sarethetortisekeeper
New Member
very slow, wont eat or drink, I heard that they can go blind? I'm quite scared, what should i do?
My sulcata was accidently left without heat for a couple hours, breaker tripped.
- Thread starter sarethetortisekeeper
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sarethetortisekeeper
New Member
for context, the heat was probably under 50 degrees for several hours.
HI and welcome.
How old is your tort?
He won't eat of he is still cold.
I would start by giving him a shallow luke warm soak no hotter than you would give a baby and make sure his head is above water even if he is tucked in his shell. This will also hydrate him. Then put him under his heat source and keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't over heat - he may walk toward his food when he is warm enough.
This will tell you everything you need to know about caring for your tort
tortoiseforum.org
and if you look in the African torts section of Species Specific you'll find a caresheet for sullies there.
Read those and ask as many questions as you like. If you post some pics of his enclosure you'll get good feedback to make sure he has everything he needs to keep him happy and healthy.
Maybe post in Introductions you'll get a lot more responses there.
How old is your tort?
He won't eat of he is still cold.
I would start by giving him a shallow luke warm soak no hotter than you would give a baby and make sure his head is above water even if he is tucked in his shell. This will also hydrate him. Then put him under his heat source and keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't over heat - he may walk toward his food when he is warm enough.
This will tell you everything you need to know about caring for your tort
Info For New People. Please Read This First.
Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...
tortoiseforum.org
Read those and ask as many questions as you like. If you post some pics of his enclosure you'll get good feedback to make sure he has everything he needs to keep him happy and healthy.
Maybe post in Introductions you'll get a lot more responses there.
Last edited:
Never heard of the going blind for getting too cold.
But you need to warm him up slowly and make sure is core is warmed up. Doing this in warm water as suggested is a good way.
Once you have done this, be sure to figure out what happened so it doesn't happen again. Too many times and recovery will be harder and harder.
But you need to warm him up slowly and make sure is core is warmed up. Doing this in warm water as suggested is a good way.
Once you have done this, be sure to figure out what happened so it doesn't happen again. Too many times and recovery will be harder and harder.
sarethetortisekeeper
New Member
he is about 3 1/2 years old, about 1.3 kilos, i dont think hes still cold we are still having him recover, hes in the house now, with plenty of heat.HI and welcome.
How old is your tort?
He won't eat of he is still cold.
I would start by giving him a shallow luke warm soak no hotter than you would give a baby and make sure his head is above water even if he is tucked in his shell. This will also hydrate him. Then put him under his heat source and keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't over heat - he may walk toward his food when he is warm enough.
This will tell you everything you need to know about caring for your tort
and if you look in the African torts section of Species Specific you'll find a caresheet for sullies there.Info For New People. Please Read This First.
Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...
Read those and ask as many questions as you like. If you post some pics of his enclosure you'll get good feedback to make sure he has everything he needs to keep him happy and healthy.
Maybe post in Introductions you'll get a lot more responses there.
sarethetortisekeeper
New Member
I had two or three high voltage things connected to the breaker, even though the things are across the house from eachother.
Any eye damage would be caused by below freezing temps. As long as it didn't get down that low, I wouldn't worry about that 
What temperature are you keeping him at right now? Is he still not eating?
What temperature are you keeping him at right now? Is he still not eating?
You need to have a digital thermometer in the area where the tortoise lives that records the highs and lows. If the tortoise was a 0 for several hours, it is a whole different problem than if the tortoise was at 50 for a few hours.
In the house is also too cold. Even if your house was 85 degrees, it would still be much colder than that down on the floor.
How are you heating the tortoise now and what is the correct temperature where the tortoises is? The cure for cold is heat. Warm this tortoise up. It should be breathing 90 degree air and have a warm area where it can get its body temperature up near 100.
sarethetortisekeeper
New Member
he is now eating, fortunately. he is in the bathroom, with an space heater keeping him warm.Any eye damage would be caused by below freezing temps. As long as it didn't get down that low, I wouldn't worry about that
What temperature are you keeping him at right now? Is he still not eating?
Good to hear!
I went through similar with my 70 pounder recently. I was at work and the ice snapped a power line. It was 2 hours later before I got home to start the generator. It was below 0 that day, and his house was 35F when I checked. I got the genny started and it slowly got the temps back up to 80F. I watched him like a hawk over the next week. Initially he wasn't moving. About 4 hours later he started to "come to life". Been fine ever since. That was over 3 weeks ago.
This is a PERFECT example of why a Laser Thermometer is a mandatory tool in the Tort world. If you had one you could easily measure the temperature of the tort. A measurement of the Carapace then Plastron, in the middle of those 2 numbers is about your tort's ACTUAL temp. This is very important for the comfort of the tort. Lets say the temp actual body temp was somewhere in the 40's, if you then put that tort in a soak at 80 degrees.....Thats a temp difference of 30+ degrees. Imagine if you went out in the cold and came inside and got in water 30+ degrees hotter than you are......BURN.
THIS IS MY OPINION....The actual temperature of the tortoise is commonly overlooked, it is only the warm water temp people are worried about. If 1 of my torts was left in the cold the VERY first thing do is get an idea of what temp the tort is. I then will soak in water no more than 10 degrees warmer than that body temp. I slowly increase the water temp over time to bring up the body temp without the temp shock that has to occur when put into water 20-30 even 40 degrees hotter than the tortoise. Without a reliable way to measure temperatures at best it's just a guess. I am so glad this experience wasn't fatal or blinding, and wish your family (people and tort) the best.
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