Hey everyone, I'm new to tortoises and need advice.

MRCliplef

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Ok... So I recently rescued two cherry headed tortoises. Normally I wouldn't get any new animal before I am confident in their care, but the timing for this adoption didn't workout that way.
I have been researching like crazy, and I feel mostly confident except for night time heating. I have come across so much conflicting info on this. I live in Alberta, Canada, so for most of the year, it is too cold for them to be out doors. I read one care guide that said they can stay outside at night in temperatures as low as 4° Celsius. But then I was told that when they are inside, if the house temperature drops below 21°, I will need to get a ceramic heat emitter. Obviously one of these can't be true, if they can stay outside in 4° why do they need heat at night when they are inside?
Thanks for reading, I want to take care of these guys properly.
 

zovick

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4 degrees Celsius equals 39.2 Fahrenheit by my calculation. There is no way a Redfoot Tortoise should be left outside for the night at that cold a temperature. I haven't kept any Redfoots in about 60 years now, but I wouldn't feel safe leaving one out at night at any temperature under 60 or 65 degrees F.

Any Redfoot experts out there, please feel free to chime in here.
 

Maro2Bear

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@Toddrickfl1 and @ZEROPILOT are both experts when it comes to Redfoot Keeping.
@Redfoot NERD too!

A quick look under the Redfoot care sheets...

✅ Redfoot tortoises require temperatures around 80-86 degrees at all times, day and night. There should be no basking spot, as it makes pyramiding very likely to occur, and temperatures being too hot or lights being too bright can be greatly stressful for them. Never let the temperature in the coolest part of the enclosure fall below 80. That will make the redfoot susceptible to respiratory infections, and can make them less active and not want to eat.
 

Toddrickfl1

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I keep my Redfoots at around 28-30C night and day. I personally wouldn't let them get any colder than 15C.
 

turtlesteve

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I personally feel that 50-55F is safe for adults or sub adults as long as it is rare and daytime temps are warm. Occasional lows between 40-50 would be expected for cherryheads in their native range, and Bolivians are native to areas that get occasional mild frosts (although some references indicate that they use burrows to escape the cold).

I do not let hatchlings go below 75F and agree with the recommendation of 80-86F with no basking area.
 

ZEROPILOT

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I personally feel that 50-55F is safe for adults or sub adults as long as it is rare and daytime temps are warm. Occasional lows between 40-50 would be expected for cherryheads in their native range, and Bolivians are native to areas that get occasional mild frosts (although some references indicate that they use burrows to escape the cold).

I do not let hatchlings go below 75F and agree with the recommendation of 80-86F with no basking area.
I agree with you.
And my general rules for keeping mine outdoors are indeed different from what I reccomend other newer keepers do with theirs indoors.
Indoors, there shouldn't be much difficulty in keeping them around 80f.
And even though they can survive cooler temperatures, I wouldn't force them to do so.
In a relatively small indoor enclosure, the dampness mixed with a lower temperature can cause problems that can be mostly avoided by just not letting things get cold.
And indoors, that it simple.
 

ZEROPILOT

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@Toddrickfl1 and @ZEROPILOT are both experts when it comes to Redfoot Keeping.
@Redfoot NERD too!

A quick look under the Redfoot care sheets...

✅ Redfoot tortoises require temperatures around 80-86 degrees at all times, day and night. There should be no basking spot, as it makes pyramiding very likely to occur, and temperatures being too hot or lights being too bright can be greatly stressful for them. Never let the temperature in the coolest part of the enclosure fall below 80. That will make the redfoot susceptible to respiratory infections, and can make them less active and not want to eat.
Pyramiding would occur if the basking spot is the type that dries out the shell.
But, I also do not recommend a basking area for a Redfoot.
You want an all over temperature of 80 to 86.
 

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