how many hours of sunlight for a russian tortoise?

[nicole r]

i do have a heat lamp, just not a uvb. if i were to not buy one and just take him outside for a few hours how many hours of sunlight would he need? i live in nevada (las vegas) and its never cloudy here so ill be able to take him out everyday (or as often as possible)!! i cant make an outdoor enclosure because my neighbors let their cats wander around the neighborhood and i have a dog too so i wouldnt.

 

[Tom]

An hour or two of sunshine two or three times a week is enough to meet the UV needs. Make sure he always has access to shade. They can overheat and die in minutes in a climate like yours.

Letting him run loose will probably end in disaster for you. He needs an enclosure. It is not difficult or expensive to make a decent secure enclosure. Here are some examples:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/cheap-easy-simple-sunning-enclosure.14680/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/simple-sunning-enclosure.104351/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...table-but-safe-outdoor-baby-enclosures.30683/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/semi-underground-russian-box.98590/

There are many more examples in the enclosure section of the forum.

 

[nicole r]

An hour or two of sunshine two or three times a week is enough to meet the UV needs. Make sure he always has access to shade. They can overheat and die in minutes in a climate like yours.

Letting him run loose will probably end in disaster for you. He needs an enclosure. It is not difficult or expensive to make a decent secure enclosure. Here are some examples:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/cheap-easy-simple-sunning-enclosure.14680/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/simple-sunning-enclosure.104351/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...table-but-safe-outdoor-baby-enclosures.30683/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/semi-underground-russian-box.98590/

There are many more examples in the enclosure section of the forum.

alright thank you so much !! ill be sure to keep my eye on him as ive had another russian who overheated and died ill make sure he has access to shade at all times !! ill see if i can make an enclosure for him if possible if not ill be able to stay out and watch him so i dont lose him. thank you!!

 

[applebob46]

An hour or two of sunshine two or three times a week is enough to meet the UV needs. Make sure he always has access to shade. They can overheat and die in minutes in a climate like yours.

Letting him run loose will probably end in disaster for you. He needs an enclosure. It is not difficult or expensive to make a decent secure enclosure. Here are some examples:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/cheap-easy-simple-sunning-enclosure.14680/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/simple-sunning-enclosure.104351/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...table-but-safe-outdoor-baby-enclosures.30683/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/semi-underground-russian-box.98590/

There are many more examples in the enclosure section of the forum.

He's right. All you would need is to just put a hinged top on the enclosure. I made a pretty decent sized wooden box and made a top that had hinges on it and it works great (plus I'm terrible with wood-working anyways so it's not hard to do lol)

 

[johnsonnboswell]

We just had a poster who lost his tortoise because he didn't have an enclosure. Cats and dogs are a problem, but not a reason not to build an enclosure. My RTs' habitat has plastic netting on it to keep the cat out.

 

[nicole r]

We just had a poster who lost his tortoise because he didn't have an enclosure. Cats and dogs are a problem, but not a reason not to build an enclosure. My RTs' habitat has plastic netting on it to keep the cat out.

okay! ill try the plastic netting for it thanks !!

 

[pam]

Welcome