Late hibernation??

[rebecca]

I got my horse field tortoise last June. He/she is roughly 3 years old. When I first got him he wouldn't eat and wanted to sleep all the time. I contacted the place where I got him and was informed it was a summer hibernation. After a couple of weeks he did start eating and everything was fine. He has now stopped eating again. He has had only a small amount of food in last week but seems to be just as active as normal. Any suggestions on how I can encourage him to eat? Nearest reptile vet is 30 miles away and he gets stressed out in car so don't want to put him through trauma if this is a normal thing for some tortoises. Thank you for any help.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi rebecca:

(Is your name Rebecca?)

May we know appx. where in the world you are?

No, its not normal for a Russian tortoise to want to hibernate this time of year. If I were you, I'd re-read the Russian Tortoise Care sheet at russiantortoise.org and make any adjustments or tweeks that your habitat requires. I'm only guessing, but I'm thinking he's not warm enough.

 

[JoesMum]

I too suspect the temperatures aren't quite right.

Please would you tell us what temp you have in the 4 important places?
1. Cool end
2. Warm end
3. Under the basking lamp
4. Overnight minimum

While your tort isn't eating properly, you should soak daily for a good 20 minutes to ensure hydration. A link to my soaking tips is in my sig below

 

[rebecca]

Sorry I'm new to this forum and think I may have posted same thread twice!

He is in a table top open box with uv strip bulb and basking lamp with shaded bedroom compartment. He is bathed daily and his lamps are left on for 12-13 hours per day.

Under basking lamp is 33-35c, coolest spot is 23-25c. He is in living room so coldest he could get at night is 12-15c.