# My tortoise almost drowned...



## aztortoisemullett (Sep 8, 2014)

I woke up this morning to flash flooding in my dry Arizona town, I instantly thought of my tortoise in her kiddie pool. I ran outside and she was completely submerged.

I grabbed her and brought her inside, she's alive and roaming but she's definitely lethargic, in not sure how long she waa under. I can't make it to a vet because all roads are blocked, is there anything I can do in the meantime


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## phebe121 (Sep 8, 2014)

Im sorry to.hear that i don't have any idea what to do i hope she is going to be alright i would wach her for a wile n when the roads vlear if shes not better get her to the vet


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## Alaskamike (Sep 8, 2014)

If she aspirated water the vet can't really fix that. But, you probably got her in time. Torts actually can float and swim , although they may never do it. They can also hold their breath a really long time.


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## tortdad (Sep 8, 2014)

Just keep it warm under a light. Do you have an indoor enclosure 


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)


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## AmRoKo (Sep 8, 2014)

Try holding her in a tilted position butt up/face lowered and lightly tap her on the back of her shell closer to her head a few times, it's sort of like burping a baby. Basically this is to try to make sure no water is stuck in her lungs. Keep her warm and watch her and if necessary take her too the vet. That's all the help I can give I'm not too experienced in this sort of problem, I hope she gets better.


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## mike taylor (Sep 8, 2014)

You need to drill holes in the side of your enclosure so this can't happen again . Sorry to hear this hope everything is ok . Just keep it warm you should be fine .


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## aztortoisemullett (Sep 8, 2014)

I put her into her in door enclosure and under her old heatlamp, I just poked her and she made her usual pissed off hissing sound so I think she is okay. God I hope so, worst feeling to walk up to her enclosure and see her like that.

There is no provision that could have prevented this from happening, I live in Arizona and we just got 6 inches of rain in two hours. We generally get 7 inches a YEAR. I had dozens of holes in my enclosure but I'm guessing it filled in a matter of minutes.


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## Abdulla6169 (Sep 8, 2014)

This is what @Yvonne G says in another thread:
"There's no telling if they have water in their lungs or not, as tortoises can hold their breath for a very long time. 

One way to get water out of a tortoise's lungs is to support the head so it isn't able to bounce around and get whip lash, and swing the tortoise quickly from over your head towards the ground (head towards the ground, of course)."
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/sulcata-babies-fell-in-pool-health-risks.80053/


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## aztortoisemullett (Sep 8, 2014)

AbdullaAli said:


> This is what @Yvonne G says in another thread:
> "There's no telling if they have water in their lungs or not, as tortoises can hold their breath for a very long time.
> 
> One way to get water out of a tortoise's lungs is to support the head so it isn't able to bounce around and get whip lash, and swing the tortoise quickly from over your head towards the ground (head towards the ground, of course)."
> http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/sulcata-babies-fell-in-pool-health-risks.80053/


Just did this for a few minutes, no water came out or anything, I hope I did it fast enough. Its been about 3 hours since she came out now.


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## leutseym (Sep 8, 2014)

I live in Mesa, Arizona and your right...we haven't had rain like this in a long, long time. They are declaring Arizona as a state of disaster. I hope and pray that all of our Arizona torts made it thru this flood.


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## immayo (Sep 8, 2014)

I hope your little one is alright 

Today was horrible, I'm in Mesa too. I was mad because I couldn't make it to work due to all the flooding. Turns out the roof collapsed at the store I was supposed to be working at anyway.. so crazy!


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## Carol S (Sep 8, 2014)

How scary. I am glad your tort is okay. Keep her warm and quiet so she can recover from the trauma.


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## ascott (Sep 9, 2014)

The tort should work through it aok..I would keep the tort indoors in the controlled environment for at least a couple of days and then when the weather has passed I would let the tort go back to the outdoor enclosure.....the best measure of preventative measure is;

www.noaa.com

Check it often and plan accordingly  it is a fav on my phone and checked regularly....


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## Yellow Turtle01 (Sep 9, 2014)

Wow, and I though Ohio got crazy rain ! I hope your tort is okay! Even if no water came out, she could still be holding her breath? If you listen closely, can you hear her breathing?


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## phebe121 (Sep 9, 2014)

Yes ohio weather is crazy


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## bouaboua (Sep 9, 2014)

is she OK now?


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## smarch (Sep 10, 2014)

AbdullaAli said:


> This is what @Yvonne G says in another thread:
> "There's no telling if they have water in their lungs or not, as tortoises can hold their breath for a very long time.
> 
> One way to get water out of a tortoise's lungs is to support the head so it isn't able to bounce around and get whip lash, and swing the tortoise quickly from over your head towards the ground (head towards the ground, of course)."
> http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/sulcata-babies-fell-in-pool-health-risks.80053/


 I was thinking this exact same thing because isn't it the same thing they do with newborn puppies and kittens that haven't started breathing to get any fluids out of the lungs?


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## Grady1968 (Sep 10, 2014)

That sucks feel so bad for it same happened with my tortise


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## Abdulla6169 (Sep 10, 2014)

smarch said:


> I was thinking this exact same thing because isn't it the same thing they do with newborn puppies and kittens that haven't started breathing to get any fluids out of the lungs?


I just thought of it because Yvonne said it and it would be a great thing to know in extreme emergencies...


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## smarch (Sep 10, 2014)

AbdullaAli said:


> I just thought of it because Yvonne said it and it would be a great thing to know in extreme emergencies...


 and now I know! I like to be prepared, we should have an 'everything you may need to know in case of emergency" thread, I always consider what could happen... I have 2 different emergency kits in my ar and its not enough to me. If there ever a problem on the road I can save lives though!


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## leigti (Sep 10, 2014)

I think a "tortoise/turtle first aid kit" would be a great thread, maybe a few of the experienced keepers could help us with that.


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