Do Tortoises Dream?

To-To

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Recently i have been mindlessly staring at my tortoise while he was asleep, and he started moving around, it was about 10 minutes later he opened his eyes, most adorable thing ever
 

bouaboua

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I know my torts do "act up" during there sleep at night.

I hope they all have a sweet dream! !
 

Mavrik

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I hope that all the captive tortoises in the world have good dreams... Those that are well taken care of, dream of the good care that they will get the next day. Those that are not so well taken care of, dream of a better place with better care and better owners, and that dream keeps them alive each day until it happens.
 

tglazie

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I don't know, if we had a way of reading brain activity, the way they do with humans in various sleep studies, we would know whether or not something is going on. As to whether or not the dreams consist of crazy visuals featuring exaggerated humans and freaky dream plants that don't exist in reality, who is to say? I've read that the primary sense used by tortoises is smell, so I have to wonder if their dreams are just a complex, textured world shaped by their sense of smell? It would be interesting to uncover more of what they're actually thinking. Maybe one day they will invent technology to where you can zap your consciousness into that of a tortoise, experience what it's like to be them for a day. It would also be awesome if they could translate their body language into words to facilitate one way communication. But the more I think about such things, the more ridiculous they seem.

T.G.
 

phebe121

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Mine dream of the but ribs they get on the morning lol the satrted doing this weird wiggle wheni rub there shell like they just cant get enough or dancin . Lol
 

puffy137

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Recently i have been mindlessly staring at my tortoise while he was asleep, and he started moving around, it was about 10 minutes later he opened his eyes, most adorable thing ever
What is this life if full of care
We have no time to stand & stare ......................W.H. Davies. 1871- 1940
 

Mavrik

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I don't know, if we had a way of reading brain activity, the way they do with humans in various sleep studies, we would know whether or not something is going on. As to whether or not the dreams consist of crazy visuals featuring exaggerated humans and freaky dream plants that don't exist in reality, who is to say? I've read that the primary sense used by tortoises is smell, so I have to wonder if their dreams are just a complex, textured world shaped by their sense of smell? It would be interesting to uncover more of what they're actually thinking. Maybe one day they will invent technology to where you can zap your consciousness into that of a tortoise, experience what it's like to be them for a day. It would also be awesome if they could translate their body language into words to facilitate one way communication. But the more I think about such things, the more ridiculous they seem.

T.G.


Tortoises are an animal that they never morphed into in the Animorphs book series. Being as the whole premise was that they morphed into animals (by gathering the animal DNA) to fight a race of parasitic aliens intent on taking over the human race, I can't imagine why they wouldn't want to be a tortoise...
 

smarch

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scientifically speaking i have no idea, but I imagine it wouldn't be much different to study them than a human, you'd just need to get tiny tort sised electrodes and should probably use a larger species, but yeah the funding for that... not seeing how anyone could win that argument as to how it would be useful.

I think they do, at least i like to think they do. They can make decisions and process, which means they use their brains and think, so i don't see why that wouldn't happen in their sleep as well.

I mean we know for a fact mammals dream, that video of the dog running while on his side asleep..then getting up and smacking into the wall, I've had my cat asleep on me start twitching and be startled awake.... after what he's been through it doesn't surprise me he'd have nightmares too.
 

Tidgy's Dad

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Aristotle first realized that higher mammals other than people dream. There is no doubt that they do, although cats and dogs, for example can move during REM Sleep, which in humans, usually causes sleep paralysis, so it is called REM (rapid eye movement A). Using brain activity machines we can even surmise what some animals dream about, such as rats dreaming of left and right turns in a maze.
Likewise, some birds, such as zebra finches dream about their songs, the electrical impulses they record when asleep match the tunes they need to survive. They are practicing in their sleep.
Sadly, there is no evidence that tortoises dream. They do not enter REM sleep or sleep paralysis states and the twitching of limbs is just part of their breathing process, or avoiding cramp from staying in one position.
My little girl is very afraid of thunder storms, but only when awake. She sometimes wakes up and comes out of her bed to see if all is ok, but if I'm about, she goes back to bed, reassured. I have seen no evidence of dreaming in any tortoise.
But it's a nice, if rather anthropomorphic thought. They are not like us and that is part of the joy. Sorry if I've spoiled your own dreams!
It doesn't make my little girl any less lovable, her little bleary eyes when I wake her up! Bless.
 

Kenno

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There is also no evidence that they don't dream. Lack of evidence of REM sleep can't be taken as proof.
 

Tidgy's Dad

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There is also no evidence that they don't dream. Lack of evidence of REM sleep can't be taken as proof.
Which is what I said, twice, 'no evidence',I didn't say they don't, though I don't believe it, it is, indeed, just an opinion.
If people wish to believe ants or pencils dream, I'm not here to disprove it. I'd rather people were anthropomorphs and love their animals than coldly scientific and not care about them. (though scientists can love their pets too, of course.) (and some anthropomorphic tendencies can be bad, i guess.)
Love your thirsty tortoise pic.
 

Chenderson

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I think my tortoise had a nightmare yesterday, quite funny. Was fast asleep, breathing increased, all of a sudden, eyes opened up, and bolted straight across the vivarium. Faster than I have ever seen her move to dive bomb into her water dish and sat there for 5 minutes before going back to sleep.
 

puffy137

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I think my tortoise had a nightmare yesterday, quite funny. Was fast asleep, breathing increased, all of a sudden, eyes opened up, and bolted straight across the vivarium. Faster than I have ever seen her move to dive bomb into her water dish and sat there for 5 minutes before going back to sleep.
Yep that was proof positive of a nightmare. Are you sure you didn't snore & wake her up ???
 

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