Can I take my tortoise out of his hide?

[speedyTortoise]

Hey guys, how is everyone doing? My 10 year old (around 10 years old) Russian tortoise is trying to brumate again, and I do not want to let him. I am in the middle of introducing a new diet to him (endive, arugula, and radicchio) and he is very stubborn. I have never let him brumate or estivate, and I am not going to let him do it now, especially since he is eating so little. Well, he only comes out in the morning to bask under his lamp, which is when I feed him, and goes back to his hide in around an hour. Well, I want him to be out of his hide more, so is it OK to take him out of his hide with my hand? Will he become more stressed if I do that?

 

[wellington]

Be sure the temps are correct. 95-100 basking. 75-80 thought the rest of the enclosure and no lower than 70 at night. Be sure it's bright, like the sun to help keep him up. Most likely if all that is correct, he will eventually come out more. They still hide away a lot in the winter months but with it correct like I stated above, he should at least eat and bask and drink. I would only take him out of his hide once a day. Constantly taking him out will stress him.

 

[SinLA]

its fine to keep him up, but you actually DO want them NOT to eat before they burnate, so he’s doing what nature is directing him. Lots of people report slowing down like you describe, but make sure his heat is enough if you keep feeding him.

this thread GIves advice if you want to keep them up:

Tom's Brumation Thread

Every fall we get bombarded here on the forum with all sorts of questions and problems regarding hibernation and tortoises "slowing down" for winter. The purpose of this thread is to talk about all aspects of this subject, to dispel some of the myths and mysteries, and give a "how to" list of...

www.tortoiseforum.org

 

[speedyTortoise]

Be sure the temps are correct. 95-100 basking. 75-80 thought the rest of the enclosure and no lower than 70 at night. Be sure it's bright, like the sun to help keep him up. Most likely if all that is correct, he will eventually come out more. They still hide away a lot in the winter months but with it correct like I stated above, he should at least eat and bask and drink. I would only take him out of his hide once a day. Constantly taking him out will stress him.

Alright, temps are correct, though it is sometimes one degree below seventy in the night. I’ll take him out once every other day to make sure he gets out more. Thanks!

 

[speedyTortoise]

its fine to keep him up, but you actually DO want them NOT to eat before they burnate, so he’s doing what nature is directing him. Lots of people report slowing down like you describe, but make sure his heat is enough if you keep feeding him.

this thread GIves advice if you want to keep them up:

Tom's Brumation Thread

Every fall we get bombarded here on the forum with all sorts of questions and problems regarding hibernation and tortoises "slowing down" for winter. The purpose of this thread is to talk about all aspects of this subject, to dispel some of the myths and mysteries, and give a "how to" list of...

www.tortoiseforum.org

Thank you! I’ll check out the link.

 

[Tom]

Hey guys, how is everyone doing? My 10 year old (around 10 years old) Russian tortoise is trying to brumate again, and I do not want to let him. I am in the middle of introducing a new diet to him (endive, arugula, and radicchio) and he is very stubborn. I have never let him brumate or estivate, and I am not going to let him do it now, especially since he is eating so little. Well, he only comes out in the morning to bask under his lamp, which is when I feed him, and goes back to his hide in around an hour. Well, I want him to be out of his hide more, so is it OK to take him out of his hide with my hand? Will he become more stressed if I do that?

Take him out of the hide several times daily. Don't let him sulk in there. Warm water soaks help too.

Do you have ample ambient lighting? LEDs in the 5000-6500K range?

 

[speedyTortoise]

Take him out of the hide several times daily. Don't let him sulk in there. Warm water soaks help too.

Do you have ample ambient lighting? LEDs in the 5000-6500K range?

Yeah, his place is pretty bright. I give him soaks every other day. Thanks for the advice!