Tortoise not eating: AZ Heat 120's

[Lolasbuddy]

Hello Everyone,
As you may know, Arizona is under extreme heat warnings (as usual) and temps are reaching 120 during the day. Please let me know if I am caring for my Desert Tortoise. Today my Lola got up and game out around 5:30 AM, as usual, but refused to eat and went back into her burrow. I've never seen her not eat. She always eats a lot in the am. We only have produce to feed her in the summer. I have planted succulents, tortoise grass and oat grass in her enclosure, but nothing grows here in the summer.

Is this normal behavior to suddenly stop eating? Is she estivating? but I just want to be sure I am doing the right things to keep my Desert Tort happy and healthy. We rescued her about 2 months ago, and are working hard to do the right things to help her stay healthy.

Back Story:
It took about one month to get her hydrated, she had sunken eyes, poop that looked like dry hay in a dry leathery covering. Recently, she had wet, formed brown poops and her eyes look normal. She was very hungry and ate dandelion greens, collards, spinach leaves (once), kale, a radish here and there and other greens. Lately I haven't seen any poop, I am assuming she is defecating in her burrow.

She has a burrow about 4ft long at a 45' angle with a large mound of dirt on top with a metal sheet about 2 ft over the burrow that shades the burrow and absorbs the heat .I spray her humid hide and dirt over burrow down with water (the surface) several times a day and I test temps several times a day with a digital and infrared thermos.
During the day: 80 to 86 F (118')
Early morning: 72 to 75F (88 to 92')
Evening and night: 75 to 88'F (90 to 95

I appreciate your expertise and willingness to help. How do I know if she is getting sick or acting normal?
Thanks
Deb

 

[wellington]

I don't really know DT. However, with those temps, I would guess this would be normal, just to hot to be above ground.
Be sure to keep her hydrated though. Either catch her out in the morning and give her long warm water soak, like an hour or pull her out to do it.
I wouldn't worry about the not eating as much as keeping her hydrated. You can also try adding some watery foods like romaine and cucumber and feed her early morning when she first comes out to test the temps. Be sure to have some shade over the entrance, so she can come out into shade and maybe eat. Adding misters to that area might also help her to stay out longer.

 

[Lolasbuddy]

I don't really know DT. However, with those temps, I would guess this would be normal, just to hot to be above ground.
Be sure to keep her hydrated though. Either catch her out in the morning and give her long warm water soak, like an hour or pull her out to do it.
I wouldn't worry about the not eating as much as keeping her hydrated. You can also try adding some watery foods like romaine and cucumber and feed her early morning when she first comes out to test the temps. Be sure to have some shade over the entrance, so she can come out into shade and maybe eat. Adding misters to that area might also help her to stay out longer.

Hello and thank you, Wellington. Shortly after this post, Lola came out and ate a big breakfast, hung out with me for a while, then went back to her burrow. A few hours later, she was at my back door (yes, she knows we live in that place behind the door), and ate another hand full of dandelions. I soaked her in tepid water for about 30 mins (she hates it) and she returned to her burrow. I haven't seen her for the past 3 hours, but I can see her with a spy cam and she's asleep. Thank you so much for all your help.
Deb

 

[Tom]

Hello Everyone,
As you may know, Arizona is under extreme heat warnings (as usual) and temps are reaching 120 during the day. Please let me know if I am caring for my Desert Tortoise. Today my Lola got up and game out around 5:30 AM, as usual, but refused to eat and went back into her burrow. I've never seen her not eat. She always eats a lot in the am. We only have produce to feed her in the summer. I have planted succulents, tortoise grass and oat grass in her enclosure, but nothing grows here in the summer.

Is this normal behavior to suddenly stop eating? Is she estivating? but I just want to be sure I am doing the right things to keep my Desert Tort happy and healthy. We rescued her about 2 months ago, and are working hard to do the right things to help her stay healthy.

Back Story:
It took about one month to get her hydrated, she had sunken eyes, poop that looked like dry hay in a dry leathery covering. Recently, she had wet, formed brown poops and her eyes look normal. She was very hungry and ate dandelion greens, collards, spinach leaves (once), kale, a radish here and there and other greens. Lately I haven't seen any poop, I am assuming she is defecating in her burrow.

She has a burrow about 4ft long at a 45' angle with a large mound of dirt on top with a metal sheet about 2 ft over the burrow that shades the burrow and absorbs the heat .I spray her humid hide and dirt over burrow down with water (the surface) several times a day and I test temps several times a day with a digital and infrared thermos.
During the day: 80 to 86 F (118')
Early morning: 72 to 75F (88 to 92')
Evening and night: 75 to 88'F (90 to 95

I appreciate your expertise and willingness to help. How do I know if she is getting sick or acting normal?
Thanks
Deb

Your burrow is staying 80-88 when its 120 topside? That is great!
What are the numbers in parenthesis? (118')? I'm guessing that is ambient temp above ground?

 

[Lolasbuddy]

Your burrow is staying 80-88 when its 120 topside? That is great!
What are the numbers in parenthesis? (118')? I'm guessing that is ambient temp above ground?

Hey Tom! How are you? Ok so yes, the numbers in parenthesis are ambient temperatures per an outdoor thermometer. And the inside of the burrow is 75 to 90 degrees via infrared and a digital thermometer on a rope.
The burrow has a humid hide entrance and 2 separate tunnels that meet at about 2.5 feet. She has dug another 3 feet or more the past month. About 2 feet of dirt on most of the surface, and a sheet of metal covering the dirt. I wet the entire structure down with water about 6 times daily.
I have a large patch of Cypress Trees that cover the enclosure, so that helps a lot.
Thanks for your help, Tom

 

[ThomasGVAZ]

Hello Everyone,
As you may know, Arizona is under extreme heat warnings (as usual) and temps are reaching 120 during the day. Please let me know if I am caring for my Desert Tortoise. Today my Lola got up and game out around 5:30 AM, as usual, but refused to eat and went back into her burrow. I've never seen her not eat. She always eats a lot in the am. We only have produce to feed her in the summer. I have planted succulents, tortoise grass and oat grass in her enclosure, but nothing grows here in the summer.

Is this normal behavior to suddenly stop eating? Is she estivating? but I just want to be sure I am doing the right things to keep my Desert Tort happy and healthy. We rescued her about 2 months ago, and are working hard to do the right things to help her stay healthy.

Back Story:
It took about one month to get her hydrated, she had sunken eyes, poop that looked like dry hay in a dry leathery covering. Recently, she had wet, formed brown poops and her eyes look normal. She was very hungry and ate dandelion greens, collards, spinach leaves (once), kale, a radish here and there and other greens. Lately I haven't seen any poop, I am assuming she is defecating in her burrow.

She has a burrow about 4ft long at a 45' angle with a large mound of dirt on top with a metal sheet about 2 ft over the burrow that shades the burrow and absorbs the heat .I spray her humid hide and dirt over burrow down with water (the surface) several times a day and I test temps several times a day with a digital and infrared thermos.
During the day: 80 to 86 F (118')
Early morning: 72 to 75F (88 to 92')
Evening and night: 75 to 88'F (90 to 95

I appreciate your expertise and willingness to help. How do I know if she is getting sick or acting normal?
Thanks
Deb

Hi. I'm in Golden Valley so I know what you mean about the heat. It's been about 110 the last few days and my 6 year old Sulcata comes out of his burrow every morning about 7, walks around a bit then goes back in his burrow without eating anything. He stays in until about 3 or 4 then comes out and eats, soaks in his pond a little and just grazes on grass for about an hour before he heads back down his burrow and doesn't come out until 7 the next morning. He goes to the bathroom in his burrow which I rake out every day when he leaves. So it sounds like yours is having the same behavior, this is the 1st summer I've had him so I guess its normal. He's very active when he does come out and seems healthy.