should I be concerned?

[jojodesca]

Hello all,

I have to ask if I should be concerned about Lefty, my ttbt. For the past 3 days she has been trying to climb up on a log hide..well she gets halfway up and I see her struggle then all of a sudden she flips over and is on her back/side...Many time during the 3 days I have heard her and went to check and right before I approach her she flips...and she also struggles to turn over. So of course I flip her back over...I have been to her "rescue" about 15 times so far.

2 times I have just found her on her back/side...It is killing me to why she is doing this...I am afraid to leave the house, just in case she flips and I am gone for hrs.. She looks helpless. She doesn't seem to be able to flip her self back over...most of the time I go to help her , her arms ,legs and neck are flailing....I rotated the hide to see if that helps. I am thinking of removing the hide..but then what?

 

[pryncesssc]

OHH no , poor lefty ! They are supposed to be able to flip themselves over, it just takes a few minutes sometimes. I hope she can because u have to leave the house eventually. Good luck

 

[wellington]

I don't know about your species. However a lot of tortoises cannot flip them selves. I would either play around with different positions of the hide, or I would switch it out for one she can't possible climb. Good luck

 

[nicoleandrocky]

Some torts are able to flip themselves over, Rocky will just lay there and not even make an attempt, so what i did was i didn't remove it out of his cage, i layed rocks against the log and he is not able to get up there anymore. if you need a photo i can send one if you don't know what i mean

 

[jojodesca]

i turned the hide so she can now climb up the side of it....I knew she was trying to climb so she could bask....now she seems to be able to get up and down easily..however now my problem is my ornate is getting stuck on the cuve against the glass..hmmmm....wonders will never cease!

 

[JoesMum]

The key to successful climbers is practice. They can learn not to flip.

Joe is an experienced mountaineer and I can't remember when he last flipped.

Rather than remove all obstacles, I'd ensure they are there. Use rocks, house bricks, blocks of wood, whatever... and let him learn. They have to learn in the wild.

If you can't be around to keep an eye on your tort, remove the obstacles when you go out ... just to be on the safe side.

It saves a lot of worry over the years if this skill is learned young.

 

[jojodesca]

The key to successful climbers is practice. They can learn not to flip.

Joe is an experienced mountaineer and I can't remember when he last flipped.

Rather than remove all obstacles, I'd ensure they are there. Use rocks, house bricks, blocks of wood, whatever... and let him learn. They have to learn in the wild.

If you can't be around to keep an eye on your tort, remove the obstacles when you go out ... just to be on the safe side.

It saves a lot of worry over the years if this skill is learned young.

lefty is over 20 yrs old..so she has had practice..i dont know if its a medical problem or harmful to her..she does however only have 1 eye

 

[DerekS]

Is she pacing the enclosure also? She could be trying to find a nesting spot, it's that time of year. I don't know if you have a male with her or not but mine climb over everything (including other turtles) pacing the enclosure frantically.

 

[jojodesca]

Is she pacing the enclosure also? She could be trying to find a nesting spot, it's that time of year. I don't know if you have a male with her or not but mine climb over everything (including other turtles) pacing the enclosure frantically.

I do not have a male, she has been doing better since i turned the hide around...she was trying to climb it from the front..once i turned it she used the side to climb up....she has been up there basking now....but I will continue to monitor her activity....

 

[turtlemann2]

well she may still have to lay, kinda like chickens they will lay with or with out a male,

my favorite male wally crawls on top of the hide often and somtimes when he goes to get off he will flip but after a few moments of flaling he rights him self,

but now that you have moved things im glad things have pretty much resolved themselves she probibly wanted more heat? or just being turtly :_)

 

[jojodesca]

well she may still have to lay, kinda like chickens they will lay with or with out a male,

my favorite male wally crawls on top of the hide often and somtimes when he goes to get off he will flip but after a few moments of flaling he rights him self,

but now that you have moved things im glad things have pretty much resolved themselves she probibly wanted more heat? or just being turtly :_)

yeah she was trying to climb at the front instead of the side..and I think she couldn't get her footing right..i watched her and she was trying to push off of the glass and knocking herself into it....once i moved it to where she could climb she's been doing good....i rearranged some stuff for her...