and it gives them the much needed UV rays, along with seasonal changes which are also needed for a healthy turtle, so go ahead keep your turtle inside but chances are she will get deperessed and wither away

fine fine fine i will put her outside if i must but how do u do this now? i have to bring her in for winter though.....wat if it storms really bad, really bad heat, really cold...

How long have you been keeping her indoors? A few years or less? Box turtles have been living outdoors for 'millions' of years. A few years indoors will not erase a few million years of instincts. How do you think the ones that are wild cope with storms and heat? They just burrow in shady spots when it gets warm. As far as a rain storm, mine love the rain! When it's raining ,most if not all of them will be out and about lookig for surfacing earthworms to snack on.

I've been building box turtle pens out of PVC pipe and coreplast lately. You can make a 24 foot by 4 foot box turtle pen, with screened lids, for less than $100 in materials. A smaller one would be even less. You could just build a simple 4 foot by 8 foot pen for your one box turtle.

You can see photos on my website of the pens.

Best of luck,

Bill Tracy
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My Turtle Stuff
My Box Turtle Site

ok well i think now i will be definently keeping her outside but i will have to bring her in for the winter since t goes below freezing and snows real bad soo....o and wat will i need for the outdoor pen? is this it: some plants,leaves,grass ect., a shady place, a water dish for her, and logs, is that all i need? and i heard that they dig under and escape is this true...if so how do i prevent this? and shes been indoors in my house for a little over a year and i dont know how long she was in the petshop...but the 4 by 8 would be good then? and wat would be the best to use for it the plywood or coroplast or wat??...i dont know how old she is really well including like her top of the shell to the tail she is like 4 1/2-5in. and i think she is a girl....and for her food i would just feed her veggies and fruits every other day.....then 2 worms twice a week....some saoked dog food everyother day....some boiled chicken occasionally.....is that good? and well anymore info would be great...!!!

ok well i wil either be using 1 4 by 8 sheets of pvc plastic or coroplast which is better? and also wat do i do to stop her from digging under the enclosure and getting out? i need help!

All you would need for inside the pen is a shallow water tray and lots of plants and shady spots. Some deep soft soil with some cypress mulch and/or leaves for burrowing and foraging for worms.

A plastic paint tray, the kind used for a paint roller, makes a great water tray that you can sink into the ground.

I would use PVC pipes and coreplast for the walls if you can get it. Wood is ok, bit it will eventually rot away. Treated lumber contains poison, and wood sealers could be bad for them. I just dig 10 to 12 inch deep trenches where the walls of the pen wil go. Then I put the walls in the trenches and fill them back up. I have a video for sale that shows how to build a pen.

Depending on where you live and the health of your turtle, you could let her hibernate in the pen as many people do. You can also hibernate indoors as well. Read this:

http://boxturtlesite.org/dvmhib.html

Best of luck,

Bill Tracy
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My Turtle Stuff
My Box Turtle Site

ok well i think i am going to just get the video since that will help me with everything right?? and should i wait till spring to do this or not? just wondering because well will the cage get all screwed up with all of the snow and blizzards and ice and stuff? well thanks so much and i dont think i willl be hibernating her because people said if you dont than just keep her inside wahere its warm and soak her in luke warm water everyday and stuff...