Would appreciate words of comfort

[Miggymeister]

Hi, buddies.

This is a sad post for me to write- especially considering it's my first one here.

But this morning I've had to resign myself to the fact that most likely my 4 year old female, Bacall, is either permanently lost or even more sad, dead.

About 5 weeks ago I took my three babies out with me to do lawn work for my elderly aunt and uncle.

Bogie, Bacall, and Camelot were thoroughly enjoying the tasty yard for several hours and they were behaving (as in NOT darting towards the woods located a hundred yards away).

I always set a timer to remind me to check their location every 10 minutes because you know how fast they can move once they decide to.

Well, that was long enough for Bacall to wander into the trees and brush.

Baby Camelot (1 1/2) is notorious for doing that but Bacall has always hung out with me. I guess the berries were to much temptation for her this time around.

I've driven the 5 miles back out there daily and scoured the woods- turning up nearly every rock in place.

I have to admit it's an enticing area for a Sulcata and has plenty of hollowed out stumps, a trickling stream and absolutely no human or dangerous animal traffic so there is plenty of privacy for her to do her own thing.

But I love in Oklahoma and about 3 weeks ago we got an intense cold snap that took us from the 70's to 29 degrees in one night. I feel certain she could have survived that since it warmed back up 24 hours later and I'm sure she burrowed deep.

But now that we're starting to see those temps nightly I just feel I have to make peace with the fact she may be in Heaven.

I've done all the normal stuff like putting out her favorite veggie, etc. but they go untouched.

My three Dachshunds get along very well with the babies- we all sleep in my bed at night (3 torts, 3 Doxies and me). I've taken Mia Sophia (the one who cares for the torts as though they're her pups) with me since she sniffed Camelot out of a rose bush one day back in summer when I couldn't find the little guy.

But even she came up with nothing.

I really need some honest (albeit harsh) words of truth on whether I've exhausted my resources with her.

Bogie and Camelot will come to me by name but Bacall has always been hard-headed. The bots have always shown more affection to me than she has.

I kept hoping that after a rough night she might actually look forward to hearing me and come out. I don't know if she can hear me or has simply wandered so far away at this point she can't.

Maybe she burrowed down really deep.

Part of me keeps hoping but each day I search it's becoming more depressing and I'm getting to where I cry a lot, which isn't healthy for me.

I'm a firm believer in God and His love for His creatures and I know I'll see her one day in Heaven but that doesn't make it any easier right now.

By some chance has any one of you lost a beloved tort for a long period of time only to have him or her stroll back into your life one day?

Should I just give up?

I love all of my pets dearly but they're getting the short end of the stick these days as I spend all of this time searching for Bacall and not spending quality time with the others.

Any advice would be sincerely appreciated.

Miggy

PS. I have other questions I'd like to ask since I realize you guys really know your torts but this is the most pressing.

Have a beautiful day.

 

[Jacqui]

Welcome to the forum, just sorry it is with a heavy heart. My one word of advise is never give up. These tortoises can survive amazing things. Keep looking and keep hoping. Plus I know how quickly they can disappear, even within their own enclosure. Been there, done that.

 

[dannel]

Keep on looking! You'll find her soon! Does she know her name or a sound of a food bag to entice her! Dont give up!

 

[Tom]

Never give up looking. Sorry about your loss.

I hope everyone reading this uses your tragedy as a reason NOT to turn tortoises loose outside of an enclosure. It is surprising and shocking how fast they simply disappear.

I sincerely hope you find Bacall safe and sound.

 

[mainey34]

I'm so sorry this has happened. Please don't give up. I hope some day soon your baby will show up.

 

[dannel]

Look near her favorite places, if she liked soaking look near the stream, or a berry bush, and stuff like that.

 

[Yvonne G]

I really need some honest (albeit harsh) words of truth ...

Hi Miggy and welcome to the Forum!!

This may sound harsh, right when you're at a low point in your life, but the fact of the matter is tortoises are wild animals. They haven't gone through years and years of human intervention to make them domesticated. Wild animals that we keep as pets belong outside in a critter-proof, safe, large, well-planted habitat where they "think" they are still wild animals. They don't belong sleeping in your bed or turned loose in an un-fenced yard. If you can't provide what they need outside, due to weather or what not, then they need to have their own space in the house. A nice, large, well-planted habitat where they can wander around, sit under the light and warm up, and find their food and water in the same spot every day.

I'm really sorry that you lost one of your little sulcatas. I know how it feels, because I've lost one or two in the years I've been keeping tortoises. Like was said before, never give up hope of finding the tortoise. Ask your Aunt and Uncle to keep watching for the baby, especially in early morning and where the sun first hits in the yard. I'll tell you a story that might give you some hope:

I run a rescue and I received a call from a woman who found a tortoise. When I went to pick it up, it was a very young sulcata, about maybe 3 years old, and a little bigger than your fist. The woman had been caring for a vacant house until it was sold, and in the process of cleaning up the securely fenced back yard, found the tortoise. The house had been vacant for 2 years. The woman found a tunnel going under the house where we surmised the tortoise lived during our cold winters. This means the tortoise was about a year old when it was left at the house.

I hope you find your baby. And I hope you now give serious thought to providing a securely fenced in area when you take your babies visiting. Dog kennel panels are portable and easy to bring with you.

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome. So sorry about your lost sulcata. Like everyone has said, don't give up. Even in the spring, look again, if he's not found before then. I would also like to add to emysemys great post. Read the thread I am giving you. It will save you from some day having another tragedy. No matter how much you think your dogs like your torts. It's not a wise thing to have them together unsupervised. Sleeping all together is not supervised. Please read. There are more horrible stories out there then just this one.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-45850.html#axzz2AcKXQi8J

Good luck in your search.

 

[kanalomele]

So sad for you. But never give up. I thought for sure one of mine escaped or died . I looked and looked all summer. Finally by freak accident he turned up!! Three years later!!! I still have no idea where he went during that time, but he obviously didnt need me to take care of him. He looked great and was perfectly healthy. Russians... OY!

 

[mattgrizzlybear]

So sorry for you. ever stop and never give up! Hope you find your tort!

 

[lynnedit]

Don't give up. Let your neighbors know. Post fliers around your neighborhood, at vet's offices and the humane society. Keep an eye on Craigslist to see if anyone posts about a found tort.
You just never know.

 

[terryo]

When you're searching, get down on your hands and knees and look. I hope you find her. I know what it is to loose one. Good luck.

 

[kathyth]

I am so sorry!
Please don't ever give up.
Let anyone in town know just in case.
Hoping for a safe return!

 

[Maggie Cummings]

As others have said, don't give up. Maybe he got cold and is hunkered down in a corner somewhere and you know once they get cold they don't move much.
Terry advised you to look on your hands and knees as that gives you a different prospective, things look different at tort level...Good luck, keep us posted. I lost a box turtle some years ago and found it the next spring in the lot next to my house...found months after it left...

 

[sibi]

I'm so sorry that you are going through this. I can't imagine what it would be like to lose my two sulcatas...I've learned to love them so much as I know you have of your three. Yes, three, because even though you only have two now, Bacall will always be with you in your heart. Keep looking and calling out to him because someday, he may just return to you. Only, you need to do something more important, and harder now. You need to focus on the other two who are under your care. Crying is normal when we are mourning...and you have had time to do that. If you feel you need to have more time to mourn, do so, but realize that if you are not getting better, and you find you are crying more and more each day, you need to think about what you are doing to yourself. First of all, Becall may still be alive somewhere. Second, your other torts need you to care for them. Third, others may also need and depend on you. If you become sick, who will take care of them? In the end, you need to have faith that someday you'll find Becall. Just learn from this and go on living. You have friends here. If you feel you need to speak to someone, pm me at anytime. I'll always listen to you.

 

[TortieLuver]

Sorry to hear what you are going through and feeling. We are all here to listen and offer support. Tortoises surely aren't like the book The Tortoise an the Hare. They do move quite fast. Is it possible that someone else has found her? I actually did some extensive research on this over the past year with Sulcatas and found when they do roam off, they will find a place conducive for them and stay within that same area. Shelter always played the largest influence in their attraction to that specific location. They truly are amazingly smart and I wouldn't give up

 

[IowaGuy28]

Don't give up the search

 

[Baoh]

Keep searching. Take a day off of work if you can and start at the crack of dawn to cover ground and activity period span.

I may have overlooked the size of the animal if you mentioned it, but my moderately sized to large sulcatas can easily handle down into the 30s at night if the temperature rises to the 60s and 70s. Even nights in the 30s with several successive days of 50s highs are capable of being withstood (not ideal, though, and this is when I bring my largest animals inside; the little ones come in well before this point). My 10-inchers can manage this without symptoms of stress and without interruptions in activity patterns once allowed to warm up. If your animal is three years old and fed well, it should have some size to it, which is why you should increase efforts and not give up hope just yet. I have found a juvenile leopard in a field of hay _at night_ after another animal damaged the fence and the leopard left that morning.

 

[janevicki]

Don't give up, keep looking! As others have said, they are smart animals. Wishing you and Becall a quick reunion!

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Don't give up...I know of a lady in Kansas, whose sulcata, Willie", got out of her yard, was assumed lost, and found again 3 years later, about 300 yards from her back fence, in a vacant lot...one of the neighbor's son found it, and asked her what sort of turtle he'd found.

She recognized "Willie" by the distinctive split segment on his shell, even though he'd grown from about 5# to almost 20#, so, after clearing the purchase with the boy's parents, she bought a Steppe tortoise and trade it to the boy for Willie.

Maybe you'll have such luck.

If so, like others have suggested, build a good, strong outside enclosure for your pets, and let them enjoy the outdoors.