Help! Tortoise got too hot!

[Aloysius Taschse]

Hello,
Kiwi pulled out her mat from under her hide and must've gotten too hot with the bare heat emitter on tiles. I know I shouldn't have used a heat pad and a ceramic heat emitter and I really screwed up. She's stiff and her head is tucked in and eyes mostly closed. I really hope I didn't kill her but if that's the case I'll be very sad.

 

[Ink]

Did you try to soak her in shallow water. See if she responds not above her head

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

Yes. I have tried to slowly revive her using room temperature water by soaking her in it and then lightly fanning her.

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

I have also tried to poke her feet and legs and they are relatively stiff. It happened about 30 minutes ago and I've been checking constantly but not trying to mess with her too much.

 

[zovick]

I have also tried to poke her feet and legs and they are relatively stiff. It happened about 30 minutes ago and I've been checking constantly but not trying to mess with her too much.

Sadly, it sounds as though the tortoise may have passed away. Are you able to pull on the legs and get them to come out at all? Can you see the eyes very well? Are they closed or open? If you touch one of the eyes gently with a toothpick is there any reaction?

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

The arms slightly can move but the legs are pretty stiff. The eyes are just little slits and are sunken back a little I think. I'll test the toothpick and see what happens.

 

[zovick]

The arms slightly can move but the legs are pretty stiff. The eyes are just little slits and are sunken back a little I think. I'll test the toothpick and see what happens.

Yes, let us know if there is any reaction to touching the eyeball. If not, things are not good. How long do you think the tortoise was in the high heat area? It seems like it may have been longer than you think, like maybe all night all morning to cause this much trauma.

Still it is weird that the tortoise didn't move out of the heat when it started to get too warm. That is not normal.

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

Nothing happened unfortunately. I think she was in it about 30 minutes to an hour. I don't know why she didn't move, although I did find her shelter with the entrance partially blocked by substrate and the enclosure wall. I think she might have twisted it and gotten stuck. I'm so sad, if she is dead I don't know what to do.

 

[Yossarian]

Still it is weird that the tortoise didn't move out of the heat when it started to get too warm. That is not normal.

I have read that sulcatas instinctively dig down to escape heat in their burrows and hides, with heat matts they can get confused and end up digging down toward the matt trying to find cooler earth only to keep getting warmer and thus digging deeper, etc. . .

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

Yes. I really shouldn't have used a heat mat and I feel so bad.

 

[zovick]

Nothing happened unfortunately. I think she was in it about 30 minutes to an hour. I don't know why she didn't move, although I did find her shelter with the entrance partially blocked by substrate and the enclosure wall. I think she might have twisted it and gotten stuck. I'm so sad, if she is dead I don't know what to do.

It doesn't seem that your tortoise is still living. You could still just leave it in the enclosure for another day and see if it moves or not, but I think it is gone from what you have said. Very sorry to hear that.

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

Thank you. Even though this is a very sad occasion and I am extremely sad, I did learn from my mistakes. In my own words, sometimes the education of some people results in a death. Turns out I fell victim to my own statement. Also, this may sound a bit silly, but how do you guys deal with things like this? Have you made any mistakes like this before? I will always remember Kiwi as a good tortoise and she will be buried in a nice place by a mountain laurel in the backyard.

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

Okay I just found out something very weird - the heat pad wasn't on. I must've turned it off last night to charge my laptop and forgotten to plug it back in. She might have died from something else, but I don't know. I probably won't investigate although this is pretty weird.

 

[zovick]

Okay I just found out something very weird - the heat pad wasn't on. I must've turned it off last night to charge my laptop and forgotten to plug it back in. She might have died from something else, but I don't know. I probably won't investigate although this is pretty weird.

Wow! Well, at least the tortoise died from something apparently unrelated to overheating. The only way to know for sure exactly what killed it would be to take it to a vet for a necropsy. If you want to do that, put the tortoise in a plastic bag and refrigerate (do not freeze) it until the vet appointment.

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

I feel a little better knowing that I didn't cause the incident directly. Although still, heat pads are not the best heating source and can be dangerous. I don't think I'll do a necropsy and just bury Kiwi. My mother refuses to have a dead tortoise in a plastic bag in the refrigerator. I'm still very sad, but I will always remember her as a good tortoise.

 

[KarenSoCal]

I am so very sorry. An unexpected death is a terrible shock. I'm sorry this has happened to you.

 

[Lyn W]

So sorry to hear this but keep it warm for a while longer, there have been posts about torts seemingly dying but reviving after being kept warm, so don't bury it for at least 24 hours,

 

[Blackdog1714]

Does your tort have any yellow bumps on it?

 

[Maggie3fan]

Sadly, it sounds as though the tortoise may have passed away. Are you able to pull on the legs and get them to come out at all? Can you see the eyes very well? Are they closed or open? If you touch one of the eyes gently with a toothpick is there any reaction?

Use your finger to touch his eye. But it sounds to me like he's gone

 

[Aloysius Taschse]

I have kept her warm for 24 hours now and I have seen no movement. The eye is sunken in and has no reaction to touch. I did not observe any yellow bumps and I think it possibly could also be a bladder stone infection. I think she is gone and I am going to bury her today. Thank you for your help.