Soaking Question

[TobesterTort]

Does anyone else's tort not liked to be soaked? I soaked mine for the first time today (I've had him since Wednesday) and he was trying to get out the whole time! And then when I picked him up to dry him off, he wouldn't stop moving his legs and he usually goes into his shell whenever I pick him up.

I'm also a little concerned because I think my tortoise is terrified of me, lol. As I've mentioned before, I know the people he was adopted from and from what I know he had a great home. Does anyone else have torts that seemed to be scared of them? Do they get used to you after a while?

 

[Kadaan]

I used a clear plastic ziplock storage container and mine would always try to climb out. I ended up putting it inside a cardboard box so he couldn't see out, and now he just wanders around but doesn't try to climb out at all. He does seem extra active after I take him out to put back in his enclosure.

 

[K9KidsLove]

Hi...Don't give up on the soaking. They eventually get used to it. Put him in something that is too tall for him to climb out of and make sure the water stays warm.
Most turtles/tortoises act scared when put into a new invironment. Some of mine still sometimes hiss & pull their heads in when I pick them up, but come back out after I speak to them.
Good luck
Patsy

 

[terryo]

I never could understand the concept of soaking. If you provide water in the enclosure, why can't they go in on their own? Why do you have to soak them? I have never soaked any of my boxies or my tortoise. I just put a water dish in the enclosure and let them go in the water or drink on their own if they wanted to. If your enclosure has enough humidity, why stress them out with a soaking? I do feed my three toed hatchling in a little bit of water because that is what the breeder did and I want him to eat. But I never did understand the idea of force soaking.....or force anything for that matter. They can't be that stupid that they would't know enough to take a drink or sit in the water if they needed to, and I'd be terrified too if some big giant picked me up and put me in a tub of water....just me rambling on......sorry...lol

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Some species don't like to be soaked. Russians seem to hate water. My Hermanni seems to hate water, she struggles mightily trying to get out of the dish. But they need to have access to water and to be soaked if his keeper thinks he is not drinking. I soak my Sulcata babies and when I had desert babies I soaked them every other day. I had a 4 year old California desert tortoise. I got her as a hatchling and raised her myself. So she was soaked every other day for 4 years. She stopped eating, so I took her to the Vet after she didn't eat for 3 days. The very first thing the Vet says is "She's dehydrated". Holy crap! How could she be dehydrated??? I soaked her every other day for 4 years. So as much as we soak them sometimes it simply does no good. But I recommend soaking anyway...

 

[reptylefreek]

I think because many other reptiles are soaked for shedding purposes, we soak turtles. I soak once a week for cleaning purposes. My sully loves digging and dirt and I soak so it doesn't cake up too bad. He has a water dish but hates it. Tobester... I know your a new member but I'm not sure if your tort is a baby, but this is totally normal. Actually i have a leopard who is between 10 and 15 yrs old and sometimes she just hates me for putting her in the tub.

And some torts are just a little more skittish. My baby sully is almost completely comfortable with me at a year old. But my leo is still a little more skittish even though she was a very people socialized tort. That my friend will change or I guess be called personality.

 

[K9KidsLove]

Hi...My box turtles, babies as well as adults, go into their water regularly without my help. My Russians however, don't. My Sulcatas also didn't when they were younger.

Often babies don't know they need to drink. When mine become adults, I don't force soak unless someone isn't doing well or I have them for rehabbing.

I would rather have them get used to force soaking than to deal with a dehydrated turtle/tortoise.

We take them out of their natural element, so sometimes we have to improvise.
Patsy

 

[reptylefreek]

Well said Patsy

 

[TobesterTort]

I think because many other reptiles are soaked for shedding purposes, we soak turtles. I soak once a week for cleaning purposes. My sully loves digging and dirt and I soak so it doesn't cake up too bad. He has a water dish but hates it. Tobester... I know your a new member but I'm not sure if your tort is a baby, but this is totally normal. Actually i have a leopard who is between 10 and 15 yrs old and sometimes she just hates me for putting her in the tub.

And some torts are just a little more skittish. My baby sully is almost completely comfortable with me at a year old. But my leo is still a little more skittish even though she was a very people socialized tort. That my friend will change or I guess be called personality.

My tortoise is not a baby. I was told from his previous owner that he is 5-10 years old, and that she got him 5 years ago. She said that Toby was about the same size now as when she got him, but he might have gotten a little bit bigger. However, when I posted his picture on another thread, a member said he looked closer to 25-30 years old! So I really don't know of his age. Does anyone know how to identify his age? Thanks for your input!

 

[dreadyA]

Hey Toby, I don't soak my tort, simply because he is always taking sips out of his dish and constantly walks in it ..and sometimes sits by himself. I also mist his carapace till it drips,but he hates the spray bottle!

 

[Madortoise]

When I first soaked my DT, she tried to get out of the bowl the whole time, but it was at outside. I tried soaking her in the same bowl inside my bathroom (in a bowl placed in a tub) where it's very quiet. She then just sat still, closed her eyes and began enjoying the soak.

 

[ChiKat]

Nelson doesn't mind being soaked but I've been soaking him since he was 3-months old. He usually just sits there, sometimes he'll spread his legs out and just chill
If I see him trying to get out I take him out because I don't want him to stress.
I have only seen him drink from his water dish one time, so I feel the need to soak him.

eta: I soak him in a white plastic bowl that I bought from the store. I think it helps that the sides are opaque.

 

[Stazz]

My Tallula goes mad when I take her out the bath, she LOVES it, she actually falls asleep in it. When I take her out and dry her, she has this MAD energy, extremely feisty....I put her down on the ground and she runs like there is no tomorrow lol.

 

[Kadaan]

Sounds like human children. Some love baths, some will hide to try and avoid one

 

[reptylefreek]

Very good point, perfect comparison

 

[samstar]

I soak my stars once every 2 days and I soak them for about 5 minutes, in those 5 minutes, they drink the water, they put their whole face in the water which is very shallow and they poop like world war 3, they poop wholesale.

 

[Redfoot NERD]

I never could understand the concept of soaking. If you provide water in the enclosure, why can't they go in on their own? Why do you have to soak them? I have never soaked any of my boxies or my tortoise. I just put a water dish in the enclosure and let them go in the water or drink on their own if they wanted to. If your enclosure has enough humidity, why stress them out with a soaking? I do feed my three toed hatchling in a little bit of water because that is what the breeder did and I want him to eat. But I never did understand the idea of force soaking.....or force anything for that matter. They can't be that stupid that they would't know enough to take a drink or sit in the water if they needed to, and I'd be terrified too if some big giant picked me up and put me in a tub of water....just me rambling on......sorry...lol

That's not rambling TerryO.. you are absolutely correct. MOST tortoises are smarter than those that claim to provide "proper" care for them! See how they [ tortoise keepers ] justify "forcing"? Tortoises don't go out of their way.. and pre-meditate how to kill their fellow neighbor [ like humans ].

Watch how they REACT to this reply!

Terry K

 

[Akuma]

When my Pancake tortoise is really really dirty I shower him in the bathtub.
I set the shower hose to very slow squirt, the water to around 20° C and give him a little bit of artificial rain on the shell.

He likes it because he stands tall on his back legs and relaxes, the same thing he does when sunbathing under the Sun Glo lamp. As soon as he tries to crawl away I immediatly stop the shower and I put him straight back in to his enclosure.
There he loves to dry under the sun lamp.

He enjoys the shower so I do it around once a week. He doesn't enjoy getting the water in is face though...

 

[samstar]

When my Pancake tortoise is really really dirty I shower him in the bathtub.
I set the shower hose to very slow squirt, the water to around 20° C and give him a little bit of artificial rain on the shell.

He likes it because he stands tall on his back legs and relaxes, the same thing he does when sunbathing under the Sun Glo lamp. As soon as he tries to crawl away I immediatly stop the shower and I put him straight back in to his enclosure.
There he loves to dry under the sun lamp.

He enjoys the shower so I do it around once a week. He doesn't enjoy getting the water in is face though...

Poop??

 

[Akuma]

Poop??

Excuse me?