Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well, I have tried everything. I have soaked Nora, my female ornate, raised the heat level in her virvarium. Nothing seems to work. As soon as I put her back in her house, she finds the coolest spot, and digs under and that's it. I won't see her again until I dig her out and soak her again. She hasn't eaten in over two weeks now. I am so worried. The temperature outside has been in the 50's and some days low 60's. Some days high 40's. I tested the dirt in her pen, and I can still dig in it. It is soft...not frozen. Well I am sure you know my question. Should I put her outside in the pen? I filled it with loads of leaf litter, and fallen leaves on top of the top soil and compost. Please help I am really worried. This is my first box turtle in many years and I want to do everything right for her.

RELAX.....
She won't starve in two weeks, or even eight weeks.

Unless I missed something, I don't think you've given
us many details as to where you acquired your ornate
hatchling or how old she is.

Is she literally a hatchling, ie: hatched this summer?
Or is she an older juvi?

If you purchased her from someone, did they say that she
had been eating well?

I really don't see this as being a hibernation issue.
I think it more likely has to do with being a young baby,
if that is the case, or adjusting to new surroundings.

I have two that I brought in when we had our prolonged hard
freeze a week or so ago. They had been hibernating for a month.
But they are kind of runts and I hadn't planned to keep them out all winter so I brought them in.

They started eating within a day. Every other turtle I have indoors, save for a few of my '06 hatchlings are eating well also.

I have started force feeding my reluctant hatchling a mixture of babyfood chicken and carrots. I just put a small amount in their mouths and they swallow it. I use a tiny screwdriver to gently pry open their mouths and then squirt a small amount of the food into their mouths. I know it makes me feel better considering the reluctant feeders are pushing 4-5 months old.
But you see, they didn't starve to death in that amount of time.

Others may have other ideas, but I really don't think this is an issue about hibernation at all.

Thanks for your reply...I got this adult ornate box from some guy I met in a pet store. I paid $40. for her. I don't know where he got her or how old she is. I know she is full grown. I had her in a virvarium, 55 gal, proper lighting, peat moss, leaf compost, plenty of plants for humidity, water bowl, etc. I had planned to put her outside in a new pen that I was building, but it never got finished until the weather turned cold, so I had to keep her inside. But as soon as it got cold outside, and I put the heat on inside, she dug into the compost and that was it. Until then she was a very good eater, and seemed very healthy. She even ate worms out of my hand, and was friendly.

Ooops! I saw this post
http://forums.kingsnake.com/view.php?id=1208744,1208744
and thought she was a hatchling.

A few years ago, I had a subadult ornate female that
I was keeping in for the first winter I had her, and
as we got into winter, she wanted to bury down into her
substrate and sleep most of the time. I do think she
would eat when I would rouse her and have her soak.

I just kept her in the house, with no extra heat and she
did fine, but she did eat occasionally.

Maybe turn off the extra heat in her enclosure and let her sleep for a month. Do you have a good scale, where you could get her wait in grams, or at least in ounces?

You could weigh her first, and then weigh her periodically when you soak her and see if she is losing much weight.

After she has a nap for a month or so, warm her up a little and see if she'll eat.

Or.....

How cold does it get where you are? Can you tell us what state?
If temps are mild and not likely to freeze soon, you could
try hibernating her, or if you have a garage that is cooler but won't freeze, thats a possible option.

But if you want to let her hibernate inside, I don't think it would hurt, but I would turn off the lights and heat pads, and put her in a cooler area of the house, away from heat vents.

AND, I would weigh her and then soak her once every couple of weeks. Maybe if you let her sleep for a few weeks, then she might be ready to get up and eat.

I live in Staten Island, and right now the weather is in the 50's. Yesterday it was 60. They say that it will be in the 40's and 50's all week. I would spend the whole winter worrying about her if I put her out now. I will try what you said and put her in a cooler part of the house with no heat lamp and keep checking her and soaking her . I had an Eastern Box many years ago, who lived in the yard. We didn't know much about them at the time, but we used to keep a big dish of water in the yard and sometimes we would put out some dog food and she would come running when she saw it. She was in the yard they whole time I was growing up...in fact I don't remember a time without her. She was my Dad's pal. So now I have a home of my own, and built this really big pen so I could have my own boxie. I just hope she will be alright...she is so sweet. Thank you so much for all the info. I will keep you posted. I also have a hatchling..ornate. That one seems to be doing good so far. It will be a while before I will winter her outside though. I have pond turtles...red ear sliders...since they were the size of a quarter, and they were no trouble to raise...just fun! This is my little ornate.

I think you are making the right decision.
Keep her substrate damp and soak her every
now and then and keep us posted!

Have you thought about taking this one in to see a herp vet for a check up?
Not eating can be caused by so many different reasons. When mine don't eat I test for parasites right away.
Another reason one may not eat is fear. I have some who will take food from my hands, others have to be fed in privacy and will not eat at all unless I give them their time & space alone for sometimes up to half an hour.
I have 3 who will eat in the bath tub after they've had their bath or they will eat in the utility room by the back door, but 1 who will eat ONLY when in the utility room by the back door.
That's Chip & he will not eat if knows that someone is watching.
Try a health check with a vet & if all is well try finding a way to give this one private dining space.
-----
PHRatz

thanks for the help..I took her to a man in the neighborhood who has loads of boxies, and he said she was fine...looked he over really good, eyes, etc. and said that she must have been cought in the wild, and was just doing whas was natural for her..going to sleep for the winter. He told me to put her in a cool place and keep checking her and give her a soak every other week. He said he has some that he keeps inside, and they do the same thing. I also wrote to Turtle Tails...they have helped in the past...and he said the same thing. He also has some that just go to sleep for the winter that he keeps inside. Well, I hope this works, as she was always so friendly, and ate out of my hand often. I will keep you posted. Thanks for all the help so far. I love this message board, and I love all the people who are so willing to help. Thank you all so much.