How long (years) should you keep your Leo in a closed chamber setup? I'm getting one that is a year old, and am wondering if a closed chamber is still encouraged. Thanks for your help.
Kevin
Kevin
Closed chamber Age
- Thread starter kmloughran
- Start date
As long as there is still quick growth. I kept mine in closed chambers for 2 1/2 years. When they got too big, I switched. I provide all of my leopards with a humid hot night box.
Welcome to the forum.
Welcome to the forum.
A very warm welcome to the forum!
Please post pics of your tort and his enclosure. This will enable us to answer your question more easily. And read the "Beginners Mistakes" Thread as well as the "Enclosures" Section.
Hello and Welcome. I agree with Jodie. However, you can still give him daily outdoor time for a few hours when temps allow.
A closed chamber is good for any size tortoise of any species. Closing off the enclosure air from the room air, allows the keeper to create more stable conditions, and manipulate the conditions to suit the needs of the tortoise. Explained another way, if the conditions in the room are exactly what the tortoise needs, then there is no need for a closed chamber. If conditions in the room are colder or drier than what the tortoise needs, which is almost always the case, then a closed chamber will be a tremendous help in maintaining the ideal conditions for any species of any age. Closed chambers also save a lot on your electric bill since the heat you use is contained and not being dispersed into the entire house. You can maintain the correct temperatures with a fraction of the electricity used in an open topped enclosure.
So the age or size of the tortoise has nothing to do with this question. This is a question of ease of maintaining the correct environmental parameters.
So the age or size of the tortoise has nothing to do with this question. This is a question of ease of maintaining the correct environmental parameters.
Excellent! Thanks everyone. I'll be picking up my tort on the 6th. Here's a link to a new thread I started about my enclosure. Any input would be appreciated! Thanks!
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/setting-up-my-enclosure.145814/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/setting-up-my-enclosure.145814/
As Tom said, it will make things much easier if you always have it. You will find that as it grows and you provide a larger enclosure, the humidity will naturally decrease unless you purposely add much more water to the system. I try to make sure the ambient humidity is at least 50% in a hatchling/yearling setup, ensuring that it is considerably higher in the hides at substrate level. As they reach a few years old and 6 to 8" in size, I think you can relax that to even 40% ambient(which won't be hard to do in even a very large enclosure if it is enclosed) and you will be fine(opinions vary). What you want to make sure you avoid is the 'beef jerky' 25% and below humidity levels. It sounds like you are off to a great start.
Excellent! Thanks!!
