Bob is a 15 month old who is doing well. I want to bring him out in the sun occasionally . Ive built a enclosure about 6ft across, dried grass and much clover, water dish, shaded areas and I put a log cave with water dripping on it. the temp during day runs 75-90+ depending on cloud cover. Anything amiss with this set up.
Outdoors time.
- Thread starter Oldbro
- Start date
Golden Greek Tortoise 567
Well-Known Member
What type of tortoise?
Sulcata.
Minority2
Well-Known Member
Time is not the main issue. If everything from the temperature to enclosure is correct the tortoise should have no problem staying however long you want them to, again, provided that everything is correct.
1. Outdoor enclosure needs to be protected from possible predators. This means affixing a top to prevent other animals from breaking in. Having a secured gate is not enough. The enclosure has to be escape proof.
2. Outdoor enclosure requires everything an indoor enclosure has. Multiple hides, shade areas, humidity, water, and food.
3, Outdoor temperatures need to be tolerable for the tortoise.
4. Temporary outdoor visits should always be supervised.
It doesn't take all that long to soak up uv(B) rays outside in the sun. Half an hour to an hour several times a week would be sufficient. Once a sulcata reaches about 10+ inches they should start staying outside permanently.
What size is the tortoise? They grow at vastly different rates so the age doesn't tell us much. 6 feet sounds small for a typical 1000-1500 gram 15 month old, but if yours is smaller, it might be okay.
Your enclosure sounds good, but pictures would help us to answer your question better.
A log cave doesn't sound like enough shade for summer time temps. You need some high over head shade. Like from a canopy, umbrella, large bush, or a tree. On hot summer days, I like to have at least half the enclosure covered in deep shade.
