young tort whistle/chirps

[j156ghs]

My 2-yr-old Hermann's has twice made a whistle or chirping sound when I first picked him up in the past week. I take him out for exercise and he seems fine, and I don't hear the noise again when I pick him up. I don't see any discharge around the nasal passages, and his mouth is clear, and he eats and drinks, poops and pees, and looks fine. But I'm asking because I don't have the experience, and the nearest tort-friendly vet is a 5-hr round-trip, which might stress my tort in itself. But I wouldn't hesitate to make the drive if someone thinks this is serious. (One tort book mentioned that some noises can indicate a respiratory illness or constipation.)

 

[AnthonyC]

I really don't have enough experience to offer advice but I hope everything works out for your tort!

 

[DixieParadise]

Is he making the noise when he is pulling his head quickly back into the shell? When head is out lungs fill up with air. When they retract head quckly they have to exhale quickly to make room for the head and sometimes that makes a whistling noise. Just my thought...hope this is it and nothing more serious.

I am sure I didn't explain that exactly, but I think enough for you to know what I am talking about.

 

[stephiiberrybean]

I read that if they pull back into there shell they can make a hissing or whistling noise.
I've had my leopard do it once.

What i don't know about is the clicking. My leopard often clicks when i have her out. Almost like she's clucking her tongue on the roof of her mouth sort of clicking. I've only heard it a handful of times but perhaps just thought of it as a way to communicate with other tortoises around? Like a guniea-pig squeaks and a horse neighs sort of things.

 

[Riverhorse]

My 14 year old hingeback chirps too. I have only had her a couple of months. I think she chirps when she is waiting for her food. The chirping seems to be different from the whistle. She will whistle when I pick her up, sometimes. I think it is because she doesn't want to be picked up. Hopefully someone with more experience will know why it is.