Can't find a way to have proper temperatures for hibernation

[Amber White]

We live in a small apartment for now and Patsy's hibernation is coming up. We don't have a cold enough closet to keep her in as we have practiced for 50 years (moved to Los Angeles in the Valley).

I thought about keeping her outside but it gets to be 70-80 degrees in the day through the winter here. 50 degrees at night are all well and good but....these jumps in temperature make me worry. Long with the heavy-duty traffic outside I fear that she won't be able to keep a steady sleep.

I kept her in the closet last season and she was fine but I just wish there was something better for her. She is a very old tortoise with no signs of anything negative health wise. My main concern is having the temperatures be 60 and above for too long of a time period - amping up her metabolism causing a too short hibernation... Help?​

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[Gillian M]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[peasinapod]

I also had this problem. I now use a small fridge with a programmable thermostat which cuts the electric current of the fridge if the temperatures drop below a certain amount and restarts the fridge once the temperatures inside the fridge rise again. I also filled the fridge with water bottles to keep the temperature a bit more constant. The probe of the thermostat is inside the brumation box at a similar height to my tortoise. It worked quite well for me last year. It als helped me wake him up, as I could gradually raise the temperatures in spring.