keeping leopard tortoise outdoors

[gneesy]

Hi all!

I've been beginning research on maybe getting a leopard tortoise. My main concern is the temperatures outside. I plan on keeping it indoors for the first few years, but once it is large enough I would like to keep it outside. I already have an Eastern Hermann's that I adore named Voldetort, but she is going to be indoors only.

I live in the central valley in california and my main question is would it be okay to house my leopard tortoise outside in our hot summers? The central valley gets HOT and dry, with our summer highs being over 100F, but yet our winters can dip to the 50s. I would plan for an outdoor heating mat and hide, but the summer heat is what concerns me. If given shade and water, would that be okay for a leopard or is it just not a good idea? If I can't house it outside eventually, I don't think I would get one because I would want it to have appropriate space and it would eventually be too big to keep indoors.

Thank you in advance for your responses!

 

[Yvonne G]

I live in Clovis and my leopards live outside. They have an insulated, heated, shed that keeps them warm in winter, and a misting system that keeps them cool in summer.

 

[Tom]

Hi all!

I've been beginning research on maybe getting a leopard tortoise. My main concern is the temperatures outside. I plan on keeping it indoors for the first few years, but once it is large enough I would like to keep it outside. I already have an Eastern Hermann's that I adore named Voldetort, but she is going to be indoors only.

I live in the central valley in california and my main question is would it be okay to house my leopard tortoise outside in our hot summers? The central valley gets HOT and dry, with our summer highs being over 100F, but yet our winters can dip to the 50s. I would plan for an outdoor heating mat and hide, but the summer heat is what concerns me. If given shade and water, would that be okay for a leopard or is it just not a good idea? If I can't house it outside eventually, I don't think I would get one because I would want it to have appropriate space and it would eventually be too big to keep indoors.

Thank you in advance for your responses!

When they get bigger, they can live outside with a heated night box like this:

Single Tortoise Night Box

I like my larger tortoises to live outside full time. My climate permits this year round with a little help. For people who live where it snows all winter, this type of box is still good for warmer weather, getting them out earlier in Spring, and keeping them out a bit later into fall. You'll...

tortoiseforum.org

Your other tortoise should live outside too. It is even more suited to our climate than the leopard. In this thread I show and explain how to do it:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org