So is the lowest temp for indoor enclosure (leopard tortoise) 75 or 80?

[CleoTheLeo]

I just bought my tortoise a new indoor enclosure. Shes been in it for a little less than a week. I made it out of one of those pop up greenhouses, its 4x8. It is really hard to keep heated. The lowest it gets in certain spots of the enclosure, like the outer edges, especially the "cooler, dry side" is 77-78 at night. To be on the safe side I'd say certain spots could even get 76, but I've never measured that with my temp gun or ambient thermostats. The cool, dry side reaches ambient temps of about 79-81 during the day. The other end, the humid hot end gets up to about 81. I have about 4 che along the length of the greenhouse and 2 are directly above her humid hide, so it is obviously alot hotter directly underneath them both at night and during the day. She has a basking spot that is about 97-104. The orchid bark reads lower than the rock I placed under it to test its temp. Shes not eating or moving alot unless I pick her up and start feeding her, then she'll eat, otherwise shes been sleeping through the day. I think she may be adjusting to the new enclosure but Im also worried it might be bc the temps are to low, so that is why I'm here asking you all! I attached a photo, its not the best, but just so you can have a rough idea of what it looks like.

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

There is no 'perfect recipe' for raising any animal. At 80F as a minimum the daily interruption to growth (provided all other parameters are met) will be less than if the minimum is 75F. I think that due to the variability in thermometers, the genetics of any particular leopard tortoise, and those other parameters, it might not be readily detectable in how the tortoise grows.

I get it, most people want to do 'best' for their pets, and that includes realizing they are not part of a 'home tortoise pet kit' and that each and every tortoise will be somewhat different, even among/clutch egg mates.

I use 78F as a minimum. I get good growth, could it be better? Possibly.

It might be better still at 82F - or that might be too high for an overnight low?

It sounds like you have a range of lower temps, maybe the tortoise by virtue of the choice it makes will indicate that 75F is too low, or that when over-night-ing in that spot they don't readily come out to eat. Maybe they will do great.

If part of the enclosure stay that little bit warmer, then have some sort of divider in the enclosure and in the evening place the tortoise in the warmer area, and remove the barrier each day. That is no less troubling than closing and opening a outside night house every day.

 

[CleoTheLeo]

There is no 'perfect recipe' for raising any animal. At 80F as a minimum the daily interruption to growth (provided all other parameters are met) will be less than if the minimum is 75F. I think that due to the variability in thermometers, the genetics of any particular leopard tortoise, and those other parameters, it might not be readily detectable in how the tortoise grows.

I get it, most people want to do 'best' for their pets, and that includes realizing they are not part of a 'home tortoise pet kit' and that each and every tortoise will be somewhat different, even among/clutch egg mates.

I use 78F as a minimum. I get good growth, could it be better? Possibly.

It might be better still at 82F - or that might be too high for an overnight low?

It sounds like you have a range of lower temps, maybe the tortoise by virtue of the choice it makes will indicate that 75F is too low, or that when over-night-ing in that spot they don't readily come out to eat. Maybe they will do great.

If part of the enclosure stay that little bit warmer, then have some sort of divider in the enclosure and in the evening place the tortoise in the warmer area, and remove the barrier each day. That is no less troubling than closing and opening a outside night house every day.

I get what your saying. Thank you for your help. One day she was pretty lively, as in I put out food and she eventually came over, and she had slept on the warmer side the night before. But she keeps going back to the slightly cooler side. What do you think about putting her in her humid hide for the night, it stays really warm and is big enough for her to turn around in and everything.

 

[Kapidolo Farms]

I get what your saying. Thank you for your help. One day she was pretty lively, as in I put out food and she eventually came over, and she had slept on the warmer side the night before. But she keeps going back to the slightly cooler side. What do you think about putting her in her humid hide for the night, it stays really warm and is big enough for her to turn around in and everything.

I think this is a try and see what happens kind of thing.

 

[Joma]

I am a total newbie at tortoises and I have a Greek not a Leopard, so please take this observation within that context. But I have noticed that it is not just the temperature that effects them, but also the quality of light. By this I don't mean length of daylight (winter VS summer) but rather cloudy VS sunny during the day. Yours is being housed in a greenhouse, so it would be is well tuned into the amount of cloud cover/direct sun on a particular day. I'm not sure where you live, but if you are currently experiencing more cloudier days, this may account for some of her behavior too? For those with more experience than me I would be interested to hear your ideas and observations on this, as I have wondered if others have noticed the same behavior from tortoises that are housed with more access to natural cycles.

 

[CleoTheLeo]

I am a total newbie at tortoises and I have a Greek not a Leopard, so please take this observation within that context. But I have noticed that it is not just the temperature that effects them, but also the quality of light. By this I don't mean length of daylight (winter VS summer) but rather cloudy VS sunny during the day. Yours is being housed in a greenhouse, so it would be is well tuned into the amount of cloud cover/direct sun on a particular day. I'm not sure where you live, but if you are currently experiencing more cloudier days, this may account for some of her behavior too? For those with more experience than me I would be interested to hear your ideas and observations on this, as I have wondered if others have noticed the same behavior from tortoises that are housed with more access to natural cycles.

That’s really interesting too. She’s housed inside but she is next to a big window so on sunny days it does warm up the greenhouse a degree or two and brightens up the room a lot more. I could see the extra warmth causing her to be more active. She hasn’t been in there long enough for me to notice a pattern, but that would be interesting.

 

[kmloughran]

We have a little "greenhouse" type enclosure for our leopard. We jut throw a blanket over the top of the house whenever the temps start dipping down, it keeps the heat in a little better. Hope this helps.