Where to keep adult Leopards in Ireland?

[davy89]

Hows it goin, I have 2 Leopards, both roughly 1 1/2 years old, and for now I have them in a vivarium indoors, which is grand for their size.

However I live in Ireland so its never gonna be suitable to keep them outdoors for any period of time, apart from the VERY odd sunny afternoon.

I know that they will grow to be quite large and will need a lot of space when they do, could anybody give me any ideas on what I could do when this time comes around? Keeping in mind that an outdoor enclosure is out of the question.

Would really appreciate any help, thanks

Dave

 

[dmmj]

since ireland's weather is a problem you will need to build a heated shed, Only other thing I can think of you won't like and that is to rehome them to a warmer climate.

 

[davy89]

Ive only had the little fellas just over a month and already I dont wanna have to let them go. All the advice Ive been getting is get a smaller species like a Hermanns or a Horsefield. Is there any way that a designated part of a room would be sufficient enough space for them as adults?

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Davy:

Welcome to the forum!!

Well, build yourself an outdoor pen on the lee side of the house (out of the wind) with a heated shed. There must be SOME sunny days in Ireland, and if there's no wind, the tortoise can get the good effects from the sun. He will go back into his shed to get warm when he gets cold. My leopards and sulcatas have access to outside all winter long, and they come and go on the coldest, wettest days, but they're smart enough to know where the heat is, and go back in on their own.

Its going to cost you a lot to maintain a good quality UVB light for the tortoises. They must have UVB to make their calcium work...either from the sun or from a good-quality UV light. Without it, they will get soft and eventually die.

If you want to dedicate a whole room to the tortoises, that's probably what you're going to need for a full size leopard. But that's down the road a bit. Probably won't be full grown for 10 or 15 years. You can start out with a 4 shelf book case laying on its back and lined with shower curtain. And as they outgrow that, make it bigger.

But have your outdoor pen anyway, for those days when he is able to get some real sunshine.

 

[davy89]

Hey Yvonne,

Thank God, a bit of sound advice I dont think wind will be a problem, its the rain I'd be more worried about. And you'd be surprised how little sunshine we get, about 6 decent days over the whole summer this year

When you say a heated shed, by what means would you heat it? A spot light, ceramic emitter? And where could I find a good quality UVB light that would be sufficient for the shed?

Thanks so much for that, really appreciate it

Dave

 

[Yvonne G]

Well, I've heard that there is a bit of a problem getting them recently, but my bulb of choice is the T-Rex UV/Heat 100 watt spot light. You can order it online. I usually buy it from LLReptile.

So, you would have some sort of light hanging from the ceiling. It they're outside, I wouldn't use the UV light. Save that for when they're indoors. Then you would have a pig blanket on the floor. I buy mine from http://www.osborne-ind.com/petsub/heatpad/heat_pads2.htm
and if you order from them, be sure to also buy the F911 controller. This is a rheostat that controls the temperature. Don't buy the cheaper one, as it doesn't work well. Get the F911.

Inside my outdoor heated shed, I have the pig blanket on the floor, a bell-shaped aluminum light fixture holding a black or red incandescent bulb, and another light fixture holding a regular 60watt incandescent bulb. I only use the regular light on days when there is no sun. Then there is the vinyl strips over the doorway.

Good luck, and keep us posted. I'd love to see pictures of your babies.

 

[terrypin]

RE: Housing adult leopards in Ireland

Hows it goin everyone, I have 2 Leopards, both roughly 1 1/2 years old, and for now I have them in a vivarium indoors, which is grand for their size.

However I live in Ireland so its never gonna be suitable to keep them outdoors for any period of time, apart from the VERY odd sunny afternoon.

I know that they will grow to be quite large and will need a lot of space when they do, could anybody give me any ideas on what I could do when this time comes around? Keeping in mind that an outdoor enclosure is out of the question.

Would really appreciate any help, thanks

Dave

hi Dave ,i would love to help you.i keep a group of adult leopards and although perhaps its not as wet in the channel islands as it is in ireland the temperatures arent a great deal better for most of the year.can i ask why you cant house your adults outdoors.mine live in an insulated wooden shed throughout the year and have access outdoors during the daytime on all but the very worst of days in the winter.i have heard of people keeping adults indoors over winter but really feel this is a major undertaking when you consider the amount of mess they make.their water consumption and high fibre diet being the reason for their antisocial behaviour.i would explore every possible way of housing them outdoors before considering keeping aduts indoors overwinter they really arent house pets.
terry

 

[tortoiserescue]

They can live outside if you purchase pig blankets better known as Kane Heat pads and a large radiant heat panel for the inside interior of the roof. at www.beanfarm.com - just curious - why would you have tortoises where they can't get any sun?

 

[Yvonne G]

The OP said it was an impulse buy and now he's smitten and wouldn't dream of giving them up

 

[Seiryu]

I live in Michigan, and weather where tortoises shouldn't be outside at all, or for too long (adults) starts to kick in about now. It's high 50's right now. We get tons of snow and below freezing temps regularly.

My leopards are nowhere near full grown (1.5 years old and 7 months old). But what I have been planning on doing is, a double decker tort enclosure.

That is, build an enclosure (thinking about roughly 10x10 or 10x12 feet) and then building a ramp up to another level, that will also be 10x10/10x12.

So a 10x10, becomes a 20x10 enclosure in terms of space.

It has twice as much space for the torts, but only takes up half as much space inside.

The garage is also a good idea if you have the room to do it.