Outdoor encl - how much sun?

[Twinmom2012]

I live in Chicago & I am planning on building a tort enclosure for my guys. I'm undecided on placement. My yard faces east, so I get great morning sun. About half my yard (starting around 1-2 pm) is shaded once the sun begins to pass my house. Is it better to keep them in full sun & provide shaded areas with plants or hides or is it Better they get half day sun (morning sun & afternoon shade)? Regardless they will have hides, plants & a mini pond, but I just don't know what would be the ideal spot.

Any help would be great! Ty.

 

[jaizei]

Really is up to you, either could work. If you go with full sun and opt to provide all of the shade, you just have to make sure it's an effective refuge from the sun. A hide in full sun may not be cool enough. Plants may not provide deep enough shade. You might have to use shade cloth a few feet above the ground and then the plants/hides below that.

 

[Twinmom2012]

So is partial sun better? If it's 90 in the afternoon in the shade, rather than in the sun - with a hide - I assume that is better than full sun?

Which is good because the placement of where I want to put the enclosure is more shaded.

 

[wellington]

I would put the enclosure in as much sun as possible and build the shade. It can't be done the other way around

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

I think it really depends on how hot it gets in full sun. Deep shade is also quite hard to build - the air under a bush in full sun isn't going to be nearly as cool as the air under a bush under the shadow of your house. If you have very hot summers, you'll want deep shade. If you can have part full sun and part shade, that to me would be ideal.

 

[Levi the Leopard]

I really like the option of morning and early afternoon sun with shade the rest of the day. Obviously, areas of both sun and shade all day long is ideal but if I had to choose (and I have had to choose before) I choose early sun. This let's the tort warm up and bask and I've seen them more active during the hottest part of the day when they are in shade.

 

[wellington]

If your anywhere close to Chicago, even on a 90 degree day, there is usually a wind. If it's a larger tort that will eventually live outside summer and winter, in a heated shed of course, you will want as much sun as possible. Also being in mostly sun, helps to be able to put them out longer in the fall and earlier in the spring. I am in Chicago and it's much easier to keep them cool then it is to bring in the sun

 

[Robber]

If your anywhere close to Chicago, even on a 90 degree day, there is usually a wind. If it's a larger tort that will eventually live outside summer and winter, in a heated shed of course, you will want as much sun as possible. Also being in mostly sun, helps to be able to put them out longer in the fall and earlier in the spring. I am in Chicago and it's much easier to keep them cool then it is to bring in the sun

I agree(as another Midwesterner). While Heather is correct about the early day sun being best, it will limit how much you can leave them out in the spring/fall if there is no afternoon sun. I assume we're talking about a leopard here, given your profile picture.

I wish my pen got the sun a bit earlier than it does(around 10AM) so I would be able to put them out more mornings before going to work, but it was the best compromise. As it sits on the West side of the house, it gets sun from roughly 10(shaded by house before) to 5(sun goes behind big trees in back of yard), always with at least 50% of the area shaded by fence or a variety of greenery.

 

[spud's_mum]

The other option is to build something that you can move. I did this with Spud. That way we could chase the sun haha

 

[JoesMum]

Morning sun is good. Torts have to bask to start the day. If it gets very hot later in the day, having the enclosure go into shade would also be helpful

 

[Twinmom2012]

It is for 2 leopards, 1 juvi sulcata & a hermann's. It's going to be a temporary "playpen" since I know the sully will need a much bigger run down the road. I do want to do ponds tho, which is why I can't do an outdoor tort table (love the idea tho). Ok, tomorrow I will watch the sun & pick the sunniest spot. We have a small- medium tree in back which gets the most sun (that location) so perhaps I will build it around that??....

 

[wellington]

The different tort species should not be mixed and should not share an enclosure, even if it's at different times.

 

[Millerlite]

From my experience and observations over the years early sun into afternoon is good. Most my tortoises retreat during the hottest parts of day. If it's still 90 In the shade tho. Tbats plenty hot enough and they wouldn't need the sun or probably wouldn't even use it if it's that hot . really up too you tho. I'm all day sun def. Need to build shade. You might also find your tortoises hiding afternoon .

Side note. Plants too. Found Plants don't like all day sun. If you plan to grow stuff in the enclosure