How Do Tortoises Hydrate?

thegame2388

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When I put my sulcata in his tub for his daily soaking, I don't see him drink or anything.

He might stick his head inside his shell and a few bubbles emerge, but that's it.

I've heard they hydrate from their backside (there's a hole there somewhere), but I'm not sure.

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Tom

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There is some debate about this. Some think they absorb water through their cloaca (that hole in back you spoke of), and some don't. Some think they can take water in through their skin too.

I rarely see any of my 49 tortoises drink, even in soaks, but I do see the evidence of them being in their water, and/or drinking it.
 

thegame2388

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There is some debate about this. Some think they absorb water through their cloaca (that hole in back you spoke of), and some don't. Some think they can take water in through their skin too.

I rarely see any of my 49 tortoises drink, even in soaks, but I do see the evidence of them being in their water, and/or drinking it.

So then how do you know they're being hydrated in the first place?
 

Tom

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Because they don't show the signs of dehydration.
 

mike taylor

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I've seen my red foots poke their heads in the water and their necks looks like there breathing . So I take that as drinking .
 

tortoisetime565

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My red food scare me shatless some days. I'll come home and they will have their heads completing under water. I obliviously freak out like any tort owner would and lift them from the water. This irritates them. But they always do back in for more...

I assume this is them hydrating.
 

dmmj

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I don't see what is so confusing, tortoises mainly drink with their heads under the water, they take it in through the nostril, they can also get some of their moisture from their food. As for the cloaca, I have heard yes, but can't find any studies on it, could be an old wives tale sort of thing.
 

JoesMum

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The stories on absorption through the skin are rekated to how sea turtles hydrate. Sea turtles don't drink sea water as it is too salty. My vet said that it is believed that terrestrial tortoises have retained some of this ability, but it is difficult to prove or disprove... but if he thinks of a way of testing it he would love to!

as for Joe, I have seen and heard him gulping water. More often, he just seems to be dipping his face in the water whether he is soaking or at a water bowl!
 

Dizisdalife

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When my sulcata was a baby I had the same questions because I just never saw him drink. Then during a soak when he was about a year old I saw his head go under the water and stay. The movement in his throat let me know he was taking a big drink. That's when I realized that the many times I had seen his head dip into the water for a few moments he was actually taking a quick drink.
 

Yvonne G

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I read something a long time ago that said a type of turtle in Australia is the only turtle that actually 'drinks' through the cloaca. Turtles and tortoises drink water just like all animals do, just like you do. The only difference is they use their mouths plus their noses. They put their whole face in the water and slurp it up.
 

Elohi

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I also see mine drink. They don't usually drink in their soaks but they do from their enclosure dish.
I believe there is something to water absorption through the skin.


Elohi(Earth)
 
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