Outdoor sunshine

[4jean]

I have an approximately 10 month old Hermann's tortoise. I live in upstate NY. He is spending most of his daytime outside due to the weather. When he is inside he spends most of his day basking under his lamp. Outdoors he spends most of the time hiding which I know is normal. My question is how can I be sure he is getting enough sunlight outdoors since he is in the shade for most of the heat of the day? I am also wondering if I should prepare to hibernate him this winter (scary) because I feel like it is such a long time that he will need to be indoors. I can tell he is really accustomed to going out every day.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

You can't worry about the outdoor sunlight as long as the habitat is set up correctly. Hiding from the heat is normal. Sunlight offers more benefit than artificial lights, so it takes more lamp time than sun time.

I wouldn't hibernate the first year.

I don't hibernate any of mine in Central New York because I'd never see them.... And I can't do it safely.

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

He can still get UVB hiding. The UV rays can bounce off of the ground, or be filtered through leaves (that will cut out some of the 'good' stuff, be he should still get some)
I wouldn't hibernate, period. And definetly not the first year.
I think it's a risky practice that (I understand it is natural for some torts) doesn't do much good in the end? I also understand that it is important for breeding, but I don't breed my torts, so, I would just be so freaked out during those those VERY LONG months that they could die, or they might not actually be hibernating??

 

[4jean]

Thank you both for your responses. I laughed and agree about hibernation in NYS, your right we would never see them!

 

[Tom]

What sort of lamp is he under all day indoors? Incandescent bulbs really dry out the carapace, so that is not a good thing. You may need to warm up your ambient or your basking temp, so that he is not under it all day.

If your tortoise is outdoors with access to sun for hours at a time, don't worry, he's getting all the UV he needs.

There is no reason you can't hibernate a one plus year old hermanni. They do it in the wild and its easy to do in captivity, just learn about it first. I've been hibernating animals in a wide variety of ways for decades and never had one single problem. Its not scary or mysterious. Its a natural normal process and there is no good reason to skip it. This is a very debatable subject, and I have no idea how a new person is supposed to sort through the conflicting info, but I would suggest taking advice from people who have done it and not done it for many years, vs. people who have never done it at all but read about it on the internet.

I recommend indoor hibernation under controlled conditions, vs. doing it outside with all of mother natures unpredictability, but even this opinion is debatable. It can be safely done outside in your climate, but I feel indoors is less risky.

 

[4jean]

Thanks Tom. I have a MVB in my indoor enclosure. I also have live plants, so he spends the majority of his time under the plants and bulb. I have a temp gun. Temp under light is kept at 95. Cool areas range from high 70's to mid 80's.
I am interested in hibernation. My thought is to buy a "mini fridge" solely for hibernation use. I have already learned an enormous amount through this forum about tortoise care, b/c of course I was given horrible advice when I purchased him. Luckily I immediately found this forum. I guess now is the time to begin researching and learning about hibernation. I'm just not real confident about the process at this point. Should I just search previous posts as a starting point?

 

[Tom]

You know, I really ought to just do a thread on it... I keep meaning to do it, but never get around to it. Its a whole page of typing for me, which will take a couple of hours at least, but I think it will be useful.

For the time being, yes, look up old threads and read as much as you can. just remember that this is a public forum and anyone can type anything into their keyboard even if they have no idea what they are talking about and no experience. I really wish you could talk to GB Tortoises. He is also in NY and had been hibernating Testudo for more than three decades.

Can anyone help 4jean get in touch with GB? Any contact info for him?

 

[4jean]

Thank you, that would be great. Now I will leave you alone so you can begin planning your lengthy hibernation thread!