Thank you for the comment! Aw it’s too bad the owners couldn’t be found but it sounds like you will be taking excellent care of him! What is his name? :)

@@dragonexotics3150 Yes, I did the best I could to locate the owners, my assumption is he somehow got out of his enclosure. However, animals abandonment is a real problem too. Hard to say. But, yes he is living in the enclosure where I keep my Flemish giant bunny and they have been beautiful cohabitating all summer. His name is Timothy, after the book Timothy, Notes of an Abject Reptile by Verlyn Klinkenborg (a beautiful novel). Thanks again!

@@morbidswither3051 That’s adorable and I love the name!!! I will have to give that book a read sometime!

Thank you! It sounds like you will be making an awesome winter house when the time comes! I am always happy to help if you have any questions!

That is a good point too! In the sulcata’s native regions the nights get surprisingly cold. In order to survive in the wild they will make deep deep burrows which help keep them warm enough to survive. However as humans we usually* don’t let them burrow as deep as they need to and thus need to provide heat. Sincy doesn’t burrow at all which is why I give her a heated house. In some cases they can withstand cold nights without a proper burrow but will develop a mild and temporary respiratory infection or cold that usually resolves when it gets warmer. (Sometimes they require treatment).

@@dragonexotics3150 got it , thks 👍👍 great video by the way.

That is very true! I know quite a few people who have converted their garage into a temporary Sulcata enclosure for the winter.

I have noticed that mine has lightened up slightly over the years. I find it interesting how they change over time! :) heated cables in the floor sounds like a great plan! I bet it will be an amazing building when it’s done! I will be replacing 1 of the halogen bulbs with a ceramic heat emitter fixed to the ceiling this winter since it’s supposed to be an extra cold winter this year. Good luck on your building! I would love updates!

It depends on how low the temperatures in your area are but for my winter house I use two 50watt mini halogen bulbs as basking spots and one ceramic heat bulb in the center which is usually 150watts to 200watts. Hope that helps!

Thank you for the comment! Sounds like you have a wonderful Sulcata. Is there anyway for you to bring him indoors for the winter to ensure he stays warm?

Hi, I’m more that happy to help,, I can adopted (my name is Karla)

Thanks Karla for interesting "Kiwi" the tortoise. For now by learning more everything possible to give him a good home with us.

It can be pretty scary when reptiles and chelonians slow down and get sick due to the cold. Im glad you were able to help her get back to her normal healthy self!

You are right to be paranoid. I use a thermostat with the ceramic heat bulb so if it ever overheats it immediately turns off. To ease my anxiety I also pull on the fixture beforehand to make sure it won’t fall. As an extra precaution when I first set all the lamps up I leave them on for a few hours to see how hot it gets underneath. It never gets over 100F so as long as the fixtures stay where they are then there shouldn’t be any issues. As long as you set it up carefully and check the heat beforehand then you don’t need to be worried. You can always add a Bluetooth thermometer in there so it gives you an alarm if it ever goes under or over the desired temp.

It depends on your location. For this one I found someone on Facebook marketplace who made dog/farm animal/tortoise houses. If you look around for dog houses there are some available online as well just be sure to check the size and material before buying :)

4ft x 4ft x 4ft (tallest point) I believe those are the dimensions of the house buts it’s been a while since I measured it

They try to burrow behind and underneath it but never inside.

I use the Zoomed Reptitherm habitat heater and I use a BN-link thermostat with it. I will be posting an updated video on this winter enclosure hopefully soon so people can see how it held up and what changes I am thinking about making.

@@dragonexotics3150 thank you!

Where are you located? I'm in Venice Fl. It doesn't drop past 65 at night - usually

@@68angiegirl Northern Az. Some nights can get to 15F. The heat pad I referenced above only has one size available for tortoises but the dimensions are 18” x 18”. However there are other brands you can look into as well

I think it is 4ft L x 6ft W x 4ft H

He hasn’t shown any interest in biting or messing with the wires but I am working on posting an update video very soon in case anyone wants to know what I changed.

Ok thanks gl love then

Thanks! That’s a great idea! I hadn’t thought of it at the time. I may consider redoing it next winter, though as of now my current set up is pretty warm. I did finish the insulation for the most part since the video. I hadn’t realized this was the old winter housing video when reading the comment. Sorry about that.

I would of never guessed lol but I’m not the one who built it. We had it custom made. Thanks for letting me know that :) luckily it hasn’t caused an issue.

Those lights are for the day time. He has a ceramic heat bulb for the night time that I believe I included in the updated version of this video. I do agree that they need an area to cool down but the problem is that those bulbs don’t produce enough heat to warm up the whole house, just those areas. For example, with just 2 lights his water was still freezing at night in the corner in the winter. I upgraded to a 200watt ceramic heat bulb in the center in addition to his heat mat to keep him warm in the winter. Thanks for the comment. Ps. I explain the hazards of the red lights in the video :)

That specific one was about $250 but it depends on who you buy it from or if you make it yourself

@@dragonexotics3150 Thanks for responding so quick! Appreciate it!

To see if the state your in is more up north than mine

@@oscarcastillo8627 Northern AZ. Temperature ranges from hot summers (90-100F) to snowy winters (doesn’t usually drop below 15F)

@@dragonexotics3150 do you keep the tortoise in the enclosure for all winter or do you only keep it in there for a little while???

@@oscarcastillo8627 Honestly it depends on the size and age of the tortoise as well as the weather. He will be 4 years old this year and is roughly 8lbs. However, I’m not sure I would want to risk putting a smaller tortoise in there and giving him the option to roam when he wants. Smaller/younger tortoises need a more consistently warm temperature because they aren’t as hardy as the adults or larger species. In this case, if it’s cold outside but still sunny then I will leave the door open so if he wants to go out he can but if he wants to stay inside where it’s warm then he has that option as well. Because I added the insulation flaps and heat lights/mat it helps keep it decently warm in the inside even with the door open. Just a tip- I will be replacing the middle mini halogen bulb fixture with a ceramic heat emitter to try and make it a bit warmer this winter. The halogen bulbs are great for energy and warmth but you need a lot of them to warm up the entire house properly.

@@dragonexotics3150 thank you for the tips

Lol yes