Not Peeing Enough? Hates bath time!

[Pokeymeg]

So, I've had Dante for over a month now, and I've observed that he really does not pee all that much, and when he does it is ALL white (no white clumps, just white). Is that because he is dehydrated? Or something else? That's how he was peeing when he first came to us.

And on that dehydration note, Dante hates bath time. I don't think it's the water he hates, it's being enclosed in a smaller container than his usual enclosure. As soon as I put him in a bowl (or whatever other 'bathtubs' I've tried) he starts climbing the walls like a madman. He ignores food and treats, just wants OUT! He starts to huff and puff so much, I worry he's getting really stressed, so I take him out...Any suggestions? Also, he has a small dish of water in his enclosure that he walks through all day long when he's romping around, is that enough to keep him hydrated?

 

[wellington]

How big is the dish in his enclosure? Also, can you try soaking him in something that doesn't have real high sides. If you spray his food and him with water, him several times a day and have a large enough dish in his house, he probably doesn't need to be soaked. Hang on for more advice.

 

[JoesMum]

If the pee really is all urate (white stuff) then yes, your tort isn't getting enough water. However, urine soaks in pretty quickly so depending on the substrate you may not see it.

A large dish in your enclosure may be used for regular soaks... equally it may be filled with substrate or tipped up at regular intervals... it depends on your tort!

It's not uncommon for torts to hate bath-time, but there are some things you can do to make it less stressful.

1. Bath first thing in the morning before your tort has warmed up properly. Your tort won't be ready for instant escape.
2. Make sure the water is warm (not hot) and your cool tort is likely to enjoy absorbing the heat.
3. Try bathing in your human bath (give it a thorough rinse first to remove traces of shampoo and shower gel). That will give a deep end and a shallow end and room for your tort to wander and still be in contact with the water.
4. Try to keep bathing to part of a regular routine. Knowing what to expect and when reduces stress in animals just like humans!
5. Feed straight after the bath... it becomes part of the routine.

 

[Pokeymeg]

Thank you both of you! I will give all of these suggestions a try!

 

[Pokeymeg]

So I decided to move Dante's water bowl under his heat light and really buried it and put some mulch in it to make it 'swampy' because he seems to like it like that (also I've never once seen him use it for drinking, so I'm not worried about the water being dirty). This morning he spent an hour soaking in it while waiting for breakfast! It's not deep, just reaches the edge of his shell, but do you think if he does that more often it will be enough to hydrate him better??

 

[GBtortoises]

If your tortoise is sitting in water for over an hour under the basking light you're really not offering a chance for it to remain hydrated. It's just forcing the tortoise to sit in the water in order to be able to warm up under the basking light. Not a good practice.
It's not unusual for some tortoises to not tolerate being bathed (soaked). Some do, some don't. Many baby tortoises do not. Sitting in a puddle of water is not something they would typically do in nature, or outdoors in captivity. But even so, some do adapt to doing so and again, some do not.
You can't really force a tortoise to drink. Those that need to will when given the opportunity to do so. But in the meantime there are other ways to ensure that your tortoise doesn't become dehydrated with regular enclosure spraying and keeping the ambient humidity level up within the enclosure.
While urate consistency can be a good indicator of hydration (or lack of), diet content can also play a part in urate build up and consistency. Urine that contains a urates is not necessarily bad. Expelling urates on a regular basis is normal. As long as those urates are only part of the urine and remain very liquid and flowing, not like cottage cheese.
I personally would move the water dish out from under the basking light and replace it with a flat stone for the tortoise to bask on. The rim of a water dish also needs to be at the level of the substrate or lower. Tortoises lower their head into the water to drink, not reach up over the side. This is especially true of very young and small tortoises. They need to have very easy access to clean drinking water. If the dish is too deep then small stones can be added to it. Substrate material, particularly wood based mulches can be very acidic. If the water in the dish is turning brown like the mulch, the ph of the water is being affected and will be more acidic also.

 

[Pokeymeg]

If your tortoise is sitting in water for over an hour under the basking light you're really not offering a chance for it to remain hydrated. It's just forcing the tortoise to sit in the water in order to be able to warm up under the basking light. Not a good practice.
It's not unusual for some tortoises to not tolerate being bathed (soaked). Some do, some don't. Many baby tortoises do not. Sitting in a puddle of water is not something they would typically do in nature, or outdoors in captivity. But even so, some do adapt to doing so and again, some do not.
You can't really force a tortoise to drink. Those that need to will when given the opportunity to do so. But in the meantime there are other ways to ensure that your tortoise doesn't become dehydrated with regular enclosure spraying and keeping the ambient humidity level up within the enclosure.
While urate consistency can be a good indicator of hydration (or lack of), diet content can also play a part in urate build up and consistency. Urine that contains a urates is not necessarily bad. Expelling urates on a regular basis is normal. As long as those urates are only part of the urine and remain very liquid and flowing, not like cottage cheese.
I personally would move the water dish out from under the basking light and replace it with a flat stone for the tortoise to bask on. The rim of a water dish also needs to be at the level of the substrate or lower. Tortoises lower their head into the water to drink, not reach up over the side. This is especially true of very young and small tortoises. They need to have very easy access to clean drinking water. If the dish is too deep then small stones can be added to it. Substrate material, particularly wood based mulches can be very acidic. If the water in the dish is turning brown like the mulch, the ph of the water is being affected and will be more acidic also.

I should've been more clearer, I put the water on the edge of the light's heated area, but he can still bask without sitting in the water. Nonetheless, I will move it back to where it was to make sure he doesn't feel forced to sit in it.