Russian tortoise hibernation questions

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

Over the past couple years I’ve allowed my Russian tortoise group to burrow down in their green house home and hibernate naturally will little to no problem, but starting in the beginning of this summer the green house started to weaken and fall apart so we demolished it. The Russian torts were placed back into 4ft by 8ft red wood boxes. I have concerns about letting them hibernate in the boxes because of little protection from the rains and the cold weather we get here in the Bay Area.

Questions:
Would it be safe to place them in a tool shed during hibernate, and how would I go about doing this?

I have two yearling Russians that my oldest female produced, would I be able to hibernate them safely?

I have recently obtained a small female that is slightly under weight but is actively eating. Can I hibernate her also?

 

[Yvonne G]

@russian/sulcata/tortoise

Hey Nick: Wasn't your greenhouse the same one like mine that came from Harbor Freight? Mine is also showing signs of imminent doom. There are tiny holes made by rain drops and the material shatters easily. When mine is no longer functional I'm going to see about taking off the existing poly carbon and replacing it with something meant to last longer. (I may even have to twist tie sheet plastic onto the frame until I can come up with something better)

You can box up the tortoises in cardboard boxes. I place a whole Sunday paper (because it's thick) on the bottom of the box, then a layer of shredded paper, then the tortoise, then fill up the box with more shredded paper. Fold over the flaps and lock them in place. Place the box in a cool, quiet spot where rats won't get to them. The temperature should stay between 40 and 50F and on the low side of that range is best. You have to place the boxes where they won't get wet.

I generally don't allow brumation until babies are three years old. But you certainly can do it earlier if you like.

I would not allow the new tortoise to brumate until you've had her a year. This way you're sure she's healthy enough to go through the long winter period.

 

[Tom]

I wouldn't do it outside at all. Indoors in consistent controlled conditions is the safest way to go. Russians need a consistent 37-39 degrees. Mine started getting fidgety if the temp climbed into the 40s. Low 30s is too dangerous. Outdoors we have warm winter days sometimes, and the temperature will be too inconsistent.

Scroll down to post #19 for the full explanation.
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/looking-for-an-rt-hibernation-mentor.128790/

I hibernate any animal that hibernates in the wild. This includes their first year and every year. I've never had a problem with any lizard, snake or tortoise doing the way I've outlined in that thread.

 

[RosemaryDW]

You’ve got two experts here so I’m not going to add much other than concurring with the info posted by both Yvonne and Tom about lower forties being optimal. My Russian is fridge hibernated and when we take her out she consistently opens her eyes around 42 degrees and once she hits 44-45 will no longer retract her limbs.

Temps go up and down in the wild, even in the coldest environment; I don’t see any reason to think they don’t have the ability to adapt to some fluctuations.

Just saying it’s pretty obvious to see what’s happening when they are in a controlled environment. If you can’t be sure your temps will remain reasonably stable, that’s something to consider.