hi i separated my tortoises after nearly a year together because one of them kept biting and butting the other,now the bullied one(bam bam) takes himself off to bed at 8ish and wakes up at 7 in the morn , stays awake all day and eats and constantly tries to climb the divide to get to the other one , but the bully (pebbles) sleeps all the time , i have to wake him ,he stays awake for about an hour when i put him under the lamp , then goes off to a dark corner again to sleep , i have to keep waking him or he wouldnt even eat , if i put them together he stays awake to chase the other for ages but it ends up getting nasty so i split them again , do tortoises really sleep this much or is he missing the other ?

He's not missing the other one. They sleep most of their time, very normal. I'm sure if you left the one alone it'd be just fine and get up to eat when it needed too. Torts personalities are different. I have one that eats tons and tons of food constantly and another that gets up to eat a couple times a week. They were that way as hatchlings and are still the same as adults.

(08-08-2012 01:37 AM)Arizona Sulcata Wrote:  He's not missing the other one. They sleep most of their time, very normal. I'm sure if you left the one alone it'd be just fine and get up to eat when it needed too. Torts personalities are different. I have one that eats tons and tons of food constantly and another that gets up to eat a couple times a week. They were that way as hatchlings and are still the same as adults.

thanks for your reply ,i have left the sleepy one once and it didnt wake up for 24hrs so i woke it as i was worried about it going into to hibernation,its not the warmest summer over here at the moment, how many days would you leave it asleep before you woke it for some food ?

What species of tort are we talking about and what are your temps?

(08-08-2012 03:15 AM)Arizona Sulcata Wrote:  What species of tort are we talking about and what are your temps?

they are mediterranean spur thighs , indoor room temp is always between 22 and 24c and they can go under their heat lamp , i put them out on a good day here when its over 20c.

Just curious, what happens if you switch which side they are on?

(08-08-2012 07:09 AM)Jacqui Wrote:  Just curious, what happens if you switch which side they are on?

hi its just the same what ever side,the biting one is just tired all the time until he sees the other one ,and the other one is constantly on the go,trying to climb , when he gets to the other one he just sits with it even when hes getting bitten or butted .

I personally would let them remain apart as you have done. I would also continue to wake the pouty one and place him in front of his food, keep his temps correct, offer daily soaks and make sure you bug him each and every day for a routine....torts are rather routine by nature, I believe if the only thing that has changed is the room mate situation, then you have simply disrupted his routine...give him time, but make sure he stays in the routine you want him to until he comes around. I would also make sure that you keep an eye on him during his transitional time to see that he gets his crap together.....

Be patient but observant....

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Quote:the divide

May we see a pic of the enclosure as you have it now, maybe we can eye spy some adjustments or tweaks?????

I am concerned about the sleeping for 24 hours, have they had a fecal test done by a vet?

(08-09-2012 12:12 AM)ascott Wrote:  I personally would let them remain apart as you have done. I would also continue to wake the pouty one and place him in front of his food, keep his temps correct, offer daily soaks and make sure you bug him each and every day for a routine....torts are rather routine by nature, I believe if the only thing that has changed is the room mate situation, then you have simply disrupted his routine...give him time, but make sure he stays in the routine you want him to until he comes around. I would also make sure that you keep an eye on him during his transitional time to see that he gets his crap together.....

Be patient but observant....

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Quote:the divide

May we see a pic of the enclosure as you have it now, maybe we can eye spy some adjustments or tweaks?????

hi here are some pics ,one is their sleeping table for night time,the other 2 are the outside run , they have half each now . [attachment=25780][attachment=25779][attachment=25781]

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(08-09-2012 01:43 AM)dmmj Wrote:  I am concerned about the sleeping for 24 hours, have they had a fecal test done by a vet?

hi no they havent had any test done by a vet , the sleepy one has only acted like this since i split them up , he was always the lazy one but just seems like he cant be bothered anymore .

Well unfortunately because of the behavior issues, you don't have the option of putting them back together. Which means you will have to make the best of the situation. It won't hurt to get the parasite test like David mentioned. However I strongly have to agree with Angela. May end up calling for a lot of tough love on your part, but sometimes that's exactly what is needed.

(08-09-2012 06:22 AM)Jacqui Wrote:  Well unfortunately because of the behavior issues, you don't have the option of putting them back together. Which means you will have to make the best of the situation. It won't hurt to get the parasite test like David mentioned. However I strongly have to agree with Angela. May end up calling for a lot of tough love on your part, but sometimes that's exactly what is needed.

hi thanks for your reply,i am waking the tired one the same time as the active one wakes up now , i let him walk around the main garden and house that seemed to keep him awake for longer , maybe he was just bored with the same indoor and outdoor run ,my dogs are a bit like that until they see me get their leads out.

well its taken a while but i have finally got my tired tortoise into a routine , now she wakes up on her own at about 7am and goes back to sleep about 8pm with a little nap in between ,shes eating loads , she has got really confident now and is getting a personality , i think the main issue with her sleeping all the time was the heat lamp , some one did mention temps , it seems it wasnt hot enough , since i changed it she comes to sit under it she never did before , am so glad shes picked up ,was getting really worried .