i need to make a decision.

[ColleenT]

So from what i have read, Having one male and one female three-toed each, can stress out the female bc she is the only one.

So i have looked into finding another female. BUT- My indoor enclosure is not really big enough for 3, IMO. I currently have a 40 gallon breeder tank with the sides covered. We are in the process of building an outdoor enclosure when the weather is nice enough, which would be large enough for 3 adults if we keep them outdoors and let them hibernate outside.

I live in Eastern PA. It gets very cold. i am not sure if i can hibernate them, and if i can do it right.

Do you think i should get a second female, or should i leave them as just a couple?

 

[lisa127]

Can you separate them? I also have a male and female and they live in separate enclosures gecause she is intimidated by him.

 

[ColleenT]

not really. I don't have much room for any more enclosures especially not that size. Also- she does not seem to be stressed out. She comes out and walks around and is eating ok.

 

[wellington]

The 40 gallon isn't really big enough for two let alone three. If you can't make another indoor enclosure, then hibernate them in the winter but do it in a controlled way if your temps get too cold for them to hibernate outside. The two though need to be sped aged or a much larger home then a 40

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

not really. I don't have much room for any more enclosures especially not that size. Also- she does not seem to be stressed out. She comes out and walks around and is eating ok.

Aren't there 3toed box turtles in Ohio ? And don't they live under the leave litter in the woods ? And my daughter lives in Ohio and she says they get a lot of snow in the winter . Just thought I would ask : good luck !

 

[ColleenT]

The 40 gallon isn't really big enough for two let alone three. If you can't make another indoor enclosure, then hibernate them in the winter but do it in a controlled way if your temps get too cold for them to hibernate outside. The two though need to be sped aged or a much larger home then a 40

Sped aged?

 

[ColleenT]

Aren't there 3toed box turtles in Ohio ? And don't they live under the leave litter in the woods ? And my daughter lives in Ohio and she says they get a lot of snow in the winter . Just thought I would ask : good luck !

i am not in Ohio. i am in PA. And no, Three toeds are not this far north.

 

[lisa127]

Aren't there 3toed box turtles in Ohio ? And don't they live under the leave litter in the woods ? And my daughter lives in Ohio and she says they get a lot of snow in the winter . Just thought I would ask : good luck !

The eastern box turtle is native to ohio and pa.

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

Sped aged?

I think that was an autocorrect for 'separated'.

 

[ColleenT]

The 40 gallon isn't really big enough for two let alone three. If you can't make another indoor enclosure, then hibernate them in the winter but do it in a controlled way if your temps get too cold for them to hibernate outside. The two though need to be sped aged or a much larger home then a 40

Never said i would put 3 in the 40. What i said was that i need to know if i can safely hibernate them in the outdoor enclosure. if so, i would get another female. If i cannot hibernate them safely in PA, then i would def not get another.

 

[wellington]

I think that was an autocorrect for 'separated'.

I didn't even notice that was in my post. LOL. I thought it was just a response and their auto correct did it. But yes, that's what it was suppose to say. Thanks

 

[wellington]

Never said i would put 3 in the 40. What i said was that i need to know if i can safely hibernate them in the outdoor enclosure. if so, i would get another female. If i cannot hibernate them safely in PA, then i would def not get another.

I do understand what you said. You also said you really didn't have room to seperate the two you have. Unless you meant you didn't have room to seperate them if you were to get the third. However, if you want the third, you could hibernate them like a lot of people do which is in a controlled area like an old frig, garage, etc.

 

[ColleenT]

my garage is attatched to the house and still gets as cold as it is outside. maybe 2 degrees warmer. So not sure i would trust that either. The ground might be warmer than the garage, even if i had dirt in a large enclosure in the garage. I don't know. i am hopeful that i could hibernate them outside, b/c then all of them can live in a much larger enclosure. Or i could keep them all outside for most of the year and find a way to allow them to hibernate in a container in the garage that would allow them to stay just warm enough. I could use a heat pad under part of the rubbermaid enclosure in the garage if that is something that would work. ( it might dry them out, tho. )

As it is right now, my female seems fine. but idk when mating season is. i don't really want to get a second female unless the male is a real Pita.

 

[Bducks16]

my garage is attatched to the house and still gets as cold as it is outside. maybe 2 degrees warmer. So not sure i would trust that either. The ground might be warmer than the garage, even if i had dirt in a large enclosure in the garage. I don't know. i am hopeful that i could hibernate them outside, b/c then all of them can live in a much larger enclosure. Or i could keep them all outside for most of the year and find a way to allow them to hibernate in a container in the garage that would allow them to stay just warm enough. I could use a heat pad under part of the rubbermaid enclosure in the garage if that is something that would work. ( it might dry them out, tho. )

As it is right now, my female seems fine. but idk when mating season is. i don't really want to get a second female unless the male is a real Pita.

I've always liked the controlled environment of putting them in a plastic container with a lid and leaving them in the refrigerator for 4-5 months out of the year. If you don't want them in your refrigerator in the kitchen or don't have another one those mini fridges are pretty cheap and work well. Especially if you need to save space.

 

[Eric Phillips]

my garage is attatched to the house and still gets as cold as it is outside. maybe 2 degrees warmer. So not sure i would trust that either. The ground might be warmer than the garage, even if i had dirt in a large enclosure in the garage. I don't know. i am hopeful that i could hibernate them outside, b/c then all of them can live in a much larger enclosure. Or i could keep them all outside for most of the year and find a way to allow them to hibernate in a container in the garage that would allow them to stay just warm enough. I could use a heat pad under part of the rubbermaid enclosure in the garage if that is something that would work. ( it might dry them out, tho. )

As it is right now, my female seems fine. but idk when mating season is. i don't really want to get a second female unless the male is a real Pita.

Hello Colleen, I live in Ohio and I hibernate my 3 toeds outside. I built a 3 ft x 3 ft log cabin with an accessible pitched roof for water drainage. All materials I had laying around. I then dug below out about 3 ft down and replaced the hard clay dirt with loose topsoil, peat moss, leaf litter, eastern pine needles, and mixed in just about a quarter of the original clay. When October hit I place them in the box and fill the inside to the top with more leaves and pine needles. I cover the entrance with a board to where I only leave enough room for them to get out and large animals can't get in. Then I take a full bag of raked leaves and cover the whole cabin. A lot of planning and work to ensure their safety. Next week temps look to stay in mid 60s for a few weeks, I may take to front Board off just depends. I personally wouldn't worry about getting another female as long as neither show a lot of aggression with each other. You don't have the space and setting them up in an outside enclosure is another month or so away. If you plan on keeping them outside this this year but don't have a lot of room or hides then I would consider getting another female. But again if they aren't causing problems with each other I wouldn't worry about it. Just my opinion. I did refrigerate my turtles last year with a small dorm frig. Bit of a pain to keep moisture right but once I figured it out it worked fine in a controlled environment. Either way it can be done with 3 toeds in PA.

 

[ColleenT]

Thanks So much. Eric. I appreciate it. i am planning to have a few hides in the outdoor, i even purchased a sectiion of hollow log for them to use as a hide. Both can easily fit inside with room to spare. i purchased another half log to use as the top part of a den. i plan to get a bunch of Hostas and other plants for them as well. i will look into making them a hibernation den. i guess i better rent that small bobcat for digging. I don't think i'll be able to dig 3 ft without a lot of exertion. i want to go at least a foot everywhere else to put the sides of the enclosure deep enough they won't dig out.

 

[ColleenT]

I've always liked the controlled environment of putting them in a plastic container with a lid and leaving them in the refrigerator for 4-5 months out of the year. If you don't want them in your refrigerator in the kitchen or don't have another one those mini fridges are pretty cheap and work well. Especially if you need to save space.

Thanks for the idea. So what do you do, Just take the turtle and place it into a container like a gladware? then just stick it in the fridge? The turtles don't freak out?

 

[Bducks16]

Thanks for the idea. So what do you do, Just take the turtle and place it into a container like a gladware? then just stick it in the fridge? The turtles don't freak out?

Disregard what I said about using your fridge you keep your food in. Don't want to risk salmonella contamination.

What I do is stop feeding them 3 weeks before hibernation. The last 2 weeks before hibernation I turn off all there lights and move them to a cool part of the house in a plastic tub and cover them in substrate to prepare them to slow down and get ready to go to sleep. In those last 2 weeks I get the fridge ready. I do 2 tests. The first test I make sure the fridge is running between 38 and 42 degrees. Once I establish that my second test is filling in the mass inside the fridge with a couple two liter bottles filled with water. Filling that mass will change the temperature inside the fridge. I shoot for 40 degrees and make adjustments. +/- 2 degrees fluctuation from 40 degrees is ok no more than that. I use a plastic tub with a lid just big enough for the turtle to turn around in if need be and a substrate just deep enough to burry himself. I use sphagnum peat moss for this. I also use a shallow tray filled with water with pieces of sponge in it for humidity. I go for 50-60% humidity. When it's time to put the turtle in the container they are completely slowed down not much movement. Make sure there are breather holes in the lid. Turtles breathe very shallow and don't use much oxygen during hibernation but opening the fridge door for a minute a couple times a week will be fine for allowing fresh oxygen inside. You can also use a aquarium air pump. Plug the pump in and run the hose inside. The seal on the door will seal it back up. Also use another peice of hose for exhaust. I've done both ways. Both work. Depends how you want to do it. If you do use a air pump don't rely on it for oxygen still open the door just incase. Also if you put the fridge in the garage and the garage is below 50 degrees you could freeze the fridge inside. Have the fridge in a place 50 or higher. When it's time to wake them up I do this slowly. Move them back into their enclosure still inside there tub and turn on their lights. They will begin to warm up and move around. That's when I put them in a nice warm long soak. I weigh them as well before and after and keep records. Hope that gave you a little bit of insight. Pretty simple. I should mention my box turtles stay inside. I take them outside during the summer for a few hours but they live inside. I don't have to hibernate them but I choose to just to keep things more natural for them. I do this between November through March. It cuts cost down and In between the hibernation is when I change bulbs and freshen up the enclosure. I'm not sure if there's a health benefit to hibernating at all that's just how I chose to do it.

 

[ColleenT]

thanks so much for the explanation. it sounds pretty tricky until you know what you are doing. i def don't have room in my kitchen fridge, but not sure if the small college size fridge would be big enough. I think i am going to dig a hibernation den when we make the outdoor, and that way i'll have it ready and they can stay outside all year long. My hubby can make a cave for above the den and i'll have 2 other large hides as well.

 

[mark1]

hello ,my name is mark , I've read the forum for awhile and never posted .......lots of good info on the board .....I figured i'd post some of my experiences on hibernating my turtles , maybe it'd be helpful added to the rest of the info....... .. I live in northern ohio , the easterns in my yard always hibernate in the same spot , a south facing sunny spot in front of a deck .....every august I just loosen the soil in about an 8'x3' area , down about 12"-18" deep (about 10 turtle use it ) . i throw a pile of grass clippings on the loosened area in September , when the nights get cold , they start burying themselves in it , they actually like sunning themselves on it when the days get cool , decomposing grass clippings give off heat ......... in October I start throwing leaves on top , by mid November they don't come out anymore ...I then pile it up under about 3 feet of leaves ..... make sure you pick a south facing spot that gets lots of sun and doesn't flood ........... if i have any turtles that aren't heavy enough , or I have doubts about their condition I dig them out on the first really cold day and put them in the fridge so I can keep an eye on them ....... the really young ones I don't hibernate for the first two seasons , so they get some size on them as quick as possible ..... the pic below is a fridge for hibernating anything I get a problem with ....... the water setup is for my wood turtles , didn't need it this year , but I keep it going in case , I seen one walking in the pond the other day , it was like 10 degrees out ........ if I have to keep any easterns in the fridge , I do similar to what bducks 16 said .......... I think the fridge is a very safe way to hibernate them , it's more consistent than outdoors , you don't get the extremes , and you can check on them .... just make sure to keep them damp and dark , don't bother them too much , in a container with good ventilation ........ I was told once not to keep fruits or vegetables in the fridge with the turtle as they give of ethylene gas , not sure if it's true , but something to think about .