What age do tortoises mud bathe?

Sulcatalover21

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I decided to let my little sully whos about 1 1/2yrs old try and mud bathe. She absolutley hated it! She tried to ram my hand away and was very upset. So i walked away and she just refused to mud bathe. I took her back in and she was perfectly fine. At what age do sulcatas start liking mud bathes?
 

Yvonne G

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Most tortoises start at a very young age flinging the mud up on their back. Maybe your mud puddle was too big. ???

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Evy

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Aw, I didn't know about this dirty secret :-/

I recently made a sand box for my sully and my Yorkie Dolly my dog loves to watch London the tortoise walk around and eat. Also London loves the sand or any uneven area.

Going back to the subject. What benefit does this mud bath gives to the sully? And it's necessary even if I have a water blow for him to drink and bathe?




London a lovely sulcata!
 

Blakem

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I would recommend no sand. Sand can cause impaction on your tortoise intestines. It can also cause problems if it gets in their nose or eyes. Just regular dirt is perfect. I've found that it seems to be instinct to go into the water, soak, and fling mud on their back. It keeps them cooler.


Here's some great plant identification websites I use.

http://www.tlady.clara.net/TortGuide/diet.htm#plantlist

http://africantortoise.com/edible_landscaping.htm

http://m.thetortoisetable.org.uk/m/plants_19.asp
 

tortadise

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Well when they are forced into it, they may not like it for sure. But if you just dig up a small corner or shallow section in the outdoor pen and fill it up with water, I'm certain at any age they will enjoy it. Typically sulcatas do this routine to escape being scourged with extreme temperatures of heat. My big guys or little guys won't start doing this until it really warms up to high 90s into the 100s.
 

Evy

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@Blake the sand is just to walk if he wants to. My sully has a bowl of water where he can drink and bathe as he pleases.
So the mud bath that ppl here are referring to... it doesn't have to be mud, correct?
I live in San Diego California and we rarely get that hot in here. Not as hot as in Arizona



London my lovely Sulcata tortoise :0))
 

Tom

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I share Kelly and Yvonne's observations. Mine do this at any age when they are in their outdoor pens on a hot day and I run the sprinklers or a hose to make a mud puddle. They find it and go in on their own and its very shallow. Many of the pics I post here on the forum show muddy tortoises from this practice.

And Evy, Blake is right about the sand box. I have just seen far too many sand impaction X-rays. Can you make it a dirt box instead? Or use orchid bark, cypress mulch or coco chips instead? That sand can be a slow and insidious killer.
 

Blakem

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No, I have a hole that I dug, put pond liner in it, some dirt, and I fill it up a few times a day. The mud is created from the water and dirt mixture. But it should always just be mud. Mine becomes muddy with the water, but it's still like a pool of water. It's completely muddy when the water is dried up. Sorry if that's confusing.

Here's my sulcata in her "mud bath"



Here's some great plant identification websites I use.

http://www.tlady.clara.net/TortGuide/diet.htm#plantlist

http://africantortoise.com/edible_landscaping.htm

http://m.thetortoisetable.org.uk/m/plants_19.asp
 

Evy

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I share Kelly and Yvonne's observations. Mine do this at any age when they are in their outdoor pens on a hot day and I run the sprinklers or a hose to make a mud puddle. They find it and go in on their own and its very shallow. Many of the pics I post here on the forum show muddy tortoises from this practice.

Thank you Tom. I'll put the sand box in another place for my dog. I didn't realize that even a small space in the enclosure it would affect too.

I know what I'm going to be doing this weekend.

And Evy, Blake is right about the sand box. I have just seen far too many sand impaction X-rays. Can you make it a dirt box instead? Or use orchid bark, cypress mulch or coco chips instead? That sand can be a slow and insidious killer.




London my lovely Sulcata tortoise :0))
 

Evy

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Thank you guys. The sand box got moved to other area.



London my lovely Sulcata tortoise :0))
 

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