This is my first tortoise and I've had her for a month, no problems. But I woke up this morning to my grandpa saying she was on her back and he flipped her over. She went under her rock and fell asleep. Is there a, say, limit to how long tortoises can be on their back? I honestly have no clue how long she was like that, and will she be okay?

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I'm sure she will be fine.

Get used to it. Baby tortoises seem to have a death wish. They do that a lot.

Hi f0yzee:

Welcome to the Tortoise Forum!!

A baby tortoise can stay on its back for a little longer that you would think, unless he is under the light. On his back and under the light he will die in no time. Try to figure out what he was climbing on that caused him to end up on his back and fix it so he can't climb there anymore.

(07-22-2012 09:12 AM)emysemys Wrote:  Try to figure out what he was climbing on that caused him to end up on his back and fix it so he can't climb there anymore.

Mine was doing the exact same thing for a while. Keep an eye on him and see what it is that he's flipping himself on and remove it.

Don't worry about them being on their back too much, they should be able to flip themselves over eventually. But make sure wherever this is taking place is not by the heat source.

I had this happen with Cooper when he was around 6 months old. Since then, he hates to be on his back or even just in an upright position when I am washing his plastron. And also in my case, I have no idea how long he was on his back. But other then growing faster then I have ever seen or read about, he is just fine!

Once they become accustomed to where they are they will stop doing that so much. Mine used to do that in the water dish, but have learned that the warm water is kinda nice so now they have stopped.

Sometimes it's a security issue too. You can try providing more hiding areas, I suggest fake plants or vines to burrow in so you don't have to worry about him/her getting on top of it and flipping over. Babies seem to do that quite often and is usually the number one question asked after people get their hatchling home.

Yes, the babies tend to be bad boy's and girl's. Older torts seem to know that being on your back pretty much sucks! I think anyways!

I had the same problem when I first got my baby tort. Turns out he was very bored. I, trying to keep him from flipping himself on anything, didn't put anything in his enclosure and left the substrate very even. Well, he obviously thought "screw this place, I'm going to go find something more interesting" and flipped while trying to climb the enclosure wall.

I added a few rocks, made a few hills with the substrate, and even put in some fake plants, and Carl hasn't tried to flip since. He doesn't try climbing the rocks or anything, he just feels a lot more secure with stuff to look at, I guess. Also, I added a bunch of small rocks strategically throughout his enclosure, especially under the basking lamp. That way if he ever does get on his back, he will be able to flip himself back around again by getting some footing on the rocks.

My baby Leopard tortoise did it on his water dish yesterday UNDER THE HEAT LAMP and scared the daylights out of me! I fixed it but I'm so scared he'll do it again I keep running up to my room every hour!

(07-26-2012 08:06 PM)TortoiseBoy1999 Wrote:  My baby Leopard tortoise did it on his water dish yesterday UNDER THE HEAT LAMP and scared the daylights out of me! I fixed it but I'm so scared he'll do it again I keep running up to my room every hour!

I figured out the easiest way to fix that is to put a nice hill made out of substrate underneath the heat source. That way if he does get flipped over, he will be uneven and it will be easier for him to flip himself back. As far as the water dish, just make it shallow enough so that when he's laying on his back in it, his head isn't even close to touching the water.

futureleopardtortoise Wrote:I figured out the easiest way to fix that is to put a nice hill made out of substrate underneath the heat source. That way if he does get flipped over, he will be uneven and it will be easier for him to flip himself back. As far as the water dish, just make it shallow enough so that when he's laying on his back in it, his head isn't even close to touching the water.

Oh his head was out of the water and I will make a hill! Thanks for that piece of advice!

My little Baby Solomon does this a lot. At first I flipped him over myself all the time. Now I leave him and watch and make him do it himself. If after say 5 min he hasn't managed to get himself over I lend a hand. He's in the living room so I can always keep an eye on him. What has really helped is I've started using a soil based substrate and grow grass in it for him. He eats it and he can get a grip on something to help flip back over. The soil is just damp enough for the grass to grow so it's also helping with the humidity level.

(07-22-2012 09:12 AM)emysemys Wrote:  Get used to it. Baby tortoises seem to have a death wish. They do that a lot.

This.

In addition to all of the suggestions above, you have to be hyper vigilant with a hatching and check on it several times a day. No matter how flip-proof you think the enclosure is, they can always find a way to flip themselves. Its incredible to me that any survive in the wild.


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Mine did this the other day too! He was fine when I left to take the kids to school and 30 minutes later when I got home he was on his back directly under the heat lamp! It's so scary! He wasn't moving at all. I threw all my stuff down ripped off the lid and flipped him back. He just stood up and walked over to the food. I think I was more traumatized then he was! I was worried about him all day (didn't know if there were any long term effects) but he's fine. They have done this lots of times...I know it's normal. I also know it will scare you every time.