I ordered a 4’x2’x2’ PVC cage during Toad Ranch’s Black Friday sale. I have tortoises, and especially young tortoises benefit from the high humidity and stable temperatures a PVC cage provides. This is my first cage from Toad Ranch, but it’s the fourth manufacturer of PVC cages I’ve tried. I can tell you that from first impressions, it’s my new favorite.
It came well packed with no broken pieces. Each piece was labelled with a sticker that not only identified the pieces (top, bottom, right and left) but the direction they went together. Because of this labelling, the instructions did not need pictures which is a huge help. I’ve put together cages from another manufacturer with photos in the instructions and the poor quality of the photos was frustrating. I ended up putting something together backwards and had to go back several steps. The toad ranch instructions are straightforward and all of the pieces matched up perfectly, no fiddly routed pieces to worry about. I used a screwdriver and an impact driver, taking care not to over tighten the screws.
Putting the cage together was quick and easy. The thing that took me the longest was attaching the lights on the top. The only thing I needed extra hands for was placing the top piece on once the lights were attached, because I didn’t want to damage them. Otherwise it’s easily assembled by one person. The front piece fit in snugly and the cage felt solid once constructed. I tested the lights, which I also ordered from Toad ranch. There’s an arcadia jungle dawn led and a t5 UVB. They are both app controlled, so I plan to set that up.
Once fully assembled I had help moving the cage to my office. It’s sitting on an old IKEA desk, they work great to hold pvc cages. Toad ranch recommended using Lexel sealant, which is what I used. The last cage I built I used a generic silicon and it peeled off within a year. Hopefully this will last longer. I did the entire bottom and 5-6” up the side seams. I then let it cure for 24 hours.
Next I added substrate, I really like BioDudes Terra Firma, which was another Black Friday purchase. They have good deals on bulk packs of substrate. I plan to add plants in pots and isopods. Young tortoises especially like to be able to bury themselves in the substrate, so I make sure it’s deep enough for them to cover themselves.
I like to add a small coconut chip bedding like reptichip, this is their babichip, on the warm end of the cage. It helps hold humidity and keep dust down. Before the animals are added I will wet all of this down. I also gathered magnolia leaves from my yard, put them in the freezer for 24 hrs then baked them in the oven at low temps for 30 minutes.
I also added plants in pots. I find keeping them in pots makes it easier to swap them out if they get decimated by the tortoises. These are all edible and tortoise safe. Make sure whatever plants you get are both tortoise safe and not treated with pesticides.
The only thing left is to add the thermostat and get the temps dialed in before I add the animals. I will add more cork bark and hides as well, baby tortoises like to have lots of cover.
Honestly I love this cage. The HDPE front is much more attractive than your average PVC cage. The background really transforms the whole look, I love having this in my office and I also love that this will be my zoom backdrop. It was so easy to put together. Any cages I get in the future will definitely be Toad Ranch.