Leopard tortoise 3yrs old

[Zio874]

Food morning everyome,

I have a leopard tortoise for the last 3yrs is a female, I've noticed that in the last few weeks she wakes up around 1/2am (I use a red basking light for the 24H whit a Digital redeem whit different settings of temperature from 22° C during the night to pick of 28°C around midday), basking until I wake up, once I give her fresh food or she go to sleep (9/10am) or she basking untill midday and after go to sleep. Can I do something to have her sleeping during the night? Is base on temperature? UV light goes on at 6am and goes off at 5pm. Thanks

 

[Lyn W]

It may be the red light, torts generally need darkness to sleep.
A CHE on a thermostat gives controlled heat but no light so may be your better option.

(don't rely on your tort being female. I was told by a vet that my rescued leopard was female but turned out to be male and very proudly showed me so when he was anout4/5 years old)

If you post pics of your enclosure members can advise on if there's anything else that could be affecting her.

 

[Zio874]

Thank you for your reply,

She always had a red light basking, but you find me agree regarding, I've ordered already a ceramic 100W bulb, is on the way, is strange to me that she always slept until 5/6 am and be "active" till late afternoon and she change in a short period of time, I've try to increase the average temperature over the 24H by 1.5/2°C. Might be just the season.

Thanks again

 

[Lyn W]

Thank you for your reply,

She always had a red light basking, but you find me agree regarding, I've ordered already a ceramic 100W bulb, is on the way, is strange to me that she always slept until 5/6 am and be "active" till late afternoon and she change in a short period of time, I've try to increase the average temperature over the 24H by 1.5/2°C. Might be just the season.

Thanks again

You'll also need a thermostat for the che which will switch it on and off and stop it getting too hot.

The red light can also confuse torts and make them think parts of their enclosure is red food so they are not generally recommended.

I do think your enclosure is too small for your tort now, he needs more space to wander so you really need to be looking to change to something about 4 x 6 feet but as torts are wandering creatures - the bigger the better.

 

[Blackdog1714]

27C should be your overnight temp and 30 your daytime with a basking of 38C. 27C is too cold for a leopard. My Leopards enclosure never gets under 28C day or night

 

[Zio874]

The thermostat is digital and the temperature is set differently over the day, once reach the temperature it will switch of and maintain the temperature, the enclosure is 6ft. X 4, when she is awake the glass is open and she can move free around the house. Still this will not change the sleeping behaviours especially after 3yrs. But thanks anyway for the tips.

Best

 

[Zio874]

Thanks for the reply,

I know that as usual the temperature is much more higher for desertic tortoise, but from the moment that we leave in England and she is free to move around the house (when is sunny out side too), we worked on the temperature from day one. We move in 3 years from 30/28 to 28/25 during the cold season and 25/22 during the summer, this help a lot avoiding cold and sickness.

 

[Lyn W]

The thermostat is digital and the temperature is set differently over the day, once reach the temperature it will switch of and maintain the temperature, the enclosure is 6ft. X 4, when she is awake the glass is open and she can move free around the house. Still this will not change the sleeping behaviours especially after 3yrs. But thanks anyway for the tips.

Best

If you already have a thermostat thats great.
The picture must be decieving the enclosure looks a lot smaller than 6 x 4 feet.
Also torts shouldn't wander around the house even supervised - the floor temp is too cold especially for leopards and for reasons like this.

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[wellington]

A few things you need to change. The red bulb needs to go. The water dish needs to go, use a clay saucer and the enclosure is much too small unless it's at least 4 feet long and 3-4 feet wide. That enclosure is good for a hatching upto 1 or 2 years.
The temp day and night should be 80F with a basking of 95-100F. The lights should be on at least 12-14 hours.

 

[Zio874]

Thank you for the reply,

Just a question about the water dish, why I should opt for a smaller container?

Thanks again