I need help on how to keep my tortoise warm outside at night

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Aden and Herbie

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Hi I am a first time tortoise owner with my one year old horsefeild tortoise herbie and I have got him a out door run to share with my guinea pig cause they like to follow each other around and play together like pushing a ball to one another but I don't know how to keep my little dude warm at night outside cause I live in bodmin and it gets pretty chilly outside so any suggestions. I have been thinking about taking him in at night but I don't want to cause too much stress from over handling him
 

Tom

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Hi I am a first time tortoise owner with my one year old horsefeild tortoise herbie and I have got him a out door run to share with my guinea pig cause they like to follow each other around and play together like pushing a ball to one another but I don't know how to keep my little dude warm at night outside cause I live in bodmin and it gets pretty chilly outside so any suggestions. I have been thinking about taking him in at night but I don't want to cause too much stress from over handling him
The two animals should not have access to each other. This is an accident waiting to happen.

Here is the correct care info for your tortoise, and there is an explanation with pictures about how to do a night box with temperature control.
 

Gillian M

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Welcome to the forum, @Aden and Herbie .

Please post images of your tortoises and their "enclosure" so as to enable the experts to help you more easily,
 

wellington

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Your tortoise does not want a friend or to play. That is you putting your human feelings on a tortoise that should not be with your G. Pig.
Please keep them apart always.
 

Aden and Herbie

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They only play together when they come out and most of the time they come out separately cause either the g pig is sleeping or the tortoise is sleeping but there is evidence that tortoises can create special bonds with not just their owner but with other pets like this couple in America had a sulcata and they for a while and then adopted a puppy they were inseparable
 

Aden and Herbie

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The two animals should not have access to each other. This is an accident waiting to happen.

Here is the correct care info for your tortoise, and there is an explanation with pictures about how to do a night box with temperature control.
What kind of accident they literally push a ball to one another and eat grass and clover beside each other
 

wellington

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That puppy will eventually chew on the tortoise. Those people think they are bonded. That's human thinking an putting human on tortoise. You can believe others that are misinformed as you are or you can listen to those on here that has many many years experience, knowledge, experimented, etc. Just hope one of the animals doesnt pay with its life before you get it figured out.

Keeping a tortoise warm outside is building it a heated house.
 

Aden and Herbie

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Your tortoise does not want a friend or to play. That is you putting your human feelings on a tortoise that should not be with your G. Pig.
Please keep them apart always.

That puppy will eventually chew on the tortoise. Those people think they are bonded. That's human thinking an putting human on tortoise. You can believe others that are misinformed as you are or you can listen to those on here that has many many years experience, knowledge, experimented, etc. Just hope one of the animals doesnt pay with its life before you get it figured out

That puppy will eventually chew on the tortoise. Those people think they are bonded. That's human thinking an putting human on tortoise. You can believe others that are misinformed as you are or you can listen to those on here that has many many years experience, knowledge, experimented, etc. Just hope one of the animals doesnt pay with its life before you get it figured out.

Keeping a tortoise warm outside is building it a heated house.
Yh but guinea pigs are extremely social animals and herbivores one of the only reasons they are getting paired in an outdoor enclosure is to prevent the guinea pig from being depressed cause the guinea pig is a boy so we can't get a girl cause babies everywhere and not a boy cause they might fight the guinea pig is happy when he sees the tortoise and the tortoise seems to be happy around the guinea pig and I don't want to separate the two of them outside or at playtime cause they might become depressed
 

Aden and Herbie

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Yh but guinea pigs are extremely social animals and herbivores one of the only reasons they are getting paired in an outdoor enclosure is to prevent the guinea pig from being depressed cause the guinea pig is a boy so we can't get a girl cause babies everywhere and not a boy cause they might fight the guinea pig is happy when he sees the tortoise and the tortoise seems to be happy around the guinea pig and I don't want to separate the two of them outside or at playtime cause they might become depressed
Plus the dog will probably be trained not to chew the tortoise shell people do that if they have dogs and tortoises
 

Aden and Herbie

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As an owner of a lab cross springer a staffie and two cats I have trained my dogs not to attack my tortoise and the cats arnt even bothered
 

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Definitely consider the advice being given, some of the above are very knowledgeable people. As a long-time cavy nerd, here's my input:

Some guinea pigs aren't big chewers, but if he discovers that the tortoise shell is a good source of calcium, it could get dangerous. You're not going to train a rodent to not chew. He has no way of knowing that he's hurting the tortoise once he starts, and it would likely happen in the wee hours of the morning when you're not there. A tortoise has no defense against a rodent chewing their shell.

Your pig is not going to get the social interaction that he needs with any other species - they have a very specific body language and vocalizations.

If the space is large enough, you can introduce a baby male. If your pig is still under two years, you can get them neutered and introduce a female or two (three is a good number for guinea pigs, in case one passes away or needs quarantined).

Both species would benefit from (separate) heated houses for night time.
 

Aden and Herbie

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Definitely consider the advice being given, some of the above are very knowledgeable people. As a long-time cavy nerd, here's my input:

Some guinea pigs aren't big chewers, but if he discovers that the tortoise shell is a good source of calcium, it could get dangerous. You're not going to train a rodent to not chew. He has no way of knowing that he's hurting the tortoise once he starts, and it would likely happen in the wee hours of the morning when you're not there. A tortoise has no defense against a rodent chewing their shell.

Your pig is not going to get the social interaction that he needs with any other species - they have a very specific body language and vocalizations.

If the space is large enough, you can introduce a baby male. If your pig is still under two years, you can get them neutered and introduce a female or two (three is a good number for guinea pigs, in case one passes away or needs quarantined).

Both species would benefit from (separate) heated houses for night time.
They have separated night housing as well as constant supper vision outside and inside
 

Aden and Herbie

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They have separated night housing as well as constant supper vision outside and inside
Plus my guinea pig is not very vocal and I have only observed positive body language when the 2 are together but as soon as the chewing starts I will separate immediately ok
 

method89

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Don't listen to these people!! It's not that they want what's best for both your animals. What experience do they have with YOUR animals. You very clearly know better than all of these people. You know so much that I'm surprised you came here in the first place!!

OR

How about you be quiet and listen to what advice these very experienced people are saying and consider that maybe, just maybe you are wrong. That the people offering you the advice have many more years around animals and perhaps have seen the aftermath of keeping 2 different species together. Just a thought.
 

Tom

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As an owner of a lab cross springer a staffie and two cats I have trained my dogs not to attack my tortoise and the cats arnt even bothered
You will learn the hard way that you are wrong about this, and your poor tortoise will pay the price.

I'm a career animal trainer. All I do all day every day is train animals. All different species. I'm also someone that has been keeping chelonians since 1979. I certainly do not know everything, but I do know some things. You are on a path to a disaster. Its something I've seen many times over many years. These are mistakes I have made myself. Dogs and tortoises simply do not mix. They should not be sharing space. The guinea pig is less of a risk, but still a risk. "Happy" is not a tortoise emotion. That is something you've made up in your own head. Please don't learn this lesson through your own experience. Enough of us have made this mistake and seen it made many times over. Your tortoise doesn't have to suffer.
 

wellington

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Yh but guinea pigs are extremely social animals and herbivores one of the only reasons they are getting paired in an outdoor enclosure is to prevent the guinea pig from being depressed cause the guinea pig is a boy so we can't get a girl cause babies everywhere and not a boy cause they might fight the guinea pig is happy when he sees the tortoise and the tortoise seems to be happy around the guinea pig and I don't want to separate the two of them outside or at playtime cause they might become depressed
If you would have done your research before getting the pig you would have known they need another of their kind as they do much better with a friend. Tortoises do not!!!
Now you not only made the mistake of not researching before getting the pig, you are not listening to the experienced on this forum that knows much more about tortoises then you and you are putting both your tort and pig at risk!!!
Get them separated before one gets very ill or dead. Get the pig a proper friend or rehome it. Or rehome the tort if you don't want to properly take care of it!
 

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I think that some new members have already been beaten up by idiots and bad advice from FACEBOOK etc and the answers they receive here might be taken as the same type of argumentative hate, etc.
We know it's not the same here. But I don't believe that some of them understand that.
To be honest, I saw this post early on and I remember just going on to the next post because I had nothing to say that I thought would be helpful at all. There was just too much wrong with it. I didn't even know where to begin.
Thank you to the more patient members. Your willingness to take time from your lives to attempt to help a stranger and their animals is admirable.
 
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ZEROPILOT

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Plus my guinea pig is not very vocal and I have only observed positive body language when the 2 are together but as soon as the chewing starts I will separate immediately ok
Everything that you've heard here is correct and continuing to keep these two animals together is wrong for many reasons.
 
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