# swimming tort!



## luieluiehus (Jul 28, 2008)

This week I took my sulcata tort, Luie to a little creek down the road from my house. Ive heard some people say that torts cant swim but clearly that is wrong! it took im sometime to get the idea but after a while he was swiming all by himself! i was very excited it was awesome!
sorry these arent the greatest pictures


----------



## Crazy1 (Jul 28, 2008)

What great pics. And we have had some tell us their tort swims. Great to see him on his own. But generally I believe without swimming lessons they sink not swim.


----------



## wayne.bob (Jul 28, 2008)

VERY COOL!! i always thought some torts could swim. now theres proof. haha


----------



## Isa (Jul 28, 2008)

Very nice pics!

Luie seems to be a good swimmer, it is amazing to see a tortoise swim


----------



## ZippyButter (Jul 28, 2008)

Very Cool Pics. As long as the session is supervised by us human in case of an emergency. Thanks for sharing.

Minh


----------



## Lil' Tortie (Jul 28, 2008)

Cute!!!


----------



## TortGirl (Jul 28, 2008)

Great pics! What a great teacher you must be. Looks like the tortie enjoyed swimming.


----------



## big_red_tortoise (Jul 29, 2008)

looks like fun!


----------



## catfish (Jul 29, 2008)

Too cool! I have a creek near my house, but being in Oklahoma .. . .it's red. Lovely red clay all over the state making the water DIRTY! So no creek swimming for my russian


----------



## ArkansasKelly (Jul 29, 2008)

I LOVE it! I would let my guys swim in our creek, but they would die of frostbite first. LOL

ARKelly


----------



## JustAnja (Jul 29, 2008)

I have pics on a disk somewhere of someone's redfoot adult that would dive into their above ground pool off of the deck and swim across the pool. It would do this repeatedly. lol I also have some pics of a LARGE adult female Leopard Tortoise swimming in the yard pond in her enclosure. Its really cute.


----------



## Redfootedboxturtles (Jul 29, 2008)

Yes tortoises can swim, they will almost always float. But it can really stress them out a lot. Tortoises aren't like dogs or humans they deal with stress a lot different. Reptiles in general can easily stress out and die suddenly. Just a warning incase anyone thinks that tortoises enjoy swimming like an aquatic or semi-aquatic turtle does. IMO its border line negligent to dunk your tortoise in any body of water. 

Im not a mean person. You have a really cool tortosie. I just have to make sure people know that this inst somthing people should do, at all. 

One thing they do like however is wading. witch means water up to the middle part of their shell where they can walk around with out having to lift their head.


----------



## Yvonne G (Jul 29, 2008)

Redfootedboxturtles said:


> Yes tortoises can swim, they will almost always float. But it can really stress them out a lot.



To add another word of caution to RFBT's caution, I've NEVER seen a desert tortoise that can float. They usually sink like a stone. I've taken in three at different times over the years that had walked right off the coping of the pool into the water and sunk to the bottom. They all had pnuemonia. In my opinion, they have no depth perception and don't realize the edge of the pool is actually over water. And yet I've heard from other folks who say their tortoise strictly avoids the pool, as if he knows its dangerous.

Burmese mountain and forest tortoises are frequently found in water, but they are usually walking along the bottom, not floating. They just hold their breath until they reach the side.

Yvonne


----------



## luieluiehus (Jul 29, 2008)

I know thoes things.
thanks for being so concerned but I am really careful and i do not leave him for long periods of time 
and i wouldnt do anything to hurt my Luie. if i thought he was in stress then i wouldnt have done it.
in fact he really seemed enjoy to get out of the summer heat



Redfootedboxturtles said:


> Yes tortoises can swim, they will almost always float. But it can really stress them out a lot. Tortoises aren't like dogs or humans they deal with stress a lot different. Reptiles in general can easily stress out and die suddenly. Just a warning incase anyone thinks that tortoises enjoy swimming like an aquatic or semi-aquatic turtle does. IMO its border line negligent to dunk your tortoise in any body of water.
> 
> Im not a mean person. You have a really cool tortosie. I just have to make sure people know that this inst somthing people should do, at all.
> 
> One thing they do like however is wading. witch means water up to the middle part of their shell where they can walk around with out having to lift their head.


----------



## spikethebest (Jul 29, 2008)

my desert tortoises would walk along the pool edge, look over the side, and keep walking around the edge. i think some torts know better and others dont.


----------



## drgnfly2265 (Jul 30, 2008)

Well at least he knows how to swim now. Just in case he might wander into deep water, he knows what to do to get out 

_______________________________________________________

Jamie

1 Sulcata (Bowser)

www.myspace.com/bowsertortoise


----------



## diggertort (Aug 7, 2008)

i would have thought they would sink like a rock.thats amazing


----------

