I am totally confused??

[Pitcorthie]

Been into my local pet shop today looking at uvb lights and told the lady that it was for a tortoise.She then went on to ask what I was going to house the tortoise in.I have bought a indoor guinea pig cage.She said this is fine at this time of year but in the winter it will be no good because the tortoise will not be warm enough
I said there will be a basking light but she said what happens when you turn the light off at night.
She said I need a heat mat which should be put on the side of the enclosure but I won't be able to do this because it has plastic sides.
She said the tortoise will get too cold without one especially in Scotland.
She also said the tortoise doesn't have the sense to go under the basking light when he get's cold.
She then went on about a vivarium saying they are ideal as they keep the tortoise nice and warm.I said about the glass and them getting stressed and she said they will try and get out of a wooden box as well.

Do I need another source of heat? Have I missed something?

I thought it was the other types of tortoise like red foots that need the humidity and heat

Sharon

[Henry-flash]

Don't listen as usual its the petshops trying to make a quick buck!! And in the winter won't yourtort be in hibernation anyway, so it won't need heat then will it

[jess15]

Hi Sharon,
What breed is your tortoise and how old is he/she?
How big is the cage? Could you describe it for me?
Depending on the size, you should a be ok with a UVB combined heat bulb, but you could probably do with having a separate basking bulb as well.
Heat mats are not usually a good idea for tortoises, they're more designed for snakes etc.
Vivariums are not a good idea for torts, you're right, they can get very stressed and don't provide the right environment.
What room are you going to be keeping the enclosure in? You may be ok just keeping the room very warm, eg with a radiator at night.
Hope that helps,
Jess.

[Pitcorthie]

Hi Jess I haven't got a tortoise yet I am still researching them at the moment.I have bought a cage though which as I said is a guinea pig cage and it is 4ftlong by 2ft wide.It has a plastic tray on the bottom and a cage top.
I have bought a 60 watt basking light and I still need to get a UVB light.I will be keeping my tort in the lounge.

Thanks Peter I forgot he/she will be inhibernation?

So overall I suppose this is adequate heat?

Sharon

hi pitcorthie

do not listen to that pets shop lady

you will be hibernating during the winter so thats great for the tort

but if you are worried about temp drops before you hibernate, you could always use a thermostat with your basking light so if night time temps dropped you know you have a back up source of heat

ask one of the experienced owners what temp the tort could actually tolerate during the night

hope that helps a bit

linda

[Pitcorthie]

Thanks Linda the funny thing is she asked me if I had done any research and she told me to look at the ************ website which I just have and it says on there NOT to use vivariums and also not all tortoises need heat pads etc!
I think she should take her own advice and look on there!
She also had 3 hermann tortoises in there.

What temperature should they be kept at I have read the temp under the basking lamp should be 30-32c.
Will a 60 watt bulb be powerful to acheive this?

Also what temp should the rest of the enclosure be kept at?

Our house is a hot house and in the winter I always have the heat turned up to 22c.

Do the tortoises hibinate for different lenghts of time depending on how old they are?
If this is the case I will need to have adequate heating if he doesn't need to hibinate for the full 5 months.

Sorry there are so many questions I just want to make sure I know as much as I can so I know roughly what I am doing when I get one.

Thank you
Sharon

[LV426]

Not all of my tortoises hibernate and some that do don't always go down and so I end up with tortoises in my room year round. Since Seattle has only about 2 months of warm weather I am used to supplying external heat sources. I only use nighttime heat if the temps in my house are going to get below 70*F but with the redfoots I do supply more heat. A very simple way to do this is to buy a heat emittor. These can be ceramic or wire and just place it above their normal hide areas at night. This will help keep them warm. Alternately a very good way to use a heat mat without fear of burning either cage or tortoise is to get a red clay flower pot the size that your tortoise can use as a hide. Purchase a flexible heat mat the size of the pot so that it can wrap around the pot sides and top. Some heat mats have a sticky side that you peel the wax paper off of and then stick it to the cage, these work great for the pots because you can just stick it to the top and sides. This provides a warm hide for your tortoise and there is no danger of melting plastic cages or a burned tortoise. The heat stays above the tortoise and he can move out of the hide if too warm.

hi pitcorthie

what an unusual username

i am quite new to torts and would feel reluctant to answer all your questions in case i give incorrect advice

the more xperienced owners will come along and give you good advice i am sure

i use an all in one lamp a trex which is 100wat and i will be using an additional heat lamp with thermostat for when the trex is off during the night during the winter because my house is rather cool (we like it that way )
but the torts will still have a difference in night and day temps the additional lamp is to ensure they do not get to cold

i am keeping reds so mine will not hiberanate

whilst you r waiting for advice from others you could use the search to try and help answer your questions

linda

Just my humble opinion of course but I would not add an extra basking lamp to a uvb /heat combined in a small enclosure. They give out quite enough heat on their own. I would also make sure that if getting a horsfield tortoise that you use an enclosure that has a deep base as they like to burrow deeply. Too shallow and you will get scratching at corners etc

[Pitcorthie]

I went to another pet shop today to look at uvb lights and they had 4 Hermanns in a viv.Again I was told a viv is ideal and many people will recommend a tortoise table but with living in Scotland you need a viv.
The poor tortoises tank temp was 32c and they had nowhere to escape from the heat
The tortoises were from solvenia
I was also told you need heat pads with all types of tortoise and that you do not hibinate until they are 5-7 years old.
He then started to use scare tactics saying that someone bought a tortoise from him and put it in a tort table and it died very quickly because of the cold.
He also told me that a herman will live for 300 years
Why don't they get their facts straight if they want to sell these animals

Anyway the uvb light I have decided to go for will be this one
http://www.aquatics-online.co.uk/Z358538.asp I will get the 18" one.Will this be ok? my cage is 4ft by 2ft.

Sharon