23-05-2012, 08:45 PM | #21 |
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I now bring Dotty in at night. I would much prefer to leave her out but after Lisa had her tortoises stolen I just couldn't sleep at night knowing Dotty was all alone in the garden. Neither of us are happy about it but I think it is for the best.
Last edited by Levi; 23-05-2012 at 09:46 PM. |
23-05-2012, 10:02 PM | #22 | |
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23-05-2012, 10:59 PM | #23 |
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Mine all go into greenhouses at night so the frost isn't an issue for me.
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24-05-2012, 12:01 AM | #24 |
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TBH, don't feel disheartened. Pretty much everything you were told is inaccurate. I've had about 50 tortoise/ turtle eggs laid this year, every single one in an indoor enclosure. (males kept with females as I've found this helps with the fertility of the eggs somewhat ). *A female is looking for heat and a spot to lay, once they're in the mood I doubt they give a rats about being indoors. On that point, if my tortoises had been out 24/7 at this time of year, this year, I doubt I'd have had any eggs and some pretty miserable tortoises. Go by the weather not the calendar. I put mine out for the first time this year yesterday. Wild med tortoises would have *been up weeks, months ago but thats no reason to put mine outdoors because I can't replicate the weather they're having in my garden over here. I can by keeping them indoors.*
Security is becoming a big factor for me in bringing animals in overnight. More so than the need for them to remain in one place. They just seem to take indoors/outdoors as an extension of their home range. It doesn't throw them every morning when I put them out. They head straight for where they know the sun will hit in a few minutes. It's when utterly implausable and easily refuteable statements are spewed out like this that I get *wound up. It seems your preacher has pieced themselves together a skewed version of some pretty basic husbandry issues and techniques into some nightmare scenario. Its about time people realised that tortoises are pretty much much dependent on heat and the last few summers we've had have been devoid of heat. The "outside at all costs" *brigade don't seem to understand that constant low temperatures, year after year are impacting the tortoise into a long slow decline. *Not enough body mass gained, low immunity, little by little that'll build up to something massive. I can provide better temperatures, better UVB exposure indoors than most British summer days. So carry on doing what you want to do, I think your insticts are spot on. Last edited by Kirkie; 24-05-2012 at 12:04 AM. |
24-05-2012, 12:16 AM | #25 |
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Thanks Kirkie, means a lot!
I do my best by my tortoises. I only have three so a lot of my time is devoted to my little trio! I do understand that everyone has different ways of doing things and not everyone likes the same idea lol With the laying thing....the majority of pics i have seen on here of laying females have taken place indoors! The amount of things that they came up with, that can wrong with a tortoise was astonishing!! If everyone was as worried and hell-bent on the things that CAN go wrong then no-one would keep the amount of tortoises they do! I have to say i do feel a lot better about things. Its weird how i dont personally know people on here but you have made me feel a heck of a lot better! Thanks to each and evryone one of you! Much love!
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24-05-2012, 12:23 AM | #26 |
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Another one for the collection, one of my Hermanns laying on an indoor nest site the other week.
Had another girl lay in that spot last night. After spending the day pacing round outdoors digging test holes. Hmmmm. |
24-05-2012, 07:32 AM | #27 |
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It was so bad last summer that mine were only out overnight on 4 nights. Other days when they were put out when the sun came out it was really cold when the sun went away again and the torts buried themselves or hid in their pots and didn't come out again so they were better off inside. 3 years ago we had a good week at the end of May and the rest of the summer was wet. 2 years ago we had a great month, the whole of June was hot then rain for the rest of summer. 1 year ago we had an unusually hot April then cold and wet for the rest of summer. This year we've had a hot 2 weeks in March and a hot few days just now but going by recent years that could mean a cold wet summer
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24-05-2012, 09:18 AM | #28 | |
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24-05-2012, 10:32 AM | #29 | |
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24-05-2012, 12:20 PM | #30 | |
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