General Care Discussion :: How hot is too hot?

[alexis_906]

I live in Arizona and right now it is getting to be 100+ outside. I really would like to put my turtle outside, even if it is just during the day. But I am worried that with the temps outside the turtle will get too hot, even with shade. He would be outside in either a 50+ gallon rubbermaid or a small kiddie pool. We haven't worked out the details yet. I don't want to get something that isn't going to work for him. And with the dog out back it is hard to do anything also. Well back to my main concern, is it too hot outside for the turtle? Should he only be out there a short time or could he go all day?

(*This is for my older turtle, not the baby)

[octpusgirl8]

With temperatures that hot i would think that it would be really hard to keep the water cool enough. I was putting ice cubes in my baby pool yesterday to keep the temperature down and it was only 75 outside! A stock tank with a plug for easy draining might be a good option, that way when the water gets warm you could drain some and add cooler water. Also, with a stock tank, you could easily put a piece of plywood over it to cover it, and it would be taller than a kiddie pool so the dog would be less tempted to jump in. It might take some experimenting to figure out all the details

[DavidY]

Wow, is it 100 in the shade? That's way too hot for these turtles. They would need to have access to a cooler area to cool down. Maybe if you brought him out early in the morning for a couple of hours while it's cooler and the sun isn't too strong, he could get some fresh air, exercise and adequate sunlight.

[alexis_906]

Unfortunatly here when summer gets here (fully) it doesn't cool down by much at night so the mornings are hot from the start. Normally the rule for shade is that it is about 10 degrees cooler then in the sun.

I was thinking that if I went with the big 100gal rubbermaid that I could put about half in the shade and half in the sun. But I don't know how fast the water would warm up.

[DavidY]

The rubbermaid stock tanks are black and will heat up pretty quickly in the sun. Also the desert sun is probably too strong for the RES. That would be a pretty good environment for a tortoise though.

[octpusgirl8]

Ooh i didn't think about how hot that black rubber would get. What about an awning over it made from that fabric that nurseries use to shade plants? That would allow some sunlight through but not a lot.

[AZCAT98]

I'm also in AZ and my turtles have been fine for the last 3 summers.

Even had one escape in July, found him about a month later a few blocks away and he was okay. Not sure how he stayed cool or what he ate, but he survived.

[grey goose]

It's a tough call for turts in a captive enviorment. If you have a very strong pump that moves the water quickly, you can give it a try. But there would have to be mostly shade across the tank, with a small spot exposed for basking.

[alexis_906]

AZCAT- Are your turtles out side?

[AZCAT98]

Yes they are. I have a 500 gal pond (in full sun) that's 3' deep in it's deepest part.

[DavidY]

There you go, Alexis! If you can build something like that, you're all set.

That's a nice pond, AZCAT! Got any pictures? You could stock some bass in there and do some fishin! I would love to have something like that. So how warm does the water get in full sun?

[AZCAT98]

I'll work on some pics. Not sure how hot it get's...don't have a thermometer (forgive me). Have plenty of fish in there already....large Comets and Molly's.

[steve]

It's definitely not recommended to keep them in a confined area in those kind of temperatures. The heat just adds to the stress. I would only let them out (supervised) for around 30 minutes.

[DavidY]

Yea a thermometer would be nice so you could make sure the temps stay reasonable. Do you have to add water to make up for evaporation? And if so how much? It must stay in the 70's if you have comets living in there since they are cold water fish, right? When the water gets too warm (upper 80's) it can't hold as much oxygen and the fish are usually the first to die. So as long as they're healthy it's probably ok. But you don't just want your animals to stay alive, you want them to be healthy and comfortable. Also, I'm really curious if the pond is able to stay at a safe temperature and if so how. Get a pool thermometer and just stick it in there a foot or two and see what the temperature is.

[AZCAT98]

I'll pick up a thermometer just in case. I've had the pond for 3 years now and haven't lost a fish or a turtle, so I think the temp and oxygen levels are okay. I have a dedicated water line that goes to the pond, so whenever the water level drops I just fill it up.