Soaking replenishes your tortoises with water and it stimulates them to pass out their waste. It also keeps their digestive and urinary tracts function properly. In a small container, put in some lukewarm water (around 30 C) to the lever no deeper than the juncture between the bottom shell (plastron) and the top (carapace) of the tortoise. Don’t drown the tortoise as they can’t swim. The container should be smooth with high edges preventing the tortoise to escape/fall. It should also be easy to clean. You will see your tortoise drinking from the water first. Tun Tun put her head in the water and not moving for quite a while. Then she may wipe her face in the water. After that she may climb on the edges or rest for a while then she may urinate. Sometimes she does not drink nor urinate but since her bottom can take up water, I just let her stay in the water for a while.
During the soaking, change the water when the water becomes cool or dirty. I put Tun Tun under tap water (warm water) for washing and moist a Q tip to clean her mouth and her bottom. For the shell, you may moist a cotton pad or use a very soft brush for cleaning if that gets dirty. Then I wipe her shell with a piece of tissue.
Sometimes if Tun Tun really can’t go poo poo, I flushed her bottom with warm water under the tap. That will stimulate her for poo poo and also urinate. But try to be patient with them as they are slow animals. Tun Tun loves to play with the water more than doing her business.
I also found that after Tun has her electrolyte bath, she will urinate/ poo poo faster. It may have something to do with osmosis pressure.
Electrolyte bath is not a must. But it can be used as a supplement. Since Tun Tun got her electrolyte from her last vet visit when she did not eat, I will just use it up slowly. Electrolyte bath supplements the tortoise with vitamins and minerals. It will not harm to give her even when she is healthy now.
In winter time, even with change in water in between, the water cools very fast. You may want to move the bathing container with the tort under the heating lamp. Just make sure the temperature is ok, not too hot that will burn the tortoise and remember to take the tortoise out. Tun Tun enjoys her spa a lot.
During the soaking, change the water when the water becomes cool or dirty. I put Tun Tun under tap water (warm water) for washing and moist a Q tip to clean her mouth and her bottom. For the shell, you may moist a cotton pad or use a very soft brush for cleaning if that gets dirty. Then I wipe her shell with a piece of tissue.
Sometimes if Tun Tun really can’t go poo poo, I flushed her bottom with warm water under the tap. That will stimulate her for poo poo and also urinate. But try to be patient with them as they are slow animals. Tun Tun loves to play with the water more than doing her business.
I also found that after Tun has her electrolyte bath, she will urinate/ poo poo faster. It may have something to do with osmosis pressure.
Electrolyte bath is not a must. But it can be used as a supplement. Since Tun Tun got her electrolyte from her last vet visit when she did not eat, I will just use it up slowly. Electrolyte bath supplements the tortoise with vitamins and minerals. It will not harm to give her even when she is healthy now.
In winter time, even with change in water in between, the water cools very fast. You may want to move the bathing container with the tort under the heating lamp. Just make sure the temperature is ok, not too hot that will burn the tortoise and remember to take the tortoise out. Tun Tun enjoys her spa a lot.
After soaking, use a tissue/ soft cloth to wipe dry a tortoise. I use the soaking time to clean up her cage, put in some new food, rest the lights a while and heating devices for a while. Then turn on the heating lamp and warm up the environment before putting her back in.
I soak my tortoise for 15 – 30 min. If she has finished all her business early, then I let her go earlier.
Tun Tun learns that I need to wait for her to finish her business before going to the cage and sometimes she gave me a naughty look that she had done nothing but playing in the water. One time she gave a “stare” when I was not as gentle as before. If I do something she does not like (e.g., lift her up in the air when changing the water), she will quickly moves her arms. It is funny that tortoises express their emotion differently.
Some websites suggest less frequent soaking is needed as a tortoise gets older. Soaking frequency will be reduced to every other day to once a week later in their life.
