I have a Sulcata that has begun using one of my Gopher Tortoises burrows. I placed a large Dogloo (dog house) over the entrance so that I could keep the space heated for Charlie. Charlie went in & out routinely until about 2 weeks ago. I haven't seen him since and the temps are dropping here (Pensacola, Fl.) Today I decided to start digging...Ugh! The burrow is too deep and too long...lost cause. Any ideas on getting Charlie to resurface for food etc.??? Help...Larry Northup
Sulcata trying to hibernate???
- Thread starter Larry Northup
- Start date
- Status
mine slow down, but do peek out..
I'd be a bit concerned if it has been that long...
put a light at the top and maybe he will come towrds it.. once out... block it..
how cool is cool?
how big is charlie?
I'd be a bit concerned if it has been that long...
put a light at the top and maybe he will come towrds it.. once out... block it..
how cool is cool?
how big is charlie?
RV stays below sometimes for days, depending upon the weather. I get concerned and try to prompt her out. When the sun is at the best angle on a warm day that I think she should be out, I take a hair dryer and blow warm air down - not a constant stream mind you, but some, and then off, and then repeat a few times. Then walk away ,, hopefully Charlie will come up. Failing that, you may consider looking down below, like tom did, or send a remote car with a camera attached somehow to see what is going on. (but have it attached to a safety line so you don't lose it below)
Hoping for the best.
teri
Hoping for the best.
teri
M
Maggie Cummings
Guest
That's exactly why I don't allow Bob to dig...
maggie3fan said:
Thanks to everyone for your thoughts, ideas and concern. I may try the hair dryer & a light bulb to create some warmth that might attract him. I just don't want him to starve himself down there. Thanks...Larry
Hi Larry:
Welcome to the forum!!
Just wanted to mention because of your title in the subject line, I'm sure you already know, but I wanted to stress that sulcatas don't hibernate and have to be kept warm in the winter.
Welcome to the forum!!
Just wanted to mention because of your title in the subject line, I'm sure you already know, but I wanted to stress that sulcatas don't hibernate and have to be kept warm in the winter.
M
Maggie Cummings
Guest
Sorry Larry, I didn't mean to sound so flip while you are obviously concerned about your tortoise. Bob is an 80 pound Sulcata and how you are feeling right now is really why I don't allow him to dig. I would be sick with worry. I don't have any experience with burrows and so just professed my worry in a bad way. Please accept my apologies...
Teri's RV has dug a very long and famous burrow and Teri knows what she is talking about. If I were you I would take her advice...
When you get him back up I would suggest that he is set up with a warm shed to sleep in at night. He went down in that burrow because he was too cold...
Teri's RV has dug a very long and famous burrow and Teri knows what she is talking about. If I were you I would take her advice...
When you get him back up I would suggest that he is set up with a warm shed to sleep in at night. He went down in that burrow because he was too cold...
How old and big is your tortoise? 2 weeks sounds really long!
laura808 said:
I adpted/rescued Charluie from Cleveland and so can't be sure of his age. He has been with us for about 5 years and was a couple years old when he arrived by my estimation. He still has not shown any signs of coming up. I dug down into his burrow from above in several places. This burrow appears to be at least 4 feet deep and well over ten feet in length. I've tried the hair dryer several times today with no success. I'm not afraid of the cold but fear Charlie could starve due to a slow metabolism etc. Anymore ideas on getting him out? I wish I had some way to run a camera down that hole, but don't. Worried...Larry
keep digging.. he may be stuck.
try calling tool rental places.. maybe there is one with a plumbers snake type tool with a camera on the end..
or call a plumber.. if they have the tool, they may come out.. but you may have to pay...
try calling tool rental places.. maybe there is one with a plumbers snake type tool with a camera on the end..
or call a plumber.. if they have the tool, they may come out.. but you may have to pay...
Tie a rope around each ankle with somebody stout above ground and go down there and get him. Break out the shovels and stuff. Clearly its warm enough where Teri lives to do this, but I don't know about any other part of the country. Not warm enough year round where I am.
If its warm where you live, he would be coming out if he could... something is not right..
could be a colapse or he is stuck..
could be a colapse or he is stuck..
I echo the above. 2 weeks is too long... RV has been down for days at a time, but I'm not outside 24/7 to see if she peeks out or not... Do what you have to do to dig Charlie out. go from there.
Hoping for the best
teri
Hoping for the best
teri
please give us an update! Keep digging till you find him though!!!
be careful while digging though, a spade could do tremendous damage to a limb or neck, you can never be sure how far in he is!!!
Everyone,
Wonderful news today about 12:30-1:00 I found this "Bad Boy" named Charlie. After everyone's advice & insistance I dug out the entire burrow. This burrow is only about 12" in diameter so I couldn't go down the tunnel and therefore had to dig almost four feet deep making a trench almost 12' long with several turns etc. I had to lay down in the trench to dig with a small spade to work my way to the very end ...NO CHARLIE...UGH!!!
Our back yard is about 1/3 of an acre with lots of plants, shrubs, trees etc. It's a jungle. I started a meticulous search over every square inch of the yard and still, no sign of Charlie. Their was one patch of Aspadistra (Cast Iron Plant) next to an old rotten out Pecan stump, that I hadn't plowed through...you guessed it! Charlie was sitting up in the center of that thickly grown, large leafed plant. He was very cold feeling but still quite heavy. I gave him a nice warm-water bath, created a pen about 5' X 10', put the heated Dogloo in the pen and got him a bunch of fresh picked dandelions and some canned pumpkin (nothing added) for a treat. Thank you all for your advice, encouragement and pushing me to dig that burrow out. I have filled in that darned burrow and there will be No more of that for Charlie. THANK YOU SO MUCH...Larry & Charlie !
Wonderful news today about 12:30-1:00 I found this "Bad Boy" named Charlie. After everyone's advice & insistance I dug out the entire burrow. This burrow is only about 12" in diameter so I couldn't go down the tunnel and therefore had to dig almost four feet deep making a trench almost 12' long with several turns etc. I had to lay down in the trench to dig with a small spade to work my way to the very end ...NO CHARLIE...UGH!!!
Our back yard is about 1/3 of an acre with lots of plants, shrubs, trees etc. It's a jungle. I started a meticulous search over every square inch of the yard and still, no sign of Charlie. Their was one patch of Aspadistra (Cast Iron Plant) next to an old rotten out Pecan stump, that I hadn't plowed through...you guessed it! Charlie was sitting up in the center of that thickly grown, large leafed plant. He was very cold feeling but still quite heavy. I gave him a nice warm-water bath, created a pen about 5' X 10', put the heated Dogloo in the pen and got him a bunch of fresh picked dandelions and some canned pumpkin (nothing added) for a treat. Thank you all for your advice, encouragement and pushing me to dig that burrow out. I have filled in that darned burrow and there will be No more of that for Charlie. THANK YOU SO MUCH...Larry & Charlie !
Yay! A happy ending!
- Joined
- Oct 12, 2010
- Messages
- 22
Speaking as an arachnid collector, this thread reminds me of some dumbasses I encountered some time ago. They decided to go on a tarantula collecting trip. A little later, they came to me and asked me a question that almost made me explode.
See, tarantulas in the wild live in these burrows. These dumbasses decided to try to drown them out. But they thought water wasn't enough, so they decided to mix in gasoline. Well, they came to me and asked how they could collect the tarantulas this way without them dying. Terrified, I asked them what did they mean. They said that water and gasoline worked wonderfully driving out the tarantulas, but they kept dying after they came out. Steam was now coming out of my ears, but I managed to bite my tongue and asked them calmly how many spiders did they try to get using this method. They said about a dozen or so.
Anyway, next time your tortoise decides to burrow down really deep, you might want to dump down there some gasoline to drive him out...... just joking.[/u]
See, tarantulas in the wild live in these burrows. These dumbasses decided to try to drown them out. But they thought water wasn't enough, so they decided to mix in gasoline. Well, they came to me and asked how they could collect the tarantulas this way without them dying. Terrified, I asked them what did they mean. They said that water and gasoline worked wonderfully driving out the tarantulas, but they kept dying after they came out. Steam was now coming out of my ears, but I managed to bite my tongue and asked them calmly how many spiders did they try to get using this method. They said about a dozen or so.
Anyway, next time your tortoise decides to burrow down really deep, you might want to dump down there some gasoline to drive him out...... just joking.[/u]
M
Maggie Cummings
Guest
Larry I don't mean any insult...But I am laughing pretty hard. Charlie really got you on that one!!! I am glad he is alright and you can stop worrying...
not to mnetion anything else that might be down the hole...
How is the digging going???
i see now... he was probably watching you the entire time!!!
How is the digging going???
i see now... he was probably watching you the entire time!!!
- Status
