How to Build a Outside Home for an African Spurred Tortoise

There is no substitute for fresh air and real sunlight when it comes to raising African Spurred Tortoises. Building an outside home for this terrestrial reptile is the perfect way to provide these essential elements and promote a healthy life for your pet. Because the African Spurred Tortoise is the third largest species of tortoise in the world, outside enclosures are a convenient way to provide room for the tortoise to roam and dig as they do in the wild.

Things You'll Need

  • Tape measure
  • Hammer
  • 4 metals stakes, 4 feet in length
  • Shovel
  • 100 feet of wire metal fencing
  • Metal wire cutters
  • 25 feet of bailing wire
  • Pliers
  • Rocks
  • Logs
  • Sand
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Instructions

    • 1

      Measure a 25-by-25-foot square on open soil where you want to build the outside home for the tortoise. Hammer a metal fence stake into the ground at each of the four corners. Drive the metal fence stakes into the ground at least 6 inches to ensure a stable enclosure.

    • 2

      Dig a 3-foot deep trench between each of the four corners of the square until all the corners are connected by the trench. Dig the trench as narrow as possible and straight along each side of the square from corner to corner, not diagonally.

    • 3

      Cut four 25-foot-long sections of the fence wire. Attach each of the four side sections of fence wire to the four metal fence stakes to create a square enclosure. Slide the bottom portion of each section of fence wire into the 3-foot-deep trench. Use bailing wire to attach to the four metal fence stakes respectively.

    • 4

      Pour dirt into the trench around the entire square, burying the wire fence edge to create a secure enclosure. Fill the trench completely. Compact the fill dirt with your feet.

    • 5

      Decorate the enclosed dirt area using the rocks, logs and sand to create a natural setting for the African Spurred Tortoise. Add live plants. Set up the outside home so that most of the enclosure is exposed to direct sun, but with a cooler area in one place that offers shade and shelter. The native habitat of African Spurred Tortoises is desert and semi-arid grasslands. Build the home in an area that offers a similarly warm, dry and sunny environment.