Another Russian acting strangely

[October]

As some of you know, I'm a new Russian owner, so I have no baseline for normal activity.

Morla seems to be not happy. For now, she has free range of the yard, and I have a temporary storage tub in the corner for her, with about 5 inches of substrate/dirt in it that she can enter/exit at will. She wont come out. It's not just that she doesn't want to come out, but she completely buries herself and then doesn't move all day long. I thought maybe I was missing her morning or evening excursions, so I placed a little pebble on top of her and it didn't move at all. I pull her out in the early mornings and try to give her a lukewarm soak, but she wants OUT and has no interest in any type of food. If she heads the wrong way, I've seen her eat some dandelions, but if she heads the right way she does goes back to the box and buries herself completely again.

Last night I pulled her out and tried to feed her again (various plants from around the house, all on the safe list, including a strawberry and bright hibiscus and geranium flowers) but she just sat there. Eventually I put her back near her box, checked on her a few hours later and she hadn't moved. So I kinda prodded her towards the box, she eventually went in, but this time didn't even bother to burrow, just sat in the corner all night long. The temps last night were about 60 degrees. The high yesterday was around 100 degrees.

Should I be worried? Help!

 

[Jacqui]

Refresh my memory, how long have you had her? Also how long ago did you place her outside? Was she feeding well and active while in the house?

 

[GBtortoises]

Russian tortoises are most active when ambient air temperatures are within the low 70's-low 80's range during the daytime, and conditions are dry or moderately humid. Night time temperatures have little to do with their daytime activity as long as those daytime temperatures reach normal activity levels. They may also be semi-active when daytime temperatures are slightly below or above normal activity range. Just based on the daytime temperature of 100 degrees that you mention in your post, your tortoise is most likely staying put to escape the extreme heat. It's a common misconception that Russian tortoises are active all summer long. This is usually only true when they're kept in climates that have mild summer temperatures. When kept in areas where the daytime temperatures are often in the 90's and up they will often bury themselves to wait out those extremes. It's called estivation and it's a very common occurance with Russians.
In captivity, people will often percieve the action as something being "wrong" with the tortoise. There probably isn't in almost all cases. Continually pulling the tortoise out of hiding and attempting to get it to eat and drink will cause undue stress.
Some Russian tortoises in captivity (and in the wild) are only truly active about 3-4 months out of the year. If your tortoise is coming out on it's own when it wants to I wouldn't be too concerned about it's well being. Russian tortoises are some of the toughest among the tough, they're survivors!
It's not recommended to feed Russian tortoises strawberries or any other fruits either.

 

[October]

I've only had her for 2 weeks. Her previous owner had given her a couple hours a day of outside time, so I have slowly worked her up to just outside. Also our temps have been fluctuating wildly this spring, so this time last week we were lucky to have 80 degrees during the day. I didn't just toss her out into 100 temps, as she was mostly indoors.

According to the previous owner, strawberries were her favorite, and though I know they're not an acceptable food choice I was hoping to entice her appetite with just the one. She has enough weeds, bushes and other plants growing naturally that I don't necessarily need to feed her. I also know that messing with her is not good. I have so little experience with reptiles that I need to remind myself that they know what is best and to just let them be.

I think maybe I misunderstand summer hibernation. I assumed that like many other arid region creatures, she would forage during the early morning and evening when it was cooler and "hibernate" during the day. But google is telling me that they can disappear for days at a time, just burrowed in. Is that the correct assumption? She can breathe, wont cook herself (lots of other cool places--humid or dry--for her to be besides the one tub) and will come out when she needs to?

Thanks again guys.

 

[bikerchicspain]

Those temps need to go up to 90 in the day and around 75 at night,

this could be the reason for her not eating, I would get her warmed up and see how she reacts then,
Hibernate during the day is actually them just digging down to keep cool or in winter warm and going to sleep.
If she gets too warm she will move,

The habitat should have some humidity in it for digging purposes and to keep at bay any respiratory problems.
No more strawberries,
what was her diet before you had her?

I have 2 russians and they will disappear for days on end.

Good luck

 

[GBtortoises]

I disagree that temperatures should be 75 degrees at night, especially for Russian tortoises. That is much too warm at night on constant basis for Russian and Northern Mediterranean species of Testudo.

First of all, if you've only had her for two weeks she is still settling in to a whole new environment and surroundings. She is most likely going to spend most of her time hiding, especially when there is human or other movement around her. Not eating is also very common when a tortoise is in a completely new environment. This is especially true of tortoises that were recently acquired and have been moved from location to location (indoors to outdoors) and handled a lot. The more she is disturbed during this acclimation period, the longer it's going to take for her to settle in and become comfortable enough to want to come out on her own.

Check out this website dedicated to Russian tortoise care, there's good information there on the captive care of Russian tortoises: www.russiantortoise.org

 

[Jacqui]

I would at this point just keep a close eye on her, but my thinking is it is simply she is still settling in. She does have good weight, correct? Hasn't been sick lately that you know of either?

 

[October]

No more strawberries,
what was her diet before you had her?

Mostly romaine-type spring mix, some squash. The lady mentioned strawberries were her favorite and apples as well. (There was a language barrier)

I disagree that temperatures should be 75 degrees at night, especially for Russian tortoises. That is much too warm at night on constant basis for Russian and Northern Mediterranean species of Testudo.

At what point is it too warm for her to stay outside at night?

I would at this point just keep a close eye on her, but my thinking is it is simply she is still settling in. She does have good weight, correct? Hasn't been sick lately that you know of either?

Well, I'm not sure how much she should weigh, as I'm not certain of her age, but from what I understand weight and age do not correlate. Oh! Yes, she does feel heavy when you pick her up. Heavier than she appears, like a good ripe melon. The previous owner said she was always healthy. She does not have runny nose/eyes, puffiness, or a caked cloaca. She appears alert and active when we do see her.

Thanks guys.

 

[GBtortoises]

"At what point is it too warm for her to stay outside at night?"

There really isn't one if a tortoise is going to be kept outside as long as it has adequate shelter to escape temperature extremes. But in doing so, expect that you may not see your tortoises for days or weeks on end. Outdoors, tortoises will act naturally as long as they are given the accomodations to do so, or at least as close as possible in captivity. A Russian tortoise, when it becomes to warm on the surface for long periods, will find a spot to dig in and often bury itself completely to escape the extreme heat.
Indoors is a completely different situation. When indoors, they do not have the capability to dig down a few inches into the cooler, more temperature stable ground. Indoors they typically only have a few inches of loose substrate, which does not have a large enough temperature gradient because a) it is rarely deep enough and absorbs too much heat from above throughout it's depth and b) Is usually contained within an enclosure that has air flow all around it, keeping the temperatures in the enclosure more even with the outside, again not providing enough of a gradient.
Whatever temperatures are being applied indoors are literally "trapping" a tortoise within them. Outdoors a tortoise kept on soil that is deep enough in an enclosure that is large enough and correctly situated can better regulate it's body temperature by choosing it's resting areas based on it's needs. In many, many cases tortoises kept indoors are kept much warmer overall day and night than they would be accustomed to outdoors in captivity or the wild. Temperature gradients influence their activity, digestion, and much more. Keeping them too warm too often or consistently is doing them no good.

 

[October]

Good to know GB, thank you.