Second Hand Tortoise
Member
Hello all,
The time of year has come for brumation. The only thing is, this will be my first time brumating my tortoise - although she has done it before, I haven't and I am just paranoid, I suppose. I will list below the measures we have taken in preparation for it, and please do give advice or tell me if I am doing something wrong.
I have starved and bathed her daily for the past month (during that time she excreted feces twice, so her gut should be empty by now), and she has been sleeping the whole day, only going under her basking light when I put her there, which I take as a sign that she is ready to go to sleep.
For her brumation box, she has a large plastic box (with a lid and holes drilled into it for ventilation) with a smaller cardboard box inside, with shredded paper between the two for insulation. In the smaller box, she has topsoil (fertiliser free) for her to bury into. The box is in our garden shed, and a thermometer is arriving soon. I am monitoring temperatures, and they won't drop under 4ºc (no idea what that is in farenheit), for now at least.
Around an hour ago, I put her in her box to go to sleep, and she hasn't yet burrowed down into the soil, but is instead pacing around looking rather agitated. Am I doing something wrong? Have I not adjusted her enough? Or does she just need more time? Advice would be appreciated, and please ask if you need more info.
The time of year has come for brumation. The only thing is, this will be my first time brumating my tortoise - although she has done it before, I haven't and I am just paranoid, I suppose. I will list below the measures we have taken in preparation for it, and please do give advice or tell me if I am doing something wrong.
I have starved and bathed her daily for the past month (during that time she excreted feces twice, so her gut should be empty by now), and she has been sleeping the whole day, only going under her basking light when I put her there, which I take as a sign that she is ready to go to sleep.
For her brumation box, she has a large plastic box (with a lid and holes drilled into it for ventilation) with a smaller cardboard box inside, with shredded paper between the two for insulation. In the smaller box, she has topsoil (fertiliser free) for her to bury into. The box is in our garden shed, and a thermometer is arriving soon. I am monitoring temperatures, and they won't drop under 4ºc (no idea what that is in farenheit), for now at least.
Around an hour ago, I put her in her box to go to sleep, and she hasn't yet burrowed down into the soil, but is instead pacing around looking rather agitated. Am I doing something wrong? Have I not adjusted her enough? Or does she just need more time? Advice would be appreciated, and please ask if you need more info.