Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have a 13 month russian and have read conflicting info on hibernation. my tortoise has been hibernating but i have read that it is to young to do so at this point because its body is not big enough to sustain itself for months on end. i have been taking it out from under its log , turning on the heat and giving it food every couple of days...is this the right thing to do or should i just leave it be?

I'd leave it alone. I have a Russian hatchling that started hibernating on its own back in October so I dug it out of the mulch & put it in the refrigerator for about 6 weeks. It's doing fine now & eating like a pig.

Thanks for the info, I guess I will do just that. I gather it should be kept cool?

If I understood your first post correctly, you've already pulled it out of hibernation, warmed it up and fed it. You would need to wait at least two weeks after the last meal before trying to hibernate it again.

I'd say it's not worth doing that. Just try it again next year.

If it hasn't been in hibernation, you'll still need to wait two weeks after that meal before trying. You might be able to keep it in hibernation about 4 weeks or so after that. Don't force the tort to hibernate. Just stop feeding it, soak it regularly, then turn down the heat and lights over a period of a week or two. If it shuts down, then hibernate. If it still wants to be active, then I'd give up and try again next year.