# Drying out time



## FLINTUS (Sep 28, 2014)

@ascott did actually raise an interesting point in that thread, and ignoring the arguments of that thread-I have little knowledge of cuora, and would suspect they are species which would not experience this in the wild-, it is something that we haven't covered, as far as I'm aware, as a single, separate topic on here. There have been numerous studies that when tortoises are subjected to constant high(80%+) humidity, the shell becomes much denser and thicker-although again, I would think it would be unlikely to do what happened to the tortoise in the other thread-, as well as softer. My Red Foots have an area of lower humidity with more heat(about 90, and 50-60% humidity) and I do find that they use this after being in the dark, very damp area which maintains pretty much constant 95% humidity. Never tried it with the hingebacks, as they don't really venture out of their forests in the wild. But, for instance @Tom , do you provide an area of lower humidity for your pardalis and sulcatas? I would think it would be beneficial, as yes when young they spend a lot of time below ground, but they will also go upto the surface now and again.
Discuss please with no insults, swearing, etc.


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## Grandpa Turtle 144 (Sep 28, 2014)

I like what you have to say but I only have 15yr of time with my torts . And I feel your point needs more looking in to ( further studies ) .


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## G-stars (Sep 28, 2014)

My OPINION is that it is beneficial for the tortoises to have a dryer area. Maybe not as frequent when they are young or hatchlings. I take all my juvies and adults outside almost daily but I still offer them humid areas outdoors for them to choose for themselves.Then bring them in every night into their closed chamber. Hatchlings I treat differently and feel that they need more humidity although I do take them outdoors 3-4 times a week and do soakings much more frequently. I have noticed that adults tend to hydrate themselves outside by soaking themselves and drinking water. While hatchlings don't do this with as much regularity. I would love to know what other members think about this and what their findings are. 


— Gus


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## Abdulla6169 (Sep 28, 2014)

I think we should look into their natural habitat, for example:
I have a Golden (Syrian) Greek tortoise, I don't believe they burrow in the wild, so they hide under plant foliage and other similar structures. The humidity there is about 40 during the day and at night it would reach 90 (today at least). The rest of the week would be drier. So just looking at the information for this week, I can understand that I can provide a humid environment for a short amount of time. But in places where the humidity would be constantly high, a very humid environment can be provided. But since most of us buy CB tortoise, we would need to find out how the weather conditions are during the time tortoises usually hatch and try to mimic their environment. I think you have to study the natural landscape of the tortoise, to truly answer your question.


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## ascott (Sep 28, 2014)

This is a fantastic thread....I am happy to see folks genuinely discussing amongst themselves, this is how positive things come about. For fear of creating any negative presence, I am going to climb back onto the bleachers and observe....


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