Safe to leave tortoise out at night?

[TheWarTortoise]

I have an around 7" leopard tortoise and was wondering is it safe to leave him out at night in a heated night box. Night temperatures here are in the low 40s, so if I had something like a heat pad in a closed box, would he be ok?

Thanks.

 

[Yvonne G]

I go around every evening and make sure all my tortoises are inside their shelters, then I barricade the doors so the can't get out and critters can't get in. Until the night temperatures are above 60F I have night time heat in the shelters.

 

[JoesMum]

I'd bring him in

Heat pads aren't recommended for torts as torts like to dig down and electrocution is a real risk.

A properly heated and insulated shed would be OK

 

[Tom]

If you have a well insulated, well sealed box, and and you use the correct heating elements, and the box stays 80ish at night, then yes.

Normal heat pads should not be used for reptiles, and a heat pad alone will probably not be enough to keep the temperature up. You will also have to make sure your leopard is in the box and latched in every night, and then open the door in the morning.

Here are a couple of examples:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/another-night-box-thread.88966/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/double-door-night-box.129054/