Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello, i have had box turtles for quite some time, but decided to expand their outdoor enclosure. They are native to my area, so they are out 24/7, and i feed twice a week as they forage quite a bit. Right now i only have a 2 ft fence (and also 1 ft underground) and was thinking about expanding that all around my back of my yard near the fence. I feel that the 3 ft fence (1 ft underground) would be sufficient as they have been living there for quite some time with the fence, but just wanted to see what everyone here thinks. Thanks

PS I dont have any neighborhood dogs or coons or anything near me, so there are no real land predators near.

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David - Kevin
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3 foot fence will work- DEPENDING -on the material it is made of! I have heard of box turtles climbing that high on wire fences and escaping over the top. They can climb even brick or block walls if the walls have even a slight forward slant. What material will you be using? If you use wire fencing material, the first foot should be something which will not allow them to get a toehold on.
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Tess
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I agree with Tess. I have what amounts to a wood picket fence around my turtle habitat: the bottom 12 inches is solid, however. We copied a very old design, with a horizontal 1x10 across the bottom, and 1x3's for pickets.It runs along a curb-type retaining wall, so the underground part is very secure.
Our turtles can't see out (at their level), and so don't spend much time trying to get out.
A friend copied the design, with one improvement: the gate opening has the same 1x10 across it, that way if the gate is accidentally left open, no turtles can get out. Humans merely step over the barrier.
The open topped pen works fine for us and a few others that I know of.
Good for you for enlarging it... we're hoping to do the same this fall.
Stephanie

Just a reminder of how well boxies can climb!

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