I thought I would share about me checking on the Desert Tortoises I am caretaker of. Since joining this forum recently and reading and following the info going on here I have learned it is usually not best practises to allow tortoises to brumate outside.
I had fairly recently built two burrows for two adult Desert Tortoises that I have had for years. They used to be housed together but were showing signs of bullying and accidental breeding occurred so i separated them into their own areas where they can be alone. I did this before coming to this forum and built the burrows per one of the Arizona State Tortoise Information plans. I put a lot of thought, effort and some money into making them safe and dry and something that will last. The burrows are 8' feet long and wide enough for the tortoises with room to grow more and a L shape at the end to turn around. I dug about 18" underground (the ground is too hard to dig more here without a jack hammer) where the bottom of the chamber sits and buried them with 3' foot of dirt which tapers down towards the entrance which is a few inches above the grade line to prevent flooding.
I didn't start taking temperature measurements till this year after learning that temperature during brumation should stay at 50f. I used to not check on them during brumation and also did not cover the entrance of their burrows with dirt but saw some tricks on older threads here that gave me the idea. This year I have temp gunned the tortoise burrows on the coldest nights and warmest days. I have checked on them after all large down pours being more aware they need to be supervised more closely and not just forgotten about till they wake up. All my temp readings have been within one degree of 50f every time I checked, I truly am surprised by this I didn't think it could have stayed so consistent. It has stayed completely dry also.
One day I saw the front entrance on a burrow collapsed a small hole and I immediately looked in to make sure no critters were in the causing harm. I am so glad I started putting dirt in the entrances, I just peek at the burrows every day or two and have a good idea the tortoises remane safe inside if the dirt is unmolested. I think it may help with the temperature regulation also.
Since it is halfway through brumation I am trying to come up with a plan for next year. If I do start putting the torts in the fridge next year I will need to change the burrows. One big drawback to how they are now is I would have to dig up the burrow top and remove the lid to get the torts out. This is only after they start brumating because they come out when I bang a stick on the wood of the entrance, I do this every time I feed them or call them out for weekly soaking (this is of course if they are able to and not incapacitated).I would need a burrow where I can easily access the torts and remove them easily to do the fridge method. I have been thinking hard about next years brumation. I must decide if the current way is good enough for these torts to thrive. I live in Natural Desert Tortoise range so the weather is proper. Any comments or advice is appreciated and thanks for reading. Happy New Year fellow tort lovers.
I had fairly recently built two burrows for two adult Desert Tortoises that I have had for years. They used to be housed together but were showing signs of bullying and accidental breeding occurred so i separated them into their own areas where they can be alone. I did this before coming to this forum and built the burrows per one of the Arizona State Tortoise Information plans. I put a lot of thought, effort and some money into making them safe and dry and something that will last. The burrows are 8' feet long and wide enough for the tortoises with room to grow more and a L shape at the end to turn around. I dug about 18" underground (the ground is too hard to dig more here without a jack hammer) where the bottom of the chamber sits and buried them with 3' foot of dirt which tapers down towards the entrance which is a few inches above the grade line to prevent flooding.
I didn't start taking temperature measurements till this year after learning that temperature during brumation should stay at 50f. I used to not check on them during brumation and also did not cover the entrance of their burrows with dirt but saw some tricks on older threads here that gave me the idea. This year I have temp gunned the tortoise burrows on the coldest nights and warmest days. I have checked on them after all large down pours being more aware they need to be supervised more closely and not just forgotten about till they wake up. All my temp readings have been within one degree of 50f every time I checked, I truly am surprised by this I didn't think it could have stayed so consistent. It has stayed completely dry also.
One day I saw the front entrance on a burrow collapsed a small hole and I immediately looked in to make sure no critters were in the causing harm. I am so glad I started putting dirt in the entrances, I just peek at the burrows every day or two and have a good idea the tortoises remane safe inside if the dirt is unmolested. I think it may help with the temperature regulation also.
Since it is halfway through brumation I am trying to come up with a plan for next year. If I do start putting the torts in the fridge next year I will need to change the burrows. One big drawback to how they are now is I would have to dig up the burrow top and remove the lid to get the torts out. This is only after they start brumating because they come out when I bang a stick on the wood of the entrance, I do this every time I feed them or call them out for weekly soaking (this is of course if they are able to and not incapacitated).I would need a burrow where I can easily access the torts and remove them easily to do the fridge method. I have been thinking hard about next years brumation. I must decide if the current way is good enough for these torts to thrive. I live in Natural Desert Tortoise range so the weather is proper. Any comments or advice is appreciated and thanks for reading. Happy New Year fellow tort lovers.
