Reptile & Amphibian Forums

just wondering if anyone kept there turtles outside? how do you kept them outside over the winter? if so do you have any pictures of the enclosure?

thanks
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~*~.. Nikki ..~*~

Huntington (Long Island), New York

sorry, i'm not much of a photographer, but I hope you can get the idea.

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0.1.0 snapping turtle
0.1.0 painted turtle
0.1.0 ornate box turtle
0.1.0 Australian shepard
3.2.0 children
1.0.0 husband

Nikki,
I keep my Easterns outside year round. I live in Central VA, and my turtles were rescued from a construction site nearby.
I don't have any photos to show you, but they overwinter in a hole I dug in the ground and refilled with soil, peatmoss and leaves. I did this because the soil was really compacted, and the mixture is loose and allows them to go pretty deep if they need to. Once they've dug themselves in, I pile extra leaves on top. I'm popular with my neighbors because I end up raking their leaves for them in the fall.
The hole has sloped sides, so its more like a burrow, and is about 2 ft deep at the deepest point. I figured, better too deep than not deep enough.
The enclosure itself is as big as I could make it at the time: about 25x30 ft. It has a small pond, piles of rotting logs to forage or hide under, plenty of plants, shady and sunny spots, and as much diversity and interest as I could pack in there. I move a few things around each year, too, so they have 'new' things to explore.
Stephanie