Leopard tortoise outside

Mr. turtle

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Hey guys. I was wondering if when my baby leopard tortoises can live outside in the summer in the south Kentucky? I live in Kentucky, and i am getting two babies soon. I can keep them inside, because i have a lot of space in our garage for it to stay in in the summer and winter. In the summer, the average temperatures here is 72-100 degrees. I was thinking i could keep them inside on cooler days, and outside on hotter days. Thanks!
 

Alaskamike

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Several issues with babies. Their bodies are small so they can dehydrate fast. Must have shade & water. They are vulnerable to animals ( cats - dogs ). They can easily seem to disappear in a surround.

Several folks raise Leopards for a couple years before much outdoor time.

I believe if you you protect for above issues - outside time with natural sunlight is great.
 

wellington

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Best to keep them in a closed chamber for at least two years. They can have short outside time, about 30-60 minutes with lots of shade and water until they around 1-1 1/2 years then they can stay out a little longer. Always give them a soak when you bring them in.
Btw, a pair is never a good idea. There are many many threads on why not to get a pair. Take a search. Tortoises don't want a friend so get one or several and hope it turns out one male to several females.
A pair will have to live in separate enclosures eventually.
 

Tom

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I prefer to have an indoor and an outdoor enclosure. Use the indoor for winter, nights and colder days, and use the outdoor one during fair weather.

My general rule of thumb is an hour of sunshine per inch of tortoise, 4-6 times a week. I don't leave them outside all day until they are at least 5-6". Its not good for babies to be outside too much.

You should not be getting a pair. Tortoises should not be kept in pairs. Get a trio or more, or get just one. Unless you want to maintain separate enclosures for them. In that case having two would be fine since they won't be in contact with each other.

Where are you getting your babies? I ask because most breeders do not start them correctly and many of them die weeks or months after purchase even if you do everything perfectly. Read this before you buy: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/hatchling-failure-syndrome.23493/
 

Mr. turtle

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Several issues with babies. Their bodies are small so they can dehydrate fast. Must have shade & water. They are vulnerable to animals ( cats - dogs ). They can easily seem to disappear in a surround.

Several folks raise Leopards for a couple years before much outdoor time.

I believe if you you protect for above issues - outside time with natural sunlight is great.
I an keeping thwm inside until they are too big! I was just wondering about the adults. I dont want any predators to eat the babies
 

Mr. turtle

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I prefer to have an indoor and an outdoor enclosure. Use the indoor for winter, nights and colder days, and use the outdoor one during fair weather.

My general rule of thumb is an hour of sunshine per inch of tortoise, 4-6 times a week. I don't leave them outside all day until they are at least 5-6". Its not good for babies to be outside too much.

You should not be getting a pair. Tortoises should not be kept in pairs. Get a trio or more, or get just one. Unless you want to maintain separate enclosures for them. In that case having two would be fine since they won't be in contact with each other.

Where are you getting your babies? I ask because most breeders do not start them correctly and many of them die weeks or months after purchase even if you do everything perfectly. Read this before you buy: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/hatchling-failure-syndrome.23493/
I hear it is perfectly fine to house 2-3 babies together. And i am buying from a guy i know. He has his own business, and sells babies. I have done A LOT more research than you think. I think housing two together will be fine, because kamp kenan houses his animals together, and said it was fine. I would buy from him, but he doesn't have any babies in stock. Thanks!
 

Mr. turtle

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Housing two together will be fine when they are babies. When they are bigger, i will separate them until they can breed.
 

Tom

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I hear it is perfectly fine to house 2-3 babies together. And i am buying from a guy i know. He has his own business, and sells babies. I have done A LOT more research than you think. I think housing two together will be fine, because kamp kenan houses his animals together, and said it was fine. I would buy from him, but he doesn't have any babies in stock. Thanks!

Groups of juveniles are usually fine. Pairs are not. Totally different behavioral dynamic.

Kenan is not the guy to take advice from. Sorry. Nice videos, but the advice is lacking.

Most breeders do it all wrong, don't want to learn new and better ways, and ignore obvious evidence that their way is bad and the new way is good. I don't know who your guy is, but its easy to find out which way he does it with a few questions.

Research is fruitless if you are learning from the wrong sources. Sadly, most of the sources out there are still using wrong info based on 30 year old misconceptions about how they live in the wild. We here at TFO are trying to combat all that old, wrong info, and teach people what we've learned through experimentation and decades of trial and error. If you wish to ignore this advice, that is your prerogative, but I will continue to offer it in the hope that someone else reading might benefit, even if you won't.
 

Cowboy_Ken

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I hear it is perfectly fine to house 2-3 babies together. And i am buying from a guy i know. He has his own business, and sells babies. I have done A LOT more research than you think. I think housing two together will be fine, because kamp kenan houses his animals together, and said it was fine. I would buy from him, but he doesn't have any babies in stock. Thanks!
Here are two sulcata tortoises that I rescued. They were from the same clutch and raised together receiving all the same care. The couple that had them thought it was so cute the way they would snuggle together. The larger of the two had a real dominance issue with any other tortoises it came into contact with. The smaller of the two had no problems mixing with others, he was confused none were picking on him.
ImageUploadedByTortoise Forum1503555212.535604.jpg
Please understand that I have nothing to gain here other than the hopes you will gain and use the information provided to you here. Be careful with where you get your care information. The internet is full of old, out-of-date information as are most pet stores and unfortunately even many unqualified veterinarians that list themselves as exotic vets where the exotic is a tropical parrot.
 
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