# Outside during thunderstorms???



## AslInterpreter (May 20, 2011)

Hello everyone! We live in Missouri and have some NASTY storms that blow thru here. I was curious about what you do with your torts during heavy storm activity??? We have a 5 year old Sulcata and my wife makes me bring him inside whenever it starts getting bad.

What are your thoughts??

Thanks in advance.


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## Laura (May 20, 2011)

at five, you still can.. good luck doing that in a few years!
doesnt he have a shed or a protected area? As long as he can stay warm, its ok. 
Mine like the rain.


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## dmarcus (May 20, 2011)

My Sulcata stay's outside 24/7 we only brought him in once when we had the ice/snow storm before the superbowl because his out door enclosure was not 100% complete. Now we are good and with his house being insulated and having 2 good heat sources he has no reason to be inside.. Of course my 5 year old is 30 pounds and can get a little distructive, so I rather have him outside..


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## matt41gb (May 20, 2011)

I have some 4" red-foots outside in the storms, and they're just fine. I wouldn't worry at all. 

-Matt


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## Baoh (May 20, 2011)

I am in West County (MO) and I have 5 sulcatas, one yellow foot, one burmese brown, and two leopards currently outside. More will join them as size becomes adequate enough that I feel confident in their robustness. 

They do just fine for me.


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## Terry Allan Hall (May 21, 2011)

Only thing I worry about is bad hail...anything over the size of a cherry, I run outside and make sure they're in the rock "caves" I built 'em.


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## CtTortoiseMom (May 21, 2011)

Terry Allan Hall said:


> Only thing I worry about is bad hail...anything over the size of a cherry, I run outside and make sure they're in the rock "caves" I built 'em.



I have never seen hail larger than a cherry! That must hurt to be running around in it to check the torts!


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## Yvonne G (May 21, 2011)

Hi Jeffrey:

All of my outside tortoises that are acclimated to living outside, stay out in all kinds of weather. I just make sure they are all inside their houses if it starts to rain. But I don't block them in. If they come out during a storm, so be it. I used to have pictures of Dudley (100lb sulcata) with snow on his back, but I can't find them now.

If the tortoise is one that just goes outside for the day and back inside at night, then I don't leave him out in inclement weather.


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## DixieParadise (May 21, 2011)

Today is day 2 for my RF outside. It is very humid and suppose to rain. I will let you know how she fairs. Right now I am more concerned that the sun isn't out and the temp isn't up where I want it to be....but it is suppose to get there by noon. I feel confident that she is okay.


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## AslInterpreter (May 21, 2011)

Thank you all for the quick replies!! Today we will remodel the Tortise hut, I think that, in combination with your responses will help to satisfy my wife  we do have some nasty hail sometimes....last year was tennis ball size that broke our skylights!


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## Terry Allan Hall (May 21, 2011)

CtTortoiseMom said:


> Terry Allan Hall said:
> 
> 
> > Only thing I worry about is bad hail...anything over the size of a cherry, I run outside and make sure they're in the rock "caves" I built 'em.
> ...



We occasoinally have golf-ball-sized (and bigger) out here in The Republic, and once lost a Leopard tort, who get smacked in the head by a golf-ball-sized hail-stone (she didn't make it to her cave in time ), so I get and make sure now. 

And yeah, anything that'll kill a tortoise can hurt pretty bad, so I always try to "round 'em up and tuck 'em in" before it gets that bad...if not, it's up to me to deal w/ whatever bruises come, because I accepted the responsibility of keeping them.


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## ALDABRAMAN (May 21, 2011)

Ours stay outside during storms, only hatchlings come inside.


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## AslInterpreter (May 22, 2011)

Not sure if anyone saw the news of the storms that blew thru Missouri this weekend.....and the new house I built for Thomas worked great and he made it thru the storms just great!!! I think I am going to add some shingles to it tmrw . We are just north of Joplin, the city that got hit really hard, and did not have any damage.


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## dmarcus (May 23, 2011)

It got nasty here in North Texas last night but nothing like Missouri, some of the damage is bad there..


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## CtTortoiseMom (May 23, 2011)

Terry Allan Hall said:


> CtTortoiseMom said:
> 
> 
> > Terry Allan Hall said:
> ...


That is really sad about your poor leopard, I can imagine that the bad weather would slow them down even more. Hail the size of golf ball's must feel like being in a bomb zone during a war!


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## Terry Allan Hall (May 23, 2011)

CtTortoiseMom said:


> Terry Allan Hall said:
> 
> 
> > CtTortoiseMom said:
> ...



That why I now go out and make sure they're in the rock (and mortar) "caves" I build 'em when we have hail coming down..."Hiero" was a beloved pet, particularily for my wife, and she was very sad about it.


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## Yvonne G (May 23, 2011)

AslInterpreter said:


> Not sure if anyone saw the news of the storms that blew thru Missouri this weekend.....and the new house I built for Thomas worked great and he made it thru the storms just great!!! I think I am going to add some shingles to it tmrw . We are just north of Joplin, the city that got hit really hard, and did not have any damage.



Hi Jeffrey:

I don't know if you wrote this post before the tornado or after...I hope you're still ok?


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## AslInterpreter (May 23, 2011)

My last post was right after the tornado hit!! We are a bit over an hour north of Joplin and did have have any damage here. It is horrible to see a town I pass thru often totally destroyed!!!


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