Awake and good i hope

[jaredpotts]

Billy the Tortoise woke up a few days ago and I moved him outside (so cal has been hot) but with the rains moving in for the week, I have moved him into the house where he can roam around out of the moisture and super cold nights. Does this sound ok to you more seasoned tortoise owners? Been soaking him and trying to get him to drink (he did pee the other day) and he has been eating some food

thanks for any help and photos will be coming soon

 

[Madortoise]

Mine drinks and drinks and drinks to replenish water, when she comes out. The sunken eyes go away and gets stronger after a few weeks of eating and drinking. It did rain today (I'm not that far from you) so it's good that you kept him inside. Have a nice hide for him with appropriate substrate. Carpet and floors in the house is not very sanitary for tortoises.

 

[armandoarturo]

That sounds good for me... he is drinking, eating, peeing... thats great!
dont forget that the soaking should be done in luke warm water.
He might stay calm, or asleep couple of times at week... until the weather gets warm enough.
Just keep an eye on him.

 

[Tom]

Give him a heat/light source too. Preferably a MVB. You have to be careful when they are in this "limbo" stage. That's the problem with our inconsistent hot/cold winters here in So. CA. They sort of wake up when the warm spells hit, but then the cold returns and they now have some food in their gut. If he's up, keep him warm and give him a basking spot during the day. I also do daily soaks for the first couple of weeks after hibernation to help "flush" them out.

 

[Yvonne G]

Desert tortoises are from Southern California. It is completely natural for them to be outside during this weather. They have been hibernating and are acclimated to being cold. Once you warm them up, you have to keep them warm until the weather is consistently warm enough to leave them outside. If you leave them outside now, but make sure they can have a nice, dry retreat, it is quite ok. What do you think the tortoises in the mojave desert are doing right now with all the rain and cold weather? Before the Los Angeles basin was populated, it was natural territory for desert tortoises.

 

[Madortoise]

I agree with you, Yvonne, that the DTs are meant to be outdoor. Mine is still asleep; just couldn't leave her out in the yard all this time because of all the rain and our soil getting muddy. I see clovers and mallows all over and she'd like what she sees when she wakes up. She's in a secured hide inside the dogloo on covered patio; temp reading 56F. It's probably going to be another month before she wants to come out.

 

[armandoarturo]

One of my tortoises did woke up two days ago, the weather was really really hot... I didnt noticed her until I came out to the garden and saw her having such a nice meal with my new flowers...
I was like... whaat the heck!!!
I ran to remove her from the flowers and offered her first drink, then I placed her back into her hiding place, and she didnt come out anymore.
The weather its cold again... I guess she/they wont be awake for couple of days or weeks more...
lets see what happens...

 

[jaredpotts]

so bill has been awake for a while now. he is inside cause of the rain, got a light for him and he has been eating some nopales and greens. my only worry is that he is very lethargic and just lays there most of the time. worried bout him. hope all turns out ok

 

[Candy]

Fernando's been awake the whole winter. He's doing very well. Today I did not put him outside because it was very cold. It's nice to hear from Yvonne on them staying outside even if it's cold. I know that if Fernando has a chance he will go graze in the yard even when I think that it's not warm enough outside. He's tougher then we give him credit for being. Inside I do have a box and a heat emitter that I put on him at night. Good luck with yours.

 

[Shelly]

Fernando's been awake the whole winter.

Why didn't you let him hibernate?