Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hey guys i have been thinking long in hard about getting a leopard tort. i live in el paso texas now which has a very warm and dry climate. i have read that humidity is a leopard torts worst enemy. the question is when i go back to houston would it be ok for my tort to just live indoors for the most part and never be outside. i know that there is not substitute for sunlight but was just wondering before i make a big mistake. i have seen people in dallas texas with leopards and they seem to do fine indoors. thanx guys!!!! please help

i have had a pardallis b for a few years in houston humidity.
she is given plenty of shade and she is without problem thus far. i have a friend who actually breeds both here in houston and houses them in a greenhouse during the winter. without saying it sounds like your being very cautious about the climate change keep an eye on em!

wow so it is possible to keep them out side just aslong as they have plenty of shade? i was just scared since i had read humidity was so bad for them and houston is very humid. but thank you so much for your help. now its on to selecting my little beauties!
thank you much!

I live in Houston and decided to bypass leopards on account of the humidity after speaking with my vet, a veteran tortoise keeper himself, about it. He has personally had troubles with them, along with patients of his, but has met some people who have had luck with them (he mentioned some folks who live by the airport having luck). It's your choice and you may have luck with it, but I have instead decided on elongated tortoises and possibly some emys, which should thrive in the Houston area.

Dr. White?

If you were to buy hatchlings and raised them in your specific climate, you won't have any problems. If you buy an older animal from say Arizona, and had it shipped to Florida, Texas, Loiusiana, etc. you will run into problems. What I've seen done is leaving them outside in the humidity for a few hours, and then being brought back in for the majority of the day. The outside time is gradually lengthened in time depending on the animal, with it eventually being left outside 24/7. Allowing the lungs and respiratory system to compensate for the up in humidity.

Yes, I was talking about Dr. White. That is an interesting idea about adaption of older torts to more humid environments. And getting babies and raising them in the Houston area would be a huge advantage for you. Not saying it can't be done, just wanted to let you know what I found through my research and maybe prevent any problems.

when i was interested in getting a lepard tort. i read up on them a little and i dont remember exactly where i read it but someware it said that the pardallis pardallis are more sensitive to the humidity than the pardallis babcocki. i would be cautious about puting a hatchling outside because of hatchlings sensitive nature. in any case i agree with what was earlier mentioned, introducing them to the humidity in an aclimate and gradual way being a smart idea. yearlings are from my experiance a little more forgiving and show more symptoms of a problem that is occoring so you can make the neccesary adjustments. good luck lepard torts are bad ass!

thanks a bunch for the help guys. this would be my first ever tort and i wanna do it right. i hope i dont get beaten up for this question but what if i just kept the leopard in doors at all times? like i said in my earlier post i know nothing beats natural sunlight but i thought id ask. would the humidity affect them indoors. if u guys dont think it will workout do u guys have any suggestions for allternatives. im cool with the size they get but dont want any bigger. and i like their price. im very much new to torts iv had more expirence with snakes. thanks so much again for the help.

mathew

I'm in the same boat you are, have snake experience and am getting into torts, and like I mentioned I'll be getting some Elongated Tortoises here soon. If you kept them indoors there shouldn't be an issue with humidity as your AC will take out a lot of moisture, and whatever heat lamp you have would dry things out even more. Other torts that I can think of that would do well in Houston, not get too big and about the same price range are red foots, elongated tortoises, burmese mountain tortoises. There may be others. I like the idea of working with less common animals and those that are threatened in the wild, which is why I chose elongata and possibly some emys. Good luck.

thank u much brother iv posted this question in diff forums and no responce. so thank you very much.

I HAVE BEEN KEEPING/BREEDING LEOPARDS IN HOUSTON FOR 10 YRS. THEY ARE INDOORS IN WINTER, AND OUTDOORS THE REST OF THE YEAR. MOST DO OK BUT I DO BRING THEM IN AT NIGHT DURING SUMMER ON RAINY OR EXTREMELY HUMID NIGHTS FOR SAFETY. TORTS RAISED IN THIS CLIMATE FAIR PRETTY WELL, BUT ONES THAT I HAVE ACQUIRED AS SUBADULTS FROM DRIER CLIMATES SEEM TO HAVE RESPIRATORY PROBLEMS. I STRONGLY SUGGEST STARTING WITH A YOUNG TORTOISE RAISED LOCALLY. AND REMEMBER, YOUNG LEOPARDS ALMOST ALWAYS TOLERATE HUMIDITY WELL BUT ADULTS CAN QUICKLY SUCCOMB TO IT'S EFFECTS.