Mostly underground?

Joew

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Hi! I’m considering adopting a desert tortoise. A consideration is if we will ever see him. I know they burrow and hibernate, but was reading they spend like 95% of the time underground. So if we had one, would he only be out and about once in awhile? Thank you!
 

Yvonne G

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My desert tortoises come out about 9 or 10a and sit in the sun until they're warmed up clear through. Then they wander around the yard eating and searching for food. After eating they sit in the sun some more, then go back into their shelter. Come early evening about an hour before dark, they come out and do it all again. Sometimes instead of going into the shelter they'll sit under a bush. I get quite a bit of enjoyment watching my tortoises. They spend a lot of time out for me to see them. Some of them even get tame enough to come to me looking for hand-outs.
 
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Tom

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Hi! I’m considering adopting a desert tortoise. A consideration is if we will ever see him. I know they burrow and hibernate, but was reading they spend like 95% of the time underground. So if we had one, would he only be out and about once in awhile? Thank you!
This is highly variable. Depends on the weather, the season, the enclosure, the sex of the tortoise, what you are feeding them, and the individual tortoise's personality. Most DTs are very outgoing and interested in their world. You'll see the tortoise a lot in most cases, except during hibernation of course.

On another note, they should not be hibernated outside in a burrow. Death is likely due to weather extremes and a number of other potential problems in a shallow burrow or above ground outside. They should be hibernated indoors in cool thermostatically controlled conditions. We can help explain all of that when the time comes at the end of the year.
 

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