Can all tortoises flip back?

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Akuma

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After watching my Pancake tortoise being able to flip back all by himself I am impressed and surprised and least to say puzzled.

VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnIuGmJ62ig

My pancake tortoise has a very flat shell thus theoretically it should be quite difficult for his species to flip back, but as you can clearly see in my video, he has no problems what so ever getting back up.

Can all tortoises flip back? And can they all do it this easily?

Cheers

// Marty
 

Shelly

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I think that the bigger and heavier ones cannot do it as easily, if at all. However, I think the bigger ones are also less likely to wind up on their backs.
 

DoctorCosmonaut

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I think it really depends on the tortoise too and the shape of their shells.
 

Stephanie Logan

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I already posted a variation on this thread a couple of months ago. It was very stressful to let Taco struggle, and then such a huge relief to see her right herself and know that she has the ability.

Like the tortoise in this video, she seemed to stop for a second or two and consciously search for an area or object she could use to wedge herself into an angle and then flip back onto her plastron.:p
 

tortoisenerd

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It depends on their shape, the substrate, the flatness of the substrate, but most of all I think is their skill and willingness. My husband did "training" with our little guy per our vet's suggestion and supposedly he is much better at flipping back then he used to be. I won't watch this training, nor would I suggest it to others, although I don't disagree with it. My scariest moment with Trevor was finding him on his back in his water dish. It was next to a wall and he walked on the rim and fell in. With some rearranging I haven't found him on his back again. It can be very dangerous especially in water or under light as their underbellies are sensitive to heat, and they don't have the will to hold their head out of water for long. When on their backs it is very tough to breathe.
 

samstar

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Same thing with Torty last week. He was trying to get out of his water bowl, and slipped back in up side down and luckily I was there to flip him over. i have now switched to a much shallow water dish.
 

DoctorCosmonaut

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Millie, my redfoot, fell into her watering dish (outdoors) this last summer, and landed on her back. Luckily she had just knocked most of the water out of the dish. Tortoises really are silly creatures.
 

alfiethetortoise

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Afie does not seem to be able to right herself. She loves to climb, and used to be able to get on top of her hide before i made the edges steeper. One day, she literally jumped off the top and ended up in a pickle. I waited a while, but she just seemed to be getting distressed. I think id only had her a few days at the time. Perhaps she wouldn't be so bad now, but i wouldn't like to place money on it!
 

Kadaan

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I laughed at how he just sat there motionless for a little while after he fell, as if he was thinking to himself "Well darnit... what do I do now?"
 

Laura

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If all could flip themselves back over.. they wouldnt die that way..
But have you ever seen a dead cat in a tree?
 

dmmj

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No because once the cat died, it would fall out of the tree.
 

Stephanie Logan

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alfiethetortoise said:
One day, she literally jumped off the top and ended up in a pickle.

Cowabunga!:p
*****************************************
dmmj, you've done it again. Best laugh I've had all day.;)
 

ChiKat

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My mom found Nelson flipped on his back once while I was at work- thank God she was checking on him for me! He was only a few months old then.
I haven't found him flipped since, but I have made his enclosure very safe and hatchling-proof ;)
 

Madkins007

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All tortoises can usually flip back, but they often need help. In the video you can see that the tortoise has a much easier job as it moves towards the edge for a bit of bracing. In the wild, there would usually be a stone, or bush, or something to scoot over to and brace against. Tortoises in the wild rarely have to deal with the sort of flat, soft surfaces we offer in captivity.

Tortoises do get stuck that way once in a while in both captivity and the wild, and if not helped, they can die of exposure, dehydration, etc.

Part of our jobs as keepers is to try to identify possible flip points (less common in more plain habitats) and either eliminate them or rig it so they can flip back easier (heavy rock, hill or slant, something to brace on, etc.)
 
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