Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello everyone!

I lurk about the forum reading things and post occasionally as I have questions (I really don't know enough to ANSWER questions. ). I am currently trying to solve one that has me quite stumped.

My parents have a female sulcata named Minnie. I cannot remember exactly how old she is, though I think it is in the 5-6 year range. I have not seen her since Easter, but at that time she was probably about 16 inches wide. At my parents house they have given her the florida room (4 season sun room), where she fairly happily lives. I do not agree completely with the way that they care for her, but she seems to be doing ok. They have recently started 2 new businesses in addition to the larger company my father is CFO of, so needless to say they are insanely busy at the moment. OK, that is the background info.

I would like to offer to them that I take Minnie for a while, since I have considerably more time than they do to lurk around bulletin boards, and try new things with her diet, have a great herp vet nearby, etc. The main problem with this is where to house her. I live in Indiana and it has already gotten too cold at night for her to live outside, and it will only get colder, I have no problem keeping her inside as I have a very large dining room I could section off and give her part of, but that is the part I am having trouble with. How does one build a non-permanent, indoor, "cage" for a sulcata tortoise that has been moving full-size sofas for years? We kept her in one of those large plastic kiddie pools for a while, but that was years ago, and she destroyed it, now she would probably just laugh at it!

Any ideas? She is not in any danger, and is not neglected, etc. My parents are extremely fond of her, I would just like her to be able to get a little more attention, and possibly fill in some gaps in her diet.

Thanks for your help! My apologies for the long post.

Elizabeth
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1.0 Mali Uro Archimedes
0.0.1 Egyptian Uro Zuberi Mosca Khu (Mosca)
0.0 Fish
0.1 Sulcata Minnie
1.1 Iguanas Flik and Loki
0.1 Newfoundland Jasmine
0.1 Feline Winter
Indiana & Wisconsin

...build an 12'x12'x 3'H inside your boiler room or try an 4' x 20' pen on wheels (5 interlocking 4'x8'x4'H pens joined together if your dinning hall allows that pref)...dont forget all that ultilities/amenities such as Minnie's Sauna/spa/diner/sleep area (heat/water/diet)

If it's anywhere near 30 lbs or better you've got a big job on your hands.

If the sulcata is not comfortable it is going to try to make itself comfortable by trying to dig a burrow...

These guys can be extremely destructive especially when they get some weight behind them.

You've got a couple choices. You can cool him down for the winter which does not mean hibernate him. It means keeping him at the lower end of the optimal temperature at which he is kept. This will slow him down which will reduce the space requirement. An 4 x 4 x 8 pen should be enough for the winter.

The other choice is to line the walls of a room with 3/4 inch plywood so he doesn't tear through the walls. If you live in the NE and have a basement you will not need the plywood.

that's just some ideas. Sulcatas are one of the tougher tortoises to keep indoors during the cooler weather.
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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

I disagree; if the "lower end of the temp range" is cool enough to affect the tort's behavior it is too cool for the long run (night time temp maybe) and may have significant side effects. The plywood is a good idea and if you provide an above ground burrow than the tort should be more than happy in the sizes mentioned on the first reply.

...that Minnie is about 16 inches wide...meaning her scl is around 25 inches...she should be tipping the scale at about 40 bls...

I have no idea how much she weighs, but she is REALLY hard to pick up. lol I am not very strong, but it wouldn't surprise me if she weighed around 40 pounds.

When I am visiting my parents for Thanksgiving I think I am going to make an effort to weigh and measure her, so I have a better idea when discussing her on the forum.

Elizabeth
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1.0 Mali Uro Archimedes
0.0.1 Egyptian Uro Zuberi Mosca Khu (Mosca)
0.0 Fish
0.1 Sulcata Minnie
1.1 Iguanas Flik and Loki
0.1 Newfoundland Jasmine
0.1 Feline Winter
Indiana & Wisconsin

...fee...fi...fo..."HUMVEEE" shall we say?