my female three toed box turtle has been sitting in her water for very long periods of time. shes been in there for about 4 days. She doesnt come out to eat (with the exception of once). my male three toed is perfectly fine. is this normal?
three toed sitting in water
- Thread starter TurtleTortoise
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No, its not normal. Box turtles sit in water when they don't feel good. She might have an infestation of parasites...she might be egg bound...she might have stones she's trying to pass. Best thing to do is bring her inside and warm her up warmer than she can get to be outside. Maybe even sit her in warm water with a light over her....that is, if you can't afford to take her to the vet. It might be nothing, and then it might be quite serious.
Yeah I thought it might be dehydration but she just stopped I'll see if she does it again.
Three Toed's are notorious for loving the water. But they are usually active in the water. Mine will swim around, dig for mosquito lave', get out, go back in. But they don't just sit there for that long. I do agree with what Yvonne said. If she is just sitting there for such a long time, she might be trying to pass something. I hope she'll be OK.
I often will see several of my easterns staying in the water for days, nights too, completely submerged except for their head. and then climb out to eat, and back in the water. They're all fine.
yagyujubei said:
Wow...I've never seen that with mine. Even in the hottest weather they will go dig under someplace in the shade during the hottest part of the day.
i have an ornate that has been doing this this summer and i'm kind of worried as well. (none of my other turtles are exhibiting this kind of behavior.) i recently read that in eastern boxies that this is a sign of illness of some sort. i'm going to start warm soaking in the event of a blockage, try a bit of pumpkin and then its off to the vet with us.
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