Nature vs Nurture

StudentoftheReptile

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So I had made the decision to let my sulcata winter in her burrow outside as opposed to bringing her inside. Here in southern Alabama, we don't get too many terribly cold nights where it doesn't get fair back during the day, but January can get pretty chilly (below 20'F at night and 40-50's in the day). Nevertheless, I went with my gut that her burrow, which I guestimated was at least 8 ft deep (and likely more) was better insulated and would cause her less stress, then bringing her inside and sticking her in a plastic storage bin with a heat lamp, which **** her off (after all, it did last year!). PLus, there was the added challenge of catching her outside of her burrow to bring her inside (working 8-10 hrs during normal business hrs on most days, and she comes out during those times!).

Anyway, I still had my doubts if she would make it okay. Today, I was playing with my son outside, and I notice the boards I had used to cover the burrow were knocked aside. A familiar dirt-covered face greeted us at the entrance of the burrow. Kobe apparently was experiencing some "cabin fever" and today was warm enough for her to stretch her legs. At least I know my instincts were right. :D
 

wellington

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That's nice. Glad it worked out for the both of you. However, a pic of her would have been nice:D


Btw, have you have tried putting a temp probe down there to see how warm it is? Would be interesting.
 

diamondbp

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My brother kept his sulcatas outside with no heat year round until I got them from him. They did fine but I wouldn't be brave enough to do that. I try to make their heated agendas attractive as possible and they all love it. One a rare occasion my male comes out to sleep under his favorite bush regardless of the temps. But if it gets below 40 I lock him in the heated shed
 

Jacqui

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Kobe just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. :)
 

T33's Torts

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Not a basketball fan I see :p
Kobe Bryant, #24, is a Lakers player. I'm a clipper fan, so Kobe is a major no- no for me :p;):D
 

Yvonne G

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As long as it's working out then I wouldn't change a thing, but here's an idea for you if you get cold feet for some future winter:

Build some sort of shed/dog house/whatever over the mouth of the burrow. Insulate it well, then mount an electric DeLonghi oil-filled radiator space heater inside the shed. The heat will travel down into the burrow and make sure your tortoise doesn't get too cold.
 

EKLC

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Sounds like she's doing a pretty good impression of a gopher tortoise. They come out every so often in the winter to raise their body temps with some basking. I imagine packed into the sand down there, with no wind, they hold onto the heat pretty well.
 

Dizisdalife

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Burrowing is one aspect of the sulcatas "natural" environment. They are certainly equipped to dig. I wish I had the space to allow mine to burrow. More for the exercise and entertainment of digging than from the need for shelter. Temperatures are another important aspect of their natural environment. Where they come from it in Africa the winter night time lows are 60F and the day time highs are 75F. This is in the cooler range of their habitat. Other areas are warmer. Their burrow temps stay somewhere above 60F and probably less than 75F, but do give them a stable temperature. With daytime temps of 75F they can bask in the sun everyday and warm themselves up to a good temp before going back into their burrow for the night. I worry that the temps in a burrow anywhere in the States would not match what they would find in their natural habitat. Maybe Arizona or other desert areas are the exception to this. Over weeks of our winter temperatures at 20-30F at night the ground temp is going to keep getting colder. Lots of cloudy days with highs around 50F do little to raise the temperature of the ground beneath the earth. Eventually that burrow temp is going to get down to around 40F (or 45F) and stay until Spring comes to warm the earth again. Without a temp probe to monitor the actual temperature in the burrow I would certainly be worried that my sulcata was not getting nature or nurture.
 

StudentoftheReptile

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Yeah, not a sports fan at all. About as interesting as watching paint drying or growing grass.
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Where might one get a temp probe?
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She was out today as well as yesterday. We actually are about to hit an ice storm, so I decided to bring her in the next few nights.
 

T33's Torts

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Hey! Watching grass grow is fun. ;):p:D
I'm trying to re·seed my "lawn". But I have to use non fertilised seeds. :dodgy:
 

Dizisdalife

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StudentoftheReptile said:
Where might one get a temp probe?
The night box that my sulcata stays in has a wireless remote sensor that sends the temperature and humidity information to a main display in my house. It looks like this one: http://www.oregonscientificstore.co...nced-Weather-Station-with-Atomic-Time.product
AcuRite makes several models with wireless remote sensors as well.

Not sure how you would do it, but I would get one of these remote sensors down in the burrow to check the temps. It could also give you info on the humidity too. If the sensor won't work for some reason I would put a regular thermometer down there and leave it for a while, then pull it up to check the temperature. The advantage of the remote sensor is that you can check it often and know for sure if the temperature is okay for your tortoise.
 
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