# my tortoise wont drink ANY water



## nicole r (Jun 10, 2015)

i got a russian tortoise about 3 weeks ago and he never drinks water!! i give him tortoise pellets, cucumber (not a lot very few actually and not every day), and spring mix but he never drinks his water. i started soaking him last week and even during his soaks his head will never go near the water. i also have a trip on the 26th and wont be back till the 14th and my friend is taking care of it and she wont be able to soak him. will he be okay? is there anything i can do to help him start drinking?


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## leigti (Jun 10, 2015)

I have rarely ever seen my Russian tortoise drink. Soak your tortoise every two or three days. Keep a large terra-cotta plant saucer in the enclosure just in case he wants to drink. Why can't your friend soak your tortoise? Can't you just show her how?


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## DesertGirl12 (Jun 10, 2015)

Nicole, I don't have a russian; however, I hadn't seen one of my CDT yearlings drink ever in his soaks or water dish for almost 2 weeks. Being a newbie, I was watching them every minute and really stressing because it was getting warm here. I was with the understanding that my little one was still getting moisture through the cloaca. (Somewhere I read that on this forum.) I chose not to worry too much yet. So with this I continued to soak every other day until I finally saw Baby drink. I hope that I am correct in saying that your tort is still getting hydrated to a degree due to soaks and will most likely drink soon. My other question would be, do you see the tort urinate? Mine often urinate while eating or shortly thereafter and I have to assume (maybe foolishly) that if they are releasing fluids they must have enough that they are eliminating. Now I see mine drinking out of their dish often but I still soak them because they enjoy it so much. They just sprawl out and chill.

I also had to show someone how to soak my torts while on a trip away - and the temporary "mom" enjoyed it thoroughly. It only takes a short time to do. Try teaching your friend what to do and you will be able to relax more on your trip. Best of luck to you. 

This forum is awesome by the way for all these things that happen along the way. I love it!


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## nicole r (Jun 10, 2015)

DesertGirl12 said:


> Nicole, I don't have a russian; however, I hadn't seen one of my CDT yearlings drink ever in his soaks or water dish for almost 2 weeks. Being a newbie, I was watching them every minute and really stressing because it was getting warm here. I was with the understanding that my little one was still getting moisture through the cloaca. (Somewhere I read that on this forum.) I chose not to worry too much yet. So with this I continued to soak every other day until I finally saw Baby drink. I hope that I am correct in saying that your tort is still getting hydrated to a degree due to soaks and will most likely drink soon. My other question would be, do you see the tort urinate? Mine often urinate while eating or shortly thereafter and I have to assume (maybe foolishly) that if they are releasing fluids they must have enough that they are eliminating. Now I see mine drinking out of their dish often but I still soak them because they enjoy it so much. They just sprawl out and chill.
> 
> I also had to show someone how to soak my torts while on a trip away - and the temporary "mom" enjoyed it thoroughly. It only takes a short time to do. Try teaching your friend what to do and you will be able to relax more on your trip. Best of luck to you.
> 
> This forum is awesome by the way for all these things that happen along the way. I love it!


i do see him urinate quite a few times he does seem to urinate normally !! so i know thats a good thing  just a bit worried since he never actually sticks his head in to drink. also i think i might show my friend how to soak my tortoise so i dont get to worried, i just dont want him to be a lot of work for her. hopefully ill get to see my tortoise drink soon  at least i know he's hydrated as he is urinating and the urates look normal. thank you !!


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## nicole r (Jun 10, 2015)

leigti said:


> I have rarely ever seen my Russian tortoise drink. Soak your tortoise every two or three days. Keep a large terra-cotta plant saucer in the enclosure just in case he wants to drink. Why can't your friend soak your tortoise? Can't you just show her how?


i do soak him every two to three days. and ive been a bit shy to tell her to soak him (its actually my moms friend so shes a bit older) and i dont want him to be a lot of work for her as i know she already has tons of work to do. i guess ill probably tell her so he'll be okay and i wont get worried


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## Merrick (Jun 10, 2015)

Tortoises don't necessarily need to drink water as long as they are soked they absorb water but that dosen't mean they don't in fact that is the way they get the most water it is just absorbstion works too


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## nicole r (Jun 10, 2015)

Merrick said:


> Tortoises don't necessarily need to drink water as long as they are soked they absorb water but that dosen't mean they don't in fact that is the way they get the most water it is just absorbstion works too


okay, thats good  now i atleast know he wont get dehydrated  thank you !


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## Tidgy's Dad (Jun 11, 2015)

Also, cucumber is contains mostly water, and many other foods do too.
If he's eating cucumber, lettuce or washed veggies with water still on, he'll be getting all the water he needs.
But try and keep up the soaks.


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## nicole r (Jun 11, 2015)

Tidgy's Dad said:


> Also, cucumber is contains mostly water, and many other foods do too.
> If he's eating cucumber, lettuce or washed veggies with water still on, he'll be getting all the water he needs.
> But try and keep up the soaks.


okay good !  thank you!!


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## Tom (Jun 11, 2015)

What sort of water bowl are you using? Pet stores sell people the entirely wrong type and many tortoises won't drink from them.

Terra cotta saucers sunk into the substrate work best. If you have that then I wouldn't worry too much. Your tortoise can drink when he wants. Two weeks without water won't hurt a russian that is eating spring mix and cucumber. If the tortoise went without water on a regular basis for a long time, then it could be a problem.


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## nicole r (Jun 11, 2015)

Tom said:


> What sort of water bowl are you using? Pet stores sell people the entirely wrong type and many tortoises won't drink from them.
> 
> Terra cotta saucers sunk into the substrate work best. If you have that then I wouldn't worry too much. Your tortoise can drink when he wants. Two weeks without water won't hurt a russian that is eating spring mix and cucumber. If the tortoise went without water on a regular basis for a long time, then it could be a problem.


i have no idea what the water bowl is called but its pretty big. my other tortoise used to love it and would sit in it all the time. i actually have seen him drink but only around once for about 3 seconds, and it wasnt from that water bowl. other than that ive never seen him.ill try the terra cotta saucers ! thank you !!  do you have any idea where i can get those ?


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## Tom (Jun 11, 2015)

nicole r said:


> i have no idea what the water bowl is called but its pretty big. my other tortoise used to love it and would sit in it all the time. i actually have seen him drink but only around once for about 3 seconds, and it wasnt from that water bowl. other than that ive never seen him.ill try the terra cotta saucers ! thank you !!  do you have any idea where i can get those ?



Any hardware store. I get mine at Lowes.


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## Boyu (Oct 12, 2020)

nicole r said:


> i got a russian tortoise about 3 weeks ago and he never drinks water!! i give him tortoise pellets, cucumber (not a lot very few actually and not every day), and spring mix but he never drinks his water. i started soaking him last week and even during his soaks his head will never go near the water. i also have a trip on the 26th and wont be back till the 14th and my friend is taking care of it and she wont be able to soak him. will he be okay? is there anything i can do to help him start drinking?



your russian tortoise can drink from their bum sometimes when soaking so soak him/her everyday i do this to my tortoise


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