My Testudo Graeca Ibera is awake

lacrime

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Hello everyone,

I was out in the garden today and found my Bicirik was out of his hiding spot. His head was out when I spotted him, eyes open but closing every once in a while like he awakened from, well, sleep. I wanted to get a video but my moving around while trying to get my phone seems to have irritated him a little, his head is in his shell. He’s hardly moving now.

These days he temp is around 16-22C during the day and goes down to around 3C when coldest I think. The weather is relatively warm these days though, like it’s spring but I’m not sure about the nights.

Any advice as to what to do?
 

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lacrime

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Guys, I’d really like some advice. I checked my Bicirik today, and he’s at the entrance of his hiding place, not moving, eyes closed. The weather is 18C currently, no sun out, just cloudy. I don’t know what to do. He was out yesterday too, but I think he went back inside his spot.

His not moving or opening his eyes is really worrying me. I’m going blind here and could use any help or opinion.
 

Bee62

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Guys, I’d really like some advice. I checked my Bicirik today, and he’s at the entrance of his hiding place, not moving, eyes closed. The weather is 18C currently, no sun out, just cloudy. I don’t know what to do. He was out yesterday too, but I think he went back inside his spot.

His not moving or opening his eyes is really worrying me. I’m going blind here and could use any help or opinion.
Hi, your day temps are too high to carry on with brumating and night temps are too low to be fully awake. When will it be warmer outside where you live ? In a week or two ?
Take your tortoise in your house and give him a place with heat bulb and UVB bulb. When he is fully awake give him a long warm soak. Then feed him. Let him stay inside until it is warm enough outside.
That`s what I would do.
 

lacrime

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Hi, your day temps are too high to carry on with brumating and night temps are too low to be fully awake. When will it be warmer outside where you live ? In a week or two ?
Take your tortoise in your house and give him a place with heat bulb and UVB bulb. When he is fully awake give him a long warm soak. Then feed him. Let him stay inside until it is warm enough outside.
That`s what I would do.

Hi, thank you for replying. I checked the weather and for the next couple of days it seems the temps are around 17-20C during the day and as low as 6C during night. Starting next week we’ll have rain probably, day temps will go down to 13C and nights will be 6C or so.

The thing is, I haven’t been here the past two years, have been spending the winter somewhere else, and this is the usual weather of the place, so I don’t know if this is something they’d been doing before or not. I got two tortoises and they were both out the day before. They both went back to their hiding places and I only saw Bicirik after that again.

I’m curious, do they go back to brumate even if they come out? I’ll keep an eye on him, at least until I make sure I have all things needed in the house. There’s a strong wind outside now, looks like it could be colder today.
We get a couple really warm days, like spring, and then heavy rain after that. This place is moody so I can never be sure!
 

Marianna

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What a coincidence!
Don't know where you live but I am in Crete Greece.
One of my marginated tortoises is out too today showing the same behaviour as yours! The others are fast asleep.
It is the 4th winter I have them and sofar they never woke up until 3d week of March, so this is interesting. Night temperatures were quite high the last couple of days, around 12 degrees and day temperatures around 17 but low to the ground of course much higher. Also very strong winds. Too warm for the time of the year. But like you we expect rain and lower temperatures
As their big enclosure is as close to their natural habitat as can be, my motto is "observate but don't interfere".
No way I am going to take her inside and put her under a lot of stress in an environment she doesn't know.
I am sure her instinct will tell her what to do and I am also sure she will go back to sleep for a couple of more weeks. She looked like me when I enjoy the first warm sun. Eyes closed and stretched out :)
These mediterranean tortoises are extremely resistant to the cold and the heat. Greeks live in the wild here too and up to quite high altitudes. I wouldn't worry if I were you. They have more experience about themselves than us human beings.....and you can always decide to act if it continues to stay outside when the weather gets really bad.
 

lacrime

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What a coincidence!
Don't know where you live but I am in Crete Greece.
One of my marginated tortoises is out too today showing the same behaviour as yours! The others are fast asleep.
It is the 4th winter I have them and sofar they never woke up until 3d week of March, so this is interesting. Night temperatures were quite high the last couple of days, around 12 degrees and day temperatures around 17 but low to the ground of course much higher. Also very strong winds. Too warm for the time of the year. But like you we expect rain and lower temperatures
As their big enclosure is as close to their natural habitat as can be, my motto is "observate but don't interfere".
No way I am going to take her inside and put her under a lot of stress in an environment she doesn't know.
I am sure her instinct will tell her what to do and I am also sure she will go back to sleep for a couple of more weeks. She looked like me when I enjoy the first warm sun. Eyes closed and stretched out :)
These mediterranean tortoises are extremely resistant to the cold and the heat. Greeks live in the wild here too and up to quite high altitudes. I wouldn't worry if I were you. They have more experience about themselves than us human beings.....and you can always decide to act if it continues to stay outside when the weather gets really bad.

Thank you so much for your reply! To be honest with you, I wasn’t so very worried yet after seeing that both of my tortoises are out and they’re different ages, and that there were no signs of sickness that I could see, but I’m admittedly very relieved still after reading your message :)

There was a strong yet warm wind today and looks like it’ll go on for some time. And hey neighbor, I’m from Turkey by the way :)

I’ll keep an eye on them for now, see if they show any sign of sickness. I was out today and came back in the evening and found them both out, Bicirik even walked some distance lol I still put them back to their hiding spots because there’s a chance of rain, that’s it. Leave them be for now, and we’ll see. This place is very moody when it comes to weather, we never have very cold weather even in winter, and in summer, I guess it’s tortoise paradise whereas it’s close my hell heatwise :)

Thanks again for replying :<3:
 

Marianna

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Know what you mean about the heat.....originally from Holland, we live here for almost 20 years now. Every year I hate summer more! Too hot to move. Love the rest of the year though.
Will keep in touch about Matilda's behaviour the next days. She went back into her winter residence by herself at about 5.00 pm.
 

lacrime

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Know what you mean about the heat.....originally from Holland, we live here for almost 20 years now. Every year I hate summer more! Too hot to move. Love the rest of the year though.
Will keep in touch about Matilda's behaviour the next days. She went back into her winter residence by herself at about 5.00 pm.

Oh I know! I lived in Istanbul before but then moved south. The first summer I thought I could never feel the cold again-true story! I thought I became incapable! Hot weather aside, the humidity is too high here in summer, it makes it almost impossible to breathe without a dozen showers a day or a dip in the sea.

Hope everything goes well for our torts. At least yours went back by herself. I moved mine but I know they’ve been moving on their own which is a relief.
 

Marianna

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Yep, climate is changing. No doubt about it. The first 15 years here we had hot summers but always cool breezes and low humidity. Since a couple of years it is very humid, even in August, like we are living on a tropical island. Don't even bother to blow dry my hair anymore. Useless!
Maybe that is why our torts are confused......?.
Anyway, I am looking forward to some rain. We need it.
 

lacrime

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Yep, climate is changing. No doubt about it. The first 15 years here we had hot summers but always cool breezes and low humidity. Since a couple of years it is very humid, even in August, like we are living on a tropical island. Don't even bother to blow dry my hair anymore. Useless!
Maybe that is why our torts are confused......?.
Anyway, I am looking forward to some rain. We need it.

I’ve been living here for about 5 years, and it’s been like this all five of them! No blow dry in summer, there’s almost no spring too, even winter passes like spring, take this year for example.

But you’re right, maybe they’re confused. Or maybe they prepare to wake up but slowly? I have very little knowledge about tortoises, if it wasn’t for my neighbor who brought Bicirik’s mom to my garden I don’t think I would’ve thought to get one.

I hope you get rain and relieve a little!
 

Marianna

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It was a beautiful morning today and I found Matilda in front of the winterhide, looking more awake than yesterday. She ate an amazing big piece of a cuttlebone (we collect them at the beach and put them everywhere in the enclosure) and then stretched out to eat some weeds. The weather deteriorated quickly and she went back inside 5 minutes before it started raining. Another lesson learned...after 3 months of hibernating she first goes after calcium instead of greens!!!
I didn't know anything about tortoises either but they have already tought me a lot. They hate rain, let alone soaking. Have seen them drinking only once when it was 40 degrees and are very picky which from the many growing weeds they eat. They do love sheepdroppings though! Actually if they had the choice, they wouldn't eat anything else......
To be continued!
 

lacrime

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It was a beautiful morning today and I found Matilda in front of the winterhide, looking more awake than yesterday. She ate an amazing big piece of a cuttlebone (we collect them at the beach and put them everywhere in the enclosure) and then stretched out to eat some weeds. The weather deteriorated quickly and she went back inside 5 minutes before it started raining. Another lesson learned...after 3 months of hibernating she first goes after calcium instead of greens!!!
I didn't know anything about tortoises either but they have already tought me a lot. They hate rain, let alone soaking. Have seen them drinking only once when it was 40 degrees and are very picky which from the many growing weeds they eat. They do love sheepdroppings though! Actually if they had the choice, they wouldn't eat anything else......
To be continued!

Mine are still hiding. I found Bicirik at the entrance of his hiding place every day since I first saw him and had to put him back inside myself, not sure what kind of sign is this, and today was very windy and colder and they didn’t come out. We’re expecting rain in the next couple of days and I’ll see what happens then. Hope they’re alright.

Wow, Matilda even ate something. My Bicirik and Kimble seem to be still sleepy. I’ll check on them again tomorrow. Don’t think there’ll be any movement today.

Excellent info about their eating habits I had no idea about!! :) I found Bicirik in cat feces and once nibbling a dead bird which freaked me out to be honest. Bicirik is a very adventurous eater.

We’ll see what happens tomorrow! Much love to Matilda!
 

Marianna

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Mine are still hiding. I found Bicirik at the entrance of his hiding place every day since I first saw him and had to put him back inside myself, not sure what kind of sign is this, and today was very windy and colder and they didn’t come out. We’re expecting rain in the next couple of days and I’ll see what happens then. Hope they’re alright.

Wow, Matilda even ate something. My Bicirik and Kimble seem to be still sleepy. I’ll check on them again tomorrow. Don’t think there’ll be any movement today.

Excellent info about their eating habits I had no idea about!! :) I found Bicirik in cat feces and once nibbling a dead bird which freaked me out to be honest. Bicirik is a very adventurous eater.

We’ll see what happens tomorrow! Much love to Matilda!
 

Marianna

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It was the most gorgious day today like you wish them to be every day but madam only got her head out. I offered her a purple mallow flower as a "welcome back to the world" gift but she refused and got back in......
Won't see much of her the next days anyway as they forecast rain too here from Thursday.
Forgot to tell you that the torts also love my dogs feces!! And I sometimes see them eat the rockhard red soil. Don't ask me why. The only thing I can think of is that in the wild there is not much to eat in the summer. All the weeds have dried and are eaten by the sheep so you probably just eat anything you come across?
Just to be sure, I checked on Storm and Aegis today but no sign of life there yet. Mysterious creatures.....
 

lacrime

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It was the most gorgious day today like you wish them to be every day but madam only got her head out. I offered her a purple mallow flower as a "welcome back to the world" gift but she refused and got back in......
Won't see much of her the next days anyway as they forecast rain too here from Thursday.
Forgot to tell you that the torts also love my dogs feces!! And I sometimes see them eat the rockhard red soil. Don't ask me why. The only thing I can think of is that in the wild there is not much to eat in the summer. All the weeds have dried and are eaten by the sheep so you probably just eat anything you come across?
Just to be sure, I checked on Storm and Aegis today but no sign of life there yet. Mysterious creatures.....

Hey Marianna! How is Matilda? I haven’t had a chance to check on mine, I hurt my back and I was in pain, hardly able to move. But I heard news that one of them was seen out again-though this is no news to me- but also eating! I don’t know what to do yet, I’ll try and keep an eye on them because the weather is still not warm enough for them to be out and about. Probably not cold enough to brumate either so..Poor lovelies.

How about your torts? Anyone other than Matilda appeared? I’m asking simply because it seems like we have similar weather conditions.

They eat the most outrageous things when left to fend for themselves! :)
 

Marianna

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Hey Marianna! How is Matilda? I haven’t had a chance to check on mine, I hurt my back and I was in pain, hardly able to move. But I heard news that one of them was seen out again-though this is no news to me- but also eating! I don’t know what to do yet, I’ll try and keep an eye on them because the weather is still not warm enough for them to be out and about. Probably not cold enough to brumate either so..Poor lovelies.

How about your torts? Anyone other than Matilda appeared? I’m asking simply because it seems like we have similar weather conditions.

They eat the most outrageous things when left to fend for themselves! :)
 

Marianna

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Poor you with the back!! I know what it is. Happens about twice a year. My dutch gp used to say " comes on horse, goes by foot" so patience patience and stay warm!
Whenever the sun is out (not much last week) like yesterday morning, Matilda is out but really not far out. Just enough to be able to reach for weeds. I think she hates the wet soil..... I tickled the others under their feet yesterday (they really feel cold!) and they moved so they seem to be ok. They probably wait until the ground has dried up which usually happens by the end of March.
Had to go to Chania this morning and the rains were horrendous. Motorway was like a river. And there is more to come over the next days. I don't mind. Soon we will complain again about the drought and heat....
Take care and I hope you will soon be able to move about and have a good look at your torts.
 
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