I KEEP MY SULCATA IN THE FRIDGE AT NIGHT TIME

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Posted by JamesMM on January 14, 2001 at 09:15:47:

In Reply to: Re: Sulcata temp requirements/Ownership rights posted by Annie Lancaster-TortoiseAid on January 13, 2001 at 14:35:47:

Annie,
I am so happy to hear of your experiences. I feel that accomlishing as close to the same elements as these torts have in the wild will produce the healthiest torts. The problem is finding info on their native environment. Does anyone know where exactly they are from. I have only found info like "Southern Sahara" or "South of the Sahara."

Leave a thermometer in direct sunlight even in 60 degree weather it can heat up to well over 100 degrees. Imagine how hot these torts get with desert sand under their belly that has heated all day, plus sunlight from above. Yet people still insist on keeping them around 80 degrees. I agree very much w/ your diagnosis of pampering.

The biggest problem that you run into w/ these and any pets, is when their keepers give them human emotions and senses. Then their tortoise is "sad" because he's too cold. Or "happy" because he's not too hot. Don't get me wrong, a scratch on the head or a favorite food is obviously "enjoyed" by them. But these are cold blooded animals that we try to supply with luxuries that would make a warm blooded human comfortable.

Then some say, no, I gave him a choice in his enclosure. He has temps from 100 to 75 degrees. Which I agree is the best option since we don't have the correct answers as to their care.

But our biggest mistake may be deciding that since my tortoise Henry decides to sit under a basking lamp that will bring him to 80 degrees instead of one that will bring him up to 100 degrees, that he should be kept at 80 degrees and not forced to withstand more extreme temps. The same holds true for night time lows. Just because he prefers it doesn't mean it is what is best. We all know that they prefer and will become addicted to iceberg lettuce. But we know to keep it from them. Until we know what their exact conditions are like in the wild, we won't know how to "as close to perfeclty" as you can care for them. What if they accomplish perfect growth rates and great health from extreme highs and lows, which from what I know of desert species they experience.

Just some thoughts.

James

(The fridge thing isn't true)

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: Annie, : I am so happy to hear of your experiences. I feel that accomlishing as close to the same elements as these torts have in the wild will produce the healthiest torts. The problem is finding info on their native environment. Does anyone know where exactly they are from. I have only found info like "Southern Sahara" or "South of the Sahara." : Leave a thermometer in direct sunlight even in 60 degree weather it can heat up to well over 100 degrees. Imagine how hot these torts get with desert sand under their belly that has heated all day, plus sunlight from above. Yet people still insist on keeping them around 80 degrees. I agree very much w/ your diagnosis of pampering. : The biggest problem that you run into w/ these and any pets, is when their keepers give them human emotions and senses. Then their tortoise is "sad" because he's too cold. Or "happy" because he's not too hot. Don't get me wrong, a scratch on the head or a favorite food is obviously "enjoyed" by them. But these are cold blooded animals that we try to supply with luxuries that would make a warm blooded human comfortable. : Then some say, no, I gave him a choice in his enclosure. He has temps from 100 to 75 degrees. Which I agree is the best option since we don't have the correct answers as to their care. : But our biggest mistake may be deciding that since my tortoise Henry decides to sit under a basking lamp that will bring him to 80 degrees instead of one that will bring him up to 100 degrees, that he should be kept at 80 degrees and not forced to withstand more extreme temps. The same holds true for night time lows. Just because he prefers it doesn't mean it is what is best. We all know that they prefer and will become addicted to iceberg lettuce. But we know to keep it from them. Until we know what their exact conditions are like in the wild, we won't know how to "as close to perfeclty" as you can care for them. What if they accomplish perfect growth rates and great health from extreme highs and lows, which from what I know of desert species they experience. : Just some thoughts. : James : (The fridge thing isn't true)

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