Keeping a tortoise outside in the UK

[Melissa101]

Hi everyone, I have a 15 year old Spur Thighed tortoise called Harry. We live in the South of England.

At this time of year - now that he has woken up from hibernation - he lives indoors in a tortoise table. Then in the summer he spends his days outside and nights indoors.

My plan is to move him outside permanently in a custom built enclosure.

I’m thinking of building a little playhouse/mini shed, which I’ll insulate & ensure has power, so that we can have his lights etc set up. Then attached to that will be an outdoor enclosure, that he can access through a little door.

My question is - during the winter, would it be safe to have the door open on sunny (but cold) days, to give him the option to go outside? Would he understand to walk back into his house or not go out at all if it was too cold? Or would I need to keep the door shut when the temp outside is low? I like the idea of him being able to choose his environment, but I don’t want him to get ill because he didn’t know to take himself into the warm?

Am I totally underestimating his natural instincts? Would it be safe if he chose to go outside on a day like today (6 degrees C, 42F)? I only worry because he’s very inquisitive and loves exploring, and I panic that he’d just want to be roaming outside all day!

Thanks everyone!

 

[Emmawilly]

Hi there. I am also in the England, South West (Plymouth). I have an 11 year old African Spur Thighed 'Sulcata', non hibernating species. He lives outside in a heated, insulated hut inside a potting shed. He has access to the garden via plastic flaps 'draught excluder'. He comes and goes in and out every day and always takes himself back to his shed before it gets dark.
(he's out now in the rain!)
Rodney went outside when it was sleeting last week took one look at the sky and went back in. He regularly comes out but if it's very cold I watch him like a hawk to make sure he doesn't get stuck behind a tree and can't get back.

So, to answer your questions your tortoise should know to wander back when he's getting chilly but if he's a wee one then give him a penned off area rather than free reign and check him to see how he gets on.

In terms of setting your tort up outside, there are lots of ideas on TFO. If I was starting again I'd do it differently. Rodney's inner hut has a radiant heat panel and heated mat which keep the temp steady at 28°c plus a cooler spot around 24°c and a basking spot of 35-39°c. Whilst these provide great heating, the shed is very expensive to heat in winter! When the temp was around freezing in December I kept an oil filled radiator on 24/7 as I didn't have sufficient other heating at that time and our electricity bill increased over £100 that month. If yours is a hibernating species, you won't have that problem.

In terms of shed to choose, we went for a glass frontage thinking this would help his UV uptake but we've since found out that UV rays don't go through glass and it's hard to insulate in winter. Given the chance I wouldn't choose this again. I'd go for a bigger size shed without as much glass. We will move from here at some point in the next few years and we'll upgrade then but for now it is fine for him, just expensive for us.
I'll post some pictures so you can see what I mean.
Good luck

 

[Melissa101]

Hi there. I am also in the England, South West (Plymouth). I have an 11 year old African Spur Thighed 'Sulcata', non hibernating species. He lives outside in a heated, insulated hut inside a potting shed. He has access to the garden via plastic flaps 'draught excluder'. He comes and goes in and out every day and always takes himself back to his shed before it gets dark.
(he's out now in the rain!)
Rodney went outside when it was sleeting last week took one look at the sky and went back in. He regularly comes out but if it's very cold I watch him like a hawk to make sure he doesn't get stuck behind a tree and can't get back.

So, to answer your questions your tortoise should know to wander back when he's getting chilly but if he's a wee one then give him a penned off area rather than free reign and check him to see how he gets on.

In terms of setting your tort up outside, there are lots of ideas on TFO. If I was starting again I'd do it differently. Rodney's inner hut has a radiant heat panel and heated mat which keep the temp steady at 28°c plus a cooler spot around 24°c and a basking spot of 35-39°c. Whilst these provide great heating, the shed is very expensive to heat in winter! When the temp was around freezing in December I kept an oil filled radiator on 24/7 as I didn't have sufficient other heating at that time and our electricity bill increased over £100 that month. If yours is a hibernating species, you won't have that problem.

In terms of shed to choose, we went for a glass frontage thinking this would help his UV uptake but we've since found out that UV rays don't go through glass and it's hard to insulate in winter. Given the chance I wouldn't choose this again. I'd go for a bigger size shed without as much glass. We will move from here at some point in the next few years and we'll upgrade then but for now it is fine for him, just expensive for us.
I'll post some pictures so you can see what I mean.
Good luck

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Thank you so much, and oh my goodness what a gorgeous tortoise!!

 

[Olive_Hermann]

I am thinking of doing the same, thanks for the insight, love your outdoor enclosure! And he is very sweet.

 

[Maggie3fan]

Well, your photos are simply too pretty. But I'm thinking an 11 yr old Sulcata should weigh a lot more than it looks like that tort does. I also think that light is way too close and it looks like the only way to get away from the light is to go outside? I am all for you making a permanent outside enclosure for him. But you're gonna have to fix, like that flimsy small fence for example.
I keep Sulcata in the PNW. Here's a couple of photos...

Mary also has the option to go out or not. I open her doggie door every morning.

 

[Emmawilly]

Well, your photos are simply too pretty. But I'm thinking an 11 yr old Sulcata should weigh a lot more than it looks like that tort does. I also think that light is way too close and it looks like the only way to get away from the light is to go outside? I am all for you making a permanent outside enclosure for him. But you're gonna have to fix, like that flimsy small fence for example.
I keep Sulcata in the PNW. Here's a couple of photos...

Mary also has the option to go out or not. I open her doggie door every morning.
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View attachment 316722

You're very observant ?.
Rodney is relatively new to us (August 2020) and yes, he is underweight. His previous owner made a number of mistakes: kept 2 together (Rodney was bullied), kept them both too cool (no heating), never soaked (hence the pyramiding), insufficiently and infrequently fed (hence the small - for a sulcata - size). Since coming to us he's kept singly, fed daily, bathed and weighed weekly. His shell is showing signs of growth but he won't ever catch up. He weighs 35 pounds and he should be double that. But he is alive and well and very happy with us.

Here he is enjoying his bath ?

The bulb is ok and he can get away from it when he wants to (the other side of the hut plus area in the shed, also outside). I am experimenting with lower wattages of bulb. We started with 160w, 95w was too cool, 100w is ok. Using just an incandescent didn't create enough of a basking spot. Owning tortoises means you're always tweaking something.

Oh and the fence, you're right about that! Quite pretty but not robust enough for a stubborn tortoise and I've since found out that see through fencing doesn't make sense to a tortoise, if they can see to the other side, they just push on through! We fenced the allotment with the same barrier and he broke through. It will need replacing in the Spring. Another expense!

Nice to see a picture of Mary Knobbins!

 

[Maggie3fan]

You're very observant ?.
Rodney is relatively new to us (August 2020) and yes, he is underweight. His previous owner made a number of mistakes: kept 2 together (Rodney was bullied), kept them both too cool (no heating), never soaked (hence the pyramiding), insufficiently and infrequently fed (hence the small - for a sulcata - size). Since coming to us he's kept singly, fed daily, bathed and weighed weekly. His shell is showing signs of growth but he won't ever catch up. He weighs 35 pounds and he should be double that. But he is alive and well and very happy with us.

Here he is enjoying his bath ?

The bulb is ok and he can get away from it when he wants to (the other side of the hut plus area in the shed, also outside). I am experimenting with lower wattages of bulb. We started with 160w, 95w was too cool, 100w is ok. Using just an incandescent didn't create enough of a basking spot. Owning tortoises means you're always tweaking something.

Oh and the fence, you're right about that! Quite pretty but not robust enough for a stubborn tortoise and I've since found out that see through fencing doesn't make sense to a tortoise, if they can see to the other side, they just push on through! We fenced the allotment with the same barrier and he broke through. It will need replacing in the Spring. Another expense!

Nice to see a picture of Mary Knobbins!

Those photos in the swimming pool really do show his size. So nice, yeah, he's got some pyramiding, but that does not change his personality, you see how bad Mary Knobbins looks, she's as healthy as can be, goes outside on her own and other then the trouble she gets into, she's a very easy keeper...
this shows the inside of my tort shed, that's a sleeping box with a Kane heating mat on a thermostat, the lights and CHE's are all on timers. That heater keeps the ambient temp at 85 to 90 even when it's freezing outside.
My shed is 20'x12 feet, and that still is not enuf walking for Sulcata, that's why I open the doggie door daily. Just giving you ideas

There is a smaller tortoise who lives under that tort table holding all my cactus. The 2 tortoises don't ever meet.