Tortoise-world Forum

Temp has gone down dramatically he is boxEd shall I bring him in help plesse

Hi Clare where do you have the box? If it is a brick built outbuilding you will need to be adding background heat, if this isn't possible you will have to bring inside the house as the temperatures are dropping everywhere. i use a fridge to hibernate so am not the best person hopefully Sue will be on soon as she uses the box method.

(02-03-2012 10:32 PM)Wendy Wrote: [ -> ]Hi Clare where do you have the box? If it is a brick built outbuilding you will need to be adding background heat, if this isn't possible you will have to bring inside the house as the temperatures are dropping everywhere. i use a fridge to hibernate so am not the best person hopefully Sue will be on soon as she uses the box method.

He is in a shed but secure and free from frost and damp, I'm scared to bring him in also in case temps increase to over 10 degrees,thank hour Wendy for your time and help

He is in a shed but secure and free from frost and damp, I'm scared to bring him in also in case temps increase to over 10 degrees,thank hour Wendy for your time and help
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Hi Claire
A shed is not a good place to hibernate to be honest unless it is brick built, they don't hold temps well at all, getting too warm in teh sun and freezing when temps drop below zero. It's a bit like lofts and attics, they can be lethal if no background heat is available. Mine are in a stone building but these past few days the emergency heat has kicked in. You say, he is free from frost, are you sure - do you have a thermometer in there? Being cold blooded, it does not matter how much substrate is around him, he will drop to the surrounding temps. The first worry is blindness as the lens of the eye can freeze beyond repair. Damp is not so much of a worry as they don't want to be completely dry or they will lose more weight than they should.
If you bring him in, you will need to put him in a very cold room, otherwise you may have to keep him awake until spring.
Hope this helps ;

Hi Sue/Wendy

Thank-you both for your time and help.

Yes I have a temp for inside and outside, I've moved him now to a very cold room and is now showing 5.2.
So thankful for your advice. Its such a nerve racking experience when they go into hibernation. I just worry constantly.
Thank-you again ladies ...
Hope you are feeling better now Sue, not sure if you got my reply to my email, because the first one I sent came back saying undelivered but I think because the attachments were too large so sent again.
Take care, expecially in this weather.

Claire

(02-05-2012 10:39 AM)ClaireBarry Wrote: [ -> ]Hi Sue/Wendy

Thank-you both for your time and help.

Yes I have a temp for inside and outside, I've moved him now to a very cold room and is now showing 5.2.
So thankful for your advice. Its such a nerve racking experience when they go into hibernation. I just worry constantly.
Thank-you again ladies ...
Hope you are feeling better now Sue, not sure if you got my reply to my email, because the first one I sent came back saying undelivered but I think because the attachments were too large so sent again.
Take care, expecially in this weather.

Claire

Oh much better thanks Claire, I didn't get the post, but still waiting to hear from Shirl in Jersey on the other matter. I downsize all pics when I get them as they take ages to open too. That's probably what was happening. If you could downsize before sending that would help a bit too.