Postby Richard.C » Sun Mar 22, 2015 10:35 pm
i find it best to try and keep them warm the first winter,theres no real benefit in shutting them down fully,sonr of mine,even with heat available bugger off to cool end and shut down regardless,winters are cool here un southern australia and often ambients dropping is enough ,i must admit though i fo use large temp gradients so with the warm end,the cool end isnt really affected so usually no issue if they choose to stay down cool end
its the in between temps you want to try and avoid,warm but bot warm enough to stay fully active ir cool but not cool enough to fully shut down,juvies are at risk of developing infections under these types of conditions,sone still eat but its not warm enough for food to digest in time,which can also be a concern if animal spends some time active,and some times staying cool,what i refer to as in betweeners that cant decide what to do
with my tropical babies,northerns,i dont do anything and the ambient drop in there cage shuts them all down even with 24/7 heating,they go and curl up for around 5 months,the adulys stay reasonably active and bang in middle of that long 5 month period when babies are tucked away is actually when the adults do the majority of there mating
but yes,its often suggested to keep them warm and active over the first winter,just to help rule out any any risks with not being able to keep temps at a safe range