tortoise loves climbing?
- Thread starter debby
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Hi Debby,
I think it depends on the size of the tortoise, but it isn't good for them so I would remove whatever it is that Lightening is climbing on that makes her land on her back. I had small rocks in Moose's enclosure and removed the largest ones (about 4" long and irregular shaped) because he/she kept doing the same thing - haven't had a problem since.
I think it depends on the size of the tortoise, but it isn't good for them so I would remove whatever it is that Lightening is climbing on that makes her land on her back. I had small rocks in Moose's enclosure and removed the largest ones (about 4" long and irregular shaped) because he/she kept doing the same thing - haven't had a problem since.
They don't like it and they should not be like that for a real long time, but the biggest issue is stress. Being on their back does not kill them rapidly, but it is very hard to breathe and they can die from exposure or predation.
The hard to breathe bit is because most of the top of the tortoise's shell is their lungs, so when they are upside down, all of their other organs are pressing on their lungs and it is tough enough for tortoises to breathe since they cannot expand their ribcage like other animals.
It is smartest to figure out what it is flipping from and prevent it, OR make it easier to flip back. A slope, some stones or branches, etc. can help a tortoise recover. Putting barriers in front of favorite climbing/flipping spots is another option.
The hard to breathe bit is because most of the top of the tortoise's shell is their lungs, so when they are upside down, all of their other organs are pressing on their lungs and it is tough enough for tortoises to breathe since they cannot expand their ribcage like other animals.
It is smartest to figure out what it is flipping from and prevent it, OR make it easier to flip back. A slope, some stones or branches, etc. can help a tortoise recover. Putting barriers in front of favorite climbing/flipping spots is another option.
Hi Debby,
Dying from overturning is a major nightmare for me about my tortoise Taco. Someone on this forum recommended putting medium sized rocks about a shell's length away from walls and other climbing "hazards", so the tortoises can right themselves before they become dangerously compromised.
Here is what happened to me (posted on ShelledWarriors.uk):
Today while I was out trimming flowers, I watched as Taco tried to jimmy her way through a narrow opening between a sprinkler box and the timbered walls of her enclosure. She managed to pull herself up and angled herself onto the edge of her shell, when suddenly she lost her (already precarious) balance, tumbled backward and landed on her back. With enormous effort, I forced myself not to run to her aid immediately and instead wait and see if she could right herself without my help. After what seemed like an eternity, as she writhed and panted and used her head ( grotesquely hyperextended) as a lever, she managed to push herself against a nearby brick and flip back onto her plastron. The whole event probably lasted all of 60 seconds.
I think she was mildly annoyed afterward at being hugged and cried upon. I have worried so much that she might overturn when I am gone somewhere and be unable to right herself, and I am wondering if any of you tortoise owners on this forum have lost a pet due to this natural hazard. Does anyone know if overturning is perhaps very common and easily reversed by the tortoises themselves, without needing human aid? I am so traumatized by having to watch that, and have spent the past two hours going over every possible danger spot and item to try to make her enclosure hazard-proof, even though I know that is not 100% possible.
Here's the thread, which contains a photo by the guy who recommended the "righting stones": http://shelledwarriors.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=30170
__________________
Madkins, I have asked the question of how long an overturned tortoise can survive before suffocating. Do you know the answer?
Dying from overturning is a major nightmare for me about my tortoise Taco. Someone on this forum recommended putting medium sized rocks about a shell's length away from walls and other climbing "hazards", so the tortoises can right themselves before they become dangerously compromised.
Here is what happened to me (posted on ShelledWarriors.uk):
Today while I was out trimming flowers, I watched as Taco tried to jimmy her way through a narrow opening between a sprinkler box and the timbered walls of her enclosure. She managed to pull herself up and angled herself onto the edge of her shell, when suddenly she lost her (already precarious) balance, tumbled backward and landed on her back. With enormous effort, I forced myself not to run to her aid immediately and instead wait and see if she could right herself without my help. After what seemed like an eternity, as she writhed and panted and used her head ( grotesquely hyperextended) as a lever, she managed to push herself against a nearby brick and flip back onto her plastron. The whole event probably lasted all of 60 seconds.
I think she was mildly annoyed afterward at being hugged and cried upon. I have worried so much that she might overturn when I am gone somewhere and be unable to right herself, and I am wondering if any of you tortoise owners on this forum have lost a pet due to this natural hazard. Does anyone know if overturning is perhaps very common and easily reversed by the tortoises themselves, without needing human aid? I am so traumatized by having to watch that, and have spent the past two hours going over every possible danger spot and item to try to make her enclosure hazard-proof, even though I know that is not 100% possible.
Here's the thread, which contains a photo by the guy who recommended the "righting stones": http://shelledwarriors.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=30170
__________________
Madkins, I have asked the question of how long an overturned tortoise can survive before suffocating. Do you know the answer?
I have lost 2 tortoises to overturning, but it was because they overheated in the sun. The tiem difference was only like 30 mins when I last checked on them and when I returned to check on them. It is sad to lose a tort but especially sad when It was preventable like that was.
The time they can last varies on the tort very wildly from what I know. It could be minutes (if the tort gives up, in water or extreme heat), or hours. I don't think more than hours though, but I could be wrong. I agree to figure out what the hazards are in the enclosure. They are usually trying to climb something, not just the wall (unless they can see out). What is near the tort when it is flipped over? Hides with vertical sides like a box can help.
M
Maggie Cummings
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I object to not righting them right away. I would never leave a tortoise on his back. It is instinct that they try hard to right themselves so you are not hindering anything when you go turn the tort back up. It is so stressful for them to be on their backs I tip them back immediately...just my experience and opinion...
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