Hi I have a young (>1yo) Hermann's tortoise named Jason. When I let him roam around the house he consistently goes straight for the corner where the cat litter is and hangs out over there. Even after I move him he generally heads right back over there to hang out and nose around. I keep it fairly clean, and of course he's not able to actually get into the bin, so he's not exposed to much if any of the dirty stuff. I'm mostly curious to know if anyone has any ideas as to what could be attracting him to the litter.
Hermann's Tortoise Attracted to Cat Litter?
- Thread starter Tory
- Start date
A very warm welcome to the forum.
How long have you had your tort for? Torts are definitely curious little pets, and when roaming around they want to discover the new place, until they get adapted to it. I don't think there's anything to worry about.
How long have you had your tort for? Torts are definitely curious little pets, and when roaming around they want to discover the new place, until they get adapted to it. I don't think there's anything to worry about.
Probably the smell of cat poop. Inexplicably many torts like eating it... not one of their nicer habits
This is normal for them and very dangerous. They will sometimes eat the litter and become impacted, and eating the cat poop is not good for them either, even though they are attracted to it.
Letting your tortoise roam loose in your house is a very dangerous practice and we strongly recommend against it. Many tortoises are injured, impacted or killed every year this way.
Tortoises need to be contained in safe, well designed tortoise enclosures. If your enclosure is too small to meet your tortoises exercise needs, then make it bigger, or better yet, make a large outdoor enclosure for fair weather.
Letting your tortoise roam loose in your house is a very dangerous practice and we strongly recommend against it. Many tortoises are injured, impacted or killed every year this way.
Tortoises need to be contained in safe, well designed tortoise enclosures. If your enclosure is too small to meet your tortoises exercise needs, then make it bigger, or better yet, make a large outdoor enclosure for fair weather.
He is probably just heading for the safety of the corner if he feels exposed in the open . It isn't really safe to let torts wander around the house and cats can do a lot of damage if they decide to play with this new 'toy' - do a search on cats to see the risks - so keep an eye on that! Don't know where you live but it will be colder on the floor for him too and as he is still quite young that could be risky for him too.
Thanks everyone! I think the safe spot is probably a logical answer, though it is interesting to hear that other torts are attracted to cat poop as well. Good point about the potential for impacting. We will block it off so that he can't get close to it anymore.
Thank you for the safety concerns as well, all noted. Strangely, the cat has very little to no interest in him.
Thank you for the safety concerns as well, all noted. Strangely, the cat has very little to no interest in him.
Tortoises love corners and tortoises love cat poop. My RF can even find it outside when we are on our walks, which results in a really disgusting wrestling match.
The last thing you need is a tort with a tummy full of kitty litter. Definitely keep him away from it, even the little bits that can get tracked out of the box and on to the floor.
If you are going to let him run around the house (which is ill advised, but still up to you) you have to be very tidy. I sweep and vacuum constantly on days where it is too hot to put the big RF outside and even then he is cordoned off in a small space that I know has no threats where I can keep the room hot and humid with multiple hides. This means there can be no kitty litter, or stray hairs to tangle around tongues and intestines. No holes to get stuck in, couches to crawl up into, dishes of kitty food on the floors, Kitties, doors and cabinets to get slammed in, stairs to fall down, well meaning boisterous children, thread, bread clips, bits of plastic...I could exhaust myself making this list.
The last thing you need is a tort with a tummy full of kitty litter. Definitely keep him away from it, even the little bits that can get tracked out of the box and on to the floor.
If you are going to let him run around the house (which is ill advised, but still up to you) you have to be very tidy. I sweep and vacuum constantly on days where it is too hot to put the big RF outside and even then he is cordoned off in a small space that I know has no threats where I can keep the room hot and humid with multiple hides. This means there can be no kitty litter, or stray hairs to tangle around tongues and intestines. No holes to get stuck in, couches to crawl up into, dishes of kitty food on the floors, Kitties, doors and cabinets to get slammed in, stairs to fall down, well meaning boisterous children, thread, bread clips, bits of plastic...I could exhaust myself making this list.
Mammal feces is actually a normal part of the diet in the wild for at least some species of tortoises.
The solution to your problem is not to block off the cat box area, the solution is to stop letting your tortoise roam the floor where is is subject to injury or death.
I can't save the world, but I can try to save YOUR tortoise from harm.
Over the years we have thread after thread after thread about all sorts of bad things happening to tortoises roaming outside of their enclosures. One lady squashed her tortoises head in the door and killed it. Another young member showed us x-rays of a long metal pin her tortoise had swallowed. A couple of years ago, someone's tortoise walked out of a door left open and was lost forever. I've seen them kicked and stepped on. Ever seen x-rays of a tortoise with a broken leg? I have. Lots of them. Ever seen the surgery where a vet uses a saw to cut open a tortoises plastron to remove an ingested foreign body? Ever heard the noise it makes when they pry the freshly sawed plastron open? I have. Too many times. Its awful.
Everyone thinks their cat or dog doesn't care about their tortoise... until the one day when they do. At that point the damage is catastrophic and irreparable.
You know what every single one of these cases has in common? ALL of these people thought it would never happen to them and their tortoise. Every single one of them was wrong.
PLEASE RECONSIDER WHAT YOU ARE DOING WITH YOUR TORTOISE BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE.
Woo Hoo!!! Success!
Many times people just get mad at me and call me names for trying to do this. I'm so glad you are able to see past that and I hope you and your tortoise have many happy decades together because of it.
Oh, and hello Tory, and a very warm welcome to Tortoise Forum.
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Tom is one of my heroes, and I don't have many. Among the others I admire are people who take good advice and put it to good use.
We like to call you names anyway, Tom.
