Habitat - Outdoor :: pond temp over winter - how low can they stand? optimum temp

[amylawton]

i have 800 litre pond with pump filter i have a heater running in there also. im collecting leaves for their sleeping cave and they have shelves they sleep on around the heater. and a large slab of wood they bask on covers about quarter of their pond. im feeding them well. not sure on age but they the size of a dvd cover.

winter about to hit and i have to decide in or out for winter.

long story short, how cold can the pond get without harming them?? and whats the "death zone" temp? obviously i want to avoid that.

do i put a lamp out for them? or isnt it necessary if they hibernating?

im a little nervous, they were a rescue and outside in summer only, i just cant bring myself to put them back in their tank which seems cruel after the pond.

[coreyvht]

dont leave them outside unless to have you captivr turtle die easaly from hyernation i woud say take them in i wouldnt risk the deaths

[steve]

It's been awhile since I went over hibernation because I generally don't recommend it.

From previous information... as long as the pond doesn't completely freeze, you should be OK. The surface can freeze, though a portion should be open for some oxygen exchange. Have these turtle hibernated before?

The pond should be at least a couple feet deep and about 2,000 gallons. You should not feed them prior to hibernation and their appetites should decrease. You don't need a lamp, do you currently use one outside?

The death zone temp varies dues to the age/size of the turtle, but it's generally not cold enough for actual hibernation but cold enough to inhibit metabolism.

I'd keep reading up, I'm sure people with actual experience will be more helpful. One group that I can quickly think of is TurtleRescueLongIsland@yahoogroups.com

[vear]

Hmm.. it's 800 liters not gallons right? Someone correct me if I'm wrong but I think that pond would completely freeze in the winter. Where do you live? How cold are your winter temperatures? I personally would bring the turtles inside.

[amylawton]

i live in on the top of the south island of new zealand. summer we get up to 27 degrees C and we get about a month of frosts in winter(-2C) at worst. our low temp in day inwinter would be 11 degrees.

the water is moving, a small fountain continously flows as well as the pump/filter. there is a heater in their "cave" underwater and a large slab of wood covers about 1/4 of the surface.

i dont know their history, they were a rescue from a teen who moved out of home and couldnt afford bulbs and new filter gear. must admit i knew nothing when i took them on at the end of winter last year but ive done my best to research them.

the guy at our local petshop says his friend used to hibernate his turtles in my town and they hibernate out of water and to put grass clippings around edge of pond and they will hibernate in there. ?????????

there is a woman in a more southern town than mine which frosts way harder who apparantly hiibernates 15 of them outside but i cant seem to track her down online.

i just dont want to kill them, long story short.

no i dont use bulbs outside at moment as the sun has been shining hard, we live in the official sunshine city of NZ so we have had plenty of natural heat and they love to bask. the temp is just start to drop and the sun dropping early and i have to decide. my indoor tank is 120 litre and i dont want to put them back in there it seems so small.

[steve]

I've come across hibernation stories that are different from what's considered "normal". I have even less information on that, other than it might not be true hibernation, but just a different state.

[amylawton]

Okay ive set up there tank and cage inside ready for the cold weather. i freaked out at the last minute and chickened out.

Just dont want to risk it. Hopefully they handle the tank which is a 1/8 the size of the pond.

Appreciate the input. Until i talk to someone in my hometown who actually does hibernate themselves (not a cousin or a friend) i wont be doing it.

[steve]

When it's done outdoors, the substrate will be fairly important. For those indoors, I've heard that some were simply put into a dry tank

[amylawton]

Yay ive met online a wonderful woman who has a turtle rescue centre in a town near me but colder. She has close to 50 turtles in her care. There are a lot of big RES up for sale and being given away in NZ, people only seem to like the babies.

She hibernates hers successfully so im following her advice , changing the water in pond and using barleystraw in the pond for them to burrow into. Feeding up for the next month then stopping.

Feeling much more confident now.