Reptile & Amphibian Forums

i have my turts in an outside habitat..i live in IL..can they stay out in the winter?

Well it depends upon what kind of turtles you have. many species CAN hibernate some need a deep layer of soil under their pond. You will need to know how deep the water is and how much stuff you have on the bottom (if these are water turtles)and how deep the freeze is in your area (your state DNR can tell you this)

If you have land turtles they may need just a deep hole filled with leaves and mulch.

But if your animals are more tropical in nature they may die from the cold.

The best thing to do is to tell us what kind of turtles you have and how they are set up.

they are a res and a paint..they are in a baby pool 12" deep..dirt around the outside..this help?

They cannot hibernate outside in something that shallow. You should bring them in.

Katrina

It is not possible to hibernate them in 12 inches of water. If you get any kind of a frost line it is very unlikely that they would survive in such a shallow depth. Bring them in.