# Do you put the tortoise to bed at night time?



## nongtao (Dec 19, 2012)

Iâ€™m not sure that my topic in English is appropriate or not.

My question is â€¦. For one who own the tortoise and have them live outdoor with heating system provided in their enclosure. Do you have to put your tortoise in the enclosure every night? Or you just let them decided what to do?

My tortoise only walk in enclosure by himself not more than five times in a very cold day since October. Of course this year the winter come very late. Last night is the first time that I try to let him decide what to do and didnâ€™t put him in his house. The average temperature is 40 F and rain but I found he still live outside under Salvia bush.

I worried because Iâ€™m going to leave back home in Thailand for one month. And the person who take care of my house may not pay attention to my tortoise.

Hereâ€™s more info.
I have leopard tortoise 4 years old. I donâ€™t know for sure that itâ€™s male or female. But I think itâ€™s male. His name is Nong Tao in Thai mean little tortoise. I live in Southern Arizona south of Tucson. The coldest average temperature in December is 45 F.

In the past I put my tortoise in table enclosure and lived in the house. This year that I decided that he grown enough to live outside. I bought wooden dogâ€™s house for enclosure with 2 ceramics heating (100w and 70 wâ€”Iâ€™m not sure).

***If you need picture of the enclosure please let me know.


----------



## jaizei (Dec 19, 2012)

I think it is preferable to put them in their house at night not only for heat but for safety/security as well.


----------



## Yvonne G (Dec 19, 2012)

Hi nongtao:

I always put all my tortoises away at night and close/block the door to keep them safe.

I have 15 different types of turtle/tortoise and only two of them will not go back into their houses at night...the leopards and the Manouria. I used to have to carry the leopards back into their shed every single night. They are getting better about it and I only have to carry them maybe once a week.

So, yes, you need to tell your house sitter to be sure that the tortoises are inside their dog house at night. Get a piece of plywood and a brick and cover the door at night.


----------



## nongtao (Dec 19, 2012)

Thank you for your answer.

Now I worried, because last night it so cold. Is he going to get sick? Should I soak him in warm water.


----------



## Katherine (Dec 19, 2012)

Generally, I let my tortoises choose if they would like to sleep in the heated night house or not. Some of them have burrows they prefer in nice weather. However, if it is below 55 degrees outside and my leopard tortoises are not in their warm night box when I check them in the evening, I will pick them up and place them inside. I very rarely have to move my tortoises, as they have figured out it stays warm in the night houses and thus prefer to sleep there.


Just a thought... If you are worried about asking your petsitter to track down and relocate your tortoise every night that you are gone, maybe you can set up a temporary enclosure indoors so that you know the tortoise will not be out in freezing weather overnight. I have done this in the past when I had a stubborn very large sulcata and a petsitter who would not have been able to lift him up/move him if something happened. While I think outdoor enclosures are optimal I also think a month inside is better than a month of 40 degree evenings outside should the petsitter fail to move him.




nongtao said:


> Should I soak him in warm water.



Yes. This is a good way to warm up a potentially chilly tortoise. I do no think one night in cool weather will be detrimental, but I would be cautious about allowing it to happen repeatedly. Good luck!


----------



## noved32 (Dec 19, 2012)

Sah wah dee kah ... I don't have much to add about ur little guy but just wanted to say hello. My mother (in law) is From Thailand, enjoy you trip.


----------



## nongtao (Dec 19, 2012)

Nice to meet you "noved32" kah ... Thank you for your nice message.


----------



## nongtao (Dec 19, 2012)

Katherine said:


> Generally, I let my tortoises choose if they would like to sleep in the heated night house or not. Some of them have burrows they prefer in nice weather. However, if it is below 55 degrees outside and my leopard tortoises are not in their warm night box when I check them in the evening, I will pick them up and place them inside. I very rarely have to move my tortoises, as they have figured out it stays warm in the night houses and thus prefer to sleep there.
> 
> 
> Just a thought... If you are worried about asking your petsitter to track down and relocate your tortoise every night that you are gone, maybe you can set up a temporary enclosure indoors so that you know the tortoise will not be out in freezing weather overnight. I have done this in the past when I had a stubborn very large sulcata and a petsitter who would not have been able to lift him up/move him if something happened. While I think outdoor enclosures are optimal I also think a month inside is better than a month of 40 degree evenings outside should the petsitter fail to move him.
> ...






Thank you so much for your answer...this helps me a lot.


----------



## mattgrizzlybear (Dec 19, 2012)

I would check and double check with your pet sitter. If you put him in his house at night he will get on a routine and eventually do it on his own. I wonder how much it costs to pay a pet sitter to carry a tortoise into a dog house.


----------

