Hiya

My outdoor enclosure is 'work in progress' and I was hoping someone could have a look at it and make any suggestions to improve it for slow coach please

Many thanks

Julie

Wow Julie that is impressive, well done.  Only thing I would add is some branches or log rolls etc to break up the eye line in various places, so that she cant see the whole area in one go, but has to explore nooks and crannies, if you see what I mean!!  Are those little pebbles in the corner?  If so just make sure they are not too small that she will eat them!! But it looks great Slow Coach will love it, the covered area is an excellent idea.

Vivienne

My hubby made it for slow coach so unfortunately I cant take the credit - lol. Thank you for your advice and I will make sure I make the changes tomorrow and post the new photos. The gravel my husband used was pea shingle in the corner - has anyone else used this? I will check the size of the gravel tomorrow when it is light again. Slow coach is in HER (heehee)  indoor enclosure now so she will be safe till I check the size tomorrow. Talking of little pebbles though; I read on another post that some people are using B&Q top soil in their indoor enclosures so I have been and bought some today for slow coaches indoor enclosure and notice that there are tiny little stones within the top soil. Should I get rid of it??

I apologise for so many questions but want to be sure my little slow coach has everything she needs.

Many thanks again

Julie

PS she did used to bury herself in her bedding at night but I have put the top soil in her sleeping area and she has slept on top of the soil in the covered area. Is this normal?

I use the B&Q soil and have found a few little stones, as and when you see them I would pick them out, as they do seem to make a bee line for them.  But dont worry the soil is usually filtered so they would be the tiniest stones.

What did you use before then?  If this is new to her, she probably hasnt got to grips with it yet, she will soon instinctively start having a little dig down! But its ok for torts to sleep on the top, they usually hide in a corner or under a plant or hidey hole.

Vivienne

Hi Julie
Lovely enclosure - be sure to post some more pictures when its finished.

We use Homebase top soil, it is quite sandy so your don't really need to add any playsand and we find it doesn't have the little white that are found in the B & Q top soil.

Steph

Julie I think your enclosure looks good.  You've got good bird defences, water bowl etc. I like to have some decorative plants in my outdoor enclosure and these can either be planted in the soil or you can have one or two in pots. There are quite a lot of plants that are safe but don't get eaten much, if at all.  I find that mine use hiding places a lot and its good to have choices though of course it makes it harder to find the tortoise when you want to check on him/her!

I have updated slow coaches enclosure a bit more today. I noticed that she has been much more active than usual today too. She had been quite active in her outdoor enclosure but she must have worn her little legs out with all the exploring she has done today after we made the changes.

Julie 

Looks fantastic Julie:-)

Slow coach seems to like it but it is a struggle to find her to bring her in at night because she likes to dig deep

Julie

Wow that looks great, looks like the side of a mountain, well done

Vivienne

thank you for the much appreciated advice. im sure slow coach appreciates it just as much as I do. She seems very happy in her updated enclosure.

Many thanks

Julie