Shell attachment to prevent getting stuck on back?

mrsbotero912

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Has anybody ever attached something to their tortoise's shell to prevent getting stuck on their back? Apollo is a tiny little thing, not even 2" long yet. He is in a 2x4 ft enclosure so he has lots of space, and lots of little things around to climb over. Substrate is moist and packed down. Temps are around 75°F on the cool side, 95° in the basking spot, and 65-70° at night. So I THINK everything is where it needs to be.

However he still is trying to climb the sides of the enclosure, and sometimes flips himself over in doing so. He knows to stretch his neck and legs to push off the ground, but they aren't quite long enough to reach. I do have some small stumps around the edges to push off of in case he does flip, but of course he'll flip right between them sometimes and can't reach anything. Just wondering if there is a practical & safe way to temporarily attach something to his back so that if he does flip, it prevents him from being straight on his back and unable to reach the ground?

*Edited to add - he's not just doing this at the corners, but along the edges as well. I do have rounded molding on corners though so they are not 90° angles.
 

Tom

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Hmm... Enclosure looks big enough for that size tortoise. MVBs don't usually hurt their eyes...

I wonder of the baby feels too exposed? Maybe try adding some locks or larger rocks to create sight barriers and more places to hide from "predators".

Also, how long have you had him? Some babies will do this for a week or two in a new environment. They are trying to escape their confines and get back "home". Most of them grow out of it within a months time.
 

mrsbotero912

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Hmm... Enclosure looks big enough for that size tortoise. MVBs don't usually hurt their eyes...

I wonder of the baby feels too exposed? Maybe try adding some locks or larger rocks to create sight barriers and more places to hide from "predators".

Also, how long have you had him? Some babies will do this for a week or two in a new environment. They are trying to escape their confines and get back "home". Most of them grow out of it within a months time.


I've had him almost 3 weeks, but I did just move him from a smaller plastic tub into this enclosure on Sunday, so I'm thinking he's definitely still getting used to it. Thanks for the feedback! Just gotta try to make do to prevent the flipping for the time being I guess...
 

Yvonne G

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A few plants (in their pots) scattered around the enclosure would give him some security too.
 

mrsbotero912

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Hi there, from looking at your whiteboard - has he lost weight? I see 25g then 20g. Is he eating ok?
I'm not sure what that day was about, he is back up to 24g! I wasn't sure what how much the weight should vary when accounting for things like eating and going to the bathroom, but if he didn't go back up to his initial weight quickly I was ready to call my vet and ask him about it. He does seem to be eating OK though!
 

Samantha Graham

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I'm not sure what that day was about, he is back up to 24g! I wasn't sure what how much the weight should vary when accounting for things like eating and going to the bathroom, but if he didn't go back up to his initial weight quickly I was ready to call my vet and ask him about it. He does seem to be eating OK though!
Ah that’s good! Always good to hear they are eating well
 

ricks45

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My 2 kept climbing the sides of their enclosures and flipping on their backs when they were little, so I installed a board that was high enough that they could walk under it, but low enough that they could not climb the walls. Worked great. See attached file with the red line being the attached board. Please don't make fun of my blue tortoise, He has sensitive feelings! LOL!00002.jpg
 

Gijoux

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My 2 kept climbing the sides of their enclosures and flipping on their backs when they were little, so I installed a board that was high enough that they could walk under it, but low enough that they could not climb the walls. Worked great. See attached file with the red line being the attached board. Please don't make fun of my blue tortoise, He has sensitive feelings! LOL!View attachment 282351

Genius Idea. Thanks for sharing. This is what I love most about Tortoise Forum.
 
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