Desert Tortoise 2 years old

[KellysTort]

I'm a new desert tortoise owner. I just adopted him about 3 days after he came out of hibernation (about a week ago). Is it normal for him to only spend a few hours slowly roaming around then going back to his hide for the rest of the day? Also, I live a bit north west of Los Angeles. Our night time temps are in upper 40's. Is it ok for him to stay outside at night? He's 2 years old, but big for his age. About 6" long. Thank you!

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Congrats.

 

[Tom]

This is a matter of opinion. Some say that no one does anything special for them in the desert, so they don't need night heat in your yard.

I say that since you don't live in Mojave and your tortoise doesn't have a huge burrow to retreat to, you should provide some night heat or bring him inside. They will likely survive if you do nothing, but I think they do better if you help keep them a bit warmer.

Also, are you soaking him daily. I like to soak them daily for two or three weeks after hibernation. Helps rehydrate them and flush their system, plus the warm water perks them up.

His activity level is pretty normal for a tortoise that just woke up.

 

[KellysTort]

I've soaked him once for a bit, and then 2 more times that he climbed out quickly. I will soak him this week, as it will be a bit warmer. How long should he stay in a soak to get the benefits? So how would I provide heat for him if I leave him outside? He has a man made wood hide. see attached.

 

[Jacob]

Congats, nice!

 

[Tom]

To soak him you must use a tall sided tub that he cannot get out of. Use shallow warm water and let him stay in it for 20-30 minutes. If it cools or he poops, refresh it.
You could use a small pig blanket on the ground, or a radiant heat panel on the ceiling, or, if its tall enough, you could mount a fixture for a ceramic heating element or a "black" incandescent bulb. Which ever piece of heating equipment you choose, use it with a thermostat. This will prevent it from ever over heating, and it will save you money since it will shut the heat off when temps are warm enough.

 

[ascott]

Where did he brumate? Indoors or outdoors?

I live in the High Desert--not too far from Mojave area I will, from time to time, swoop up all the CDTs here and bring them inside for a night or two if the temps are 30s and pouring down rain (and one of the guys has an awesome natural burrow and the others have great fake burrows) with day temps not hot enough for them to heat up....this is of course my personal preference and have developed this preference over time...especially since the prior 3-4 winters have been freezing and really wet here...and I had to perform rescue missions during freezing temps with days of rain storms ( last year it rained 6 days straight, seriously, straight).

I do not provide a heated spot for them outdoors (nor indoors, unless one is in need of special attention for some reason)...if I have to bring them in due to weird passing wet cold weather they simply go into their brumating boxes until they can go back out side (I could heat them up but choose not to because I do not want to throw them off on temps when they are back outside...my only goal when bringing them in is either for them to brumate and/or for quick weird extreme weather and to keep them out of the wet during the cold temps)

However, keep in mind that all of the CDTs here are adult or near adult...I looked at your wood hut pic and the first thing that came to mind was, wow, if you covered that little hut with a mound of earth (at least 8 inches all the way around) you would offer great insulation and the temp would not be so cold inside....

 

[TORTOISEMAN1]

Welcome to the forum!!

 

[coreyc]

Welcome

 

[pam]

Welcome

 

[KellysTort]

thank you for your reply. The top of his "man-cave" has insulation on it, but I didn't really want to cover it with dirt as it has a lid I can open up and check on him (or clean it out, etc...). So if my temps are in the low 50's at night, do you think that shelter is ok? Or do I need to figure something else out?

---

ooops, forgot to mention he hibernated in a box in the garage this past year. It was his first hibernation. (he's only 2.5 years old)

 

[ascott]

I understand convenience....buuuuut in my experience there can be a middle ground...is there any way you can get down on your hands and knees and reach in through the entrance to get him when you need him out?? What type of cleaning are you doing? I mean a little poo is aok to be in there...is the bottom of his house open to the earth or is it a box including the bottom?

Yes...a desert tortoise can survive 50s...but gets a little funny if the day temps are not warm enough to allow him a charge up time....if the tortoise is able to get down into or under earth then they lose their stored heat at a slower rate....

 

[KellysTort]

the hide has wood bottom, and I have it on bricks so that the moisture from the soil doesn't seep in. I have a bit of dirt and hay in the actual hide. The reason I didn't plan for a dirt burrow is because my soil seems to be clay-like and it's fairly moist. I was told that could be very problematic. I insulated the roof, should I maybe insulate the floor and sides too?

 

[ascott]

What time of day have you noticed him coming out of his box? What time of day does the sun generate heat on that box?

 

[KellysTort]

around 9:30-10am. He then heads for his cave around 3-4pm ish.

 

[ascott]

Sounds good..... how tall is in the box?

 

[KellysTort]

it's not super tall as I read that they like to feel safe and not have a ton of overhead space. It probably has about 6 inches open above his head.

When you say sounds good, do you mean the times that he is coming out and going in are normal? Sorry, I'm so new that I'm just trying to figure it all out.

 

[ascott]

lol...apologies, I did leave that comment unclear didn't I?

What I mean is that the time he ventures out is good and that the time back in is good....although I would expect him to begin to get up a bit earlier and retreat to his hut a bit later as the days warm up and longe daylight hours....

Is his hut the only hide he has available? I would add a place for him to hide while still remaining out of his hide during the day a bit...like perhaps add a cluster of shade plants that will provide a place for him to tuck into and hide...this will allow you to see if he moves around some while not being confined to either out or in his hut? You know what I mean?

Do you have a shallow soaking/drinking dish in his outdoor yard?

I wonder if you had built up the dirt into a platform of dirt that is about 6 to 8 inches high (a little hill flattened out on the top) then placed his house on the dirt mound if that would help to insulate it on the floor...also, the reason I asked about how high the hut is....is to see if you have enough room to add about 3 or 4 more inches of earth inside---this way he can muck about in there to form a pallet for him to rest in--this will also add a sense of security as well as a way for him to keep a bit more of the warm from the days charge with him throughout the night as his body temp cools...?

I am going to find a couple sites for you that show and explain some outdoor housing set ups...I really want you to see how helpful the earth can be with this species (and a bunch of others actually ) because you are fresh and new with this junk it feels weird to you to hear things---especially if someone has given you the initial starter info and perhaps not the best starter info...you know?

---

http://www.azgfd.gov/w_c/tortoise/burrow.shtml

http://www.tortoise.org/general/descare.html

http://www.donsdeserttortoises.com/1.html

Happy reading

 

[KellysTort]

Wow, thank you. This is SO helpful. I printed your suggestions. Yes, he does have a water dish that he has been climbing in and out of. I will definitely plant the cluster of plants, that's a really good idea.

I'm thinking you have give me some great ideas about the current hide. I'm going to add a bunch of soil (mounding) underneath the wood bottom (to help with insulation), AND I'm going to add the dirt to the interior. Their is plenty of room for that, so I think that will really help him make it a bit more "cozy". Do you think I need to add any insulation to the sides and bottom if I go ahead and add the dirt in both areas? As I mentioned, the top has 2 layers of wood with insulation in between.

Also, do you have a recommendation for a thermometer that I could use to test the hide temps?

Thank you again for all your help, this is invaluable to a newbie.

 

[Tom]

Great info in those links. Thanks Angela.