Upside down tortoise- possibly for a few minutes

[hermanns]

I've found him upside down in his glass enclosure- he usually wakes out of his hide when we turn the lights on- so I'm guessing he was upside down for a few minutes. Will he be ok?

I should also mention he's eating, walking, basically acting normal.

 

[WithLisa]

Don't worry.
It's only dangerous when it happens under the heating lamp or when they struggle to get back on their feet for hours.

 

[stojanovski92113]

He should be ok, but this can be dangerous too depending on how long your tortoises was upside down. It really can be a concerning issue if it happens often. Is there a light under him when flipped? He could of basically baked and died. Is there areas in his enclosure that he climbs and flips over frequently? Then you need to rearrange his enclosure. Also depending on his weight, his internal organs could of crushed his lungs, and then death can occur. As long as it's only here and there, it can be common to find torts flip because they stand up tall as the scratch in corners and will flip. This is where rearranging comes in. Does he have a see through area in his enclosure? You can block it with paper or something. Also last but not least what kind of water dish do you use? That can be real concerning too. It should be a flat saucer type dish. I hope this helps just for the future.

 

[hermanns]

He should be ok, but this can be dangerous too depending on how long your tortoises was upside down. It really can be a concerning issue if it happens often. Is there a light under him when flipped? He could of basically baked and died. Is there areas in his enclosure that he climbs and flips over frequently? Then you need to rearrange his enclosure. Also depending on his weight, his internal organs could of crushed his lungs, and then death can occur. As long as it's only here and there, it can be common to find torts flip because they stand up tall as the scratch in corners and will flip. This is where rearranging comes in. Does he have a see through area in his enclosure? You can block it with paper or something. Also last but not least what kind of water dish do you use? That can be real concerning too. It should be a flat saucer type dish. I hope this helps just for the future.

No, there was no basking light on. I'll work on re-aranging his enclosure. He's fine now- walking around and eating and such. Thanks for the help