UK - Hermann won't go into brumation

[dwrighty]

Hi

I put my Hermann, about 8 years old, down for hibernation yesterday after not feeding him for two weeks and bathing him everyday.

He has refused to go down to sleep. He was awake yesterday and I went to check on him this morning and he was trying to escape.

We have had quite mild weather through October so I'm wondering if it's too early?

Did I do wrong by getting him up and should I have left him in his box?

I was concerned he would be getting stressed and didn't want him to become ill.

Any help you can be please would be very appreciated. This is my second hibernation year and last year he went down fine.

Thanks for any help you can be!

- D

 

[wellington]

How cold are you keeping him at?

 

[dwrighty]

How cold are you keeping him at?

Thanks for replying!

He was about 12degrees C yesterday so at the top end of between 5-10 but I assumed that would be OK.

Before I put him down he was only under his heat lamp for about an hour after I'd bathed him.

- D

 

[wellington]

That may be too warm. I believe in the mid 40'sF is a preferred temp.
@Tom can advise better.

 

[dwrighty]

Thank you again for replying.

I may keep him up then as it is still quite mild, or look to get a fridge so I can make the temperature what he needs it to be.

I know it's silly and he would be fine but I don't like the thought of it being air tight!

Thanks again

- D

 

[wellington]

Yes, to do it safely, he should be in a controlled temp. Fluctuating up and down is dangerous.

 

[Tom]

Hi

I put my Hermann, about 8 years old, down for hibernation yesterday after not feeding him for two weeks and bathing him everyday.

He has refused to go down to sleep. He was awake yesterday and I went to check on him this morning and he was trying to escape.

We have had quite mild weather through October so I'm wondering if it's too early?

Did I do wrong by getting him up and should I have left him in his box?

I was concerned he would be getting stressed and didn't want him to become ill.

Any help you can be please would be very appreciated. This is my second hibernation year and last year he went down fine.

Thanks for any help you can be!

- D

You need a month of warm temps with no food for him to empty the gut, and with ferret soaks. Then a two week gradual cool down, with shorten daylight hours, and then into the fridge at the correct temperature.

Also, this isn't step-by-step sort of thing. It should all be done gradually, by feel, and depending on the current weather. I keep mine up and feed through October, fast in November, and put them down for brumation in December. I usually wait for a warm spell in March to reverse the process.

The issue is that we typically have warm or cold spells in fall and in spring that make this all difficult. That is why you need an enclosure set up, either indoors or outdoors, or both, that allows you to have some control over temperature and lighting for those occasions when the weather is not cooperating.

Its all here:

Tom's Brumation Thread

Every fall we get bombarded here on the forum with all sorts of questions and problems regarding hibernation and tortoises "slowing down" for winter. The purpose of this thread is to talk about all aspects of this subject, to dispel some of the myths and mysteries, and give a "how to" list of...

tortoiseforum.org

More here:

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[dwrighty]

You need a month of warm temps with no food for him to empty the gut, and with ferret soaks. Then a two week gradual cool down, with shorten daylight hours, and then into the fridge at the correct temperature.

Also, this isn't step-by-step sort of thing. It should all be done gradually, by feel, and depending on the current weather. I keep mine up and feed through October, fast in November, and put them down for brumation in December. I usually wait for a warm spell in March to reverse the process.

The issue is that we typically have warm or cold spells in fall and in spring that make this all difficult. That is why you need an enclosure set up, either indoors or outdoors, or both, that allows you to have some control over temperature and lighting for those occasions when the weather is not cooperating.

Its all here:

Tom's Brumation Thread

Every fall we get bombarded here on the forum with all sorts of questions and problems regarding hibernation and tortoises "slowing down" for winter. The purpose of this thread is to talk about all aspects of this subject, to dispel some of the myths and mysteries, and give a "how to" list of...

tortoiseforum.org

More here:

Info For New People. Please Read This First.

Hello and welcome to tortoiseforum.org! We are all glad you are here! There is no other forum like this anywhere. We have tens of thousands of members from all over the world ranging from kids with their first tortoise to people who have been breeding and keeping high end tortoises since the...

tortoiseforum.org

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

Thank you for including all these links, really useful.

I am in the UK and it has been mild over October.

He is up but has slept for most of today so I'm going to keep up with the bathing, keep him off food and see how he gets on. If he carries on being very dosile and brumating without actually being in his box then I will try again in a couple of weeks.

Thanks again

- D