Reptile & Amphibian Forums

we recently(about three weeks ago) purchased a russian tortoise. he's been active everyday. he eats regulary. the temps are good. but for a few days hes been just in his burrow sleeping. he hasnt come out at all.
is he hibernating?
and if so, should he be?
and if he shouldnt be should we wake him?
it's still a baby(about 2 inches).
we've been to russiantortoise.net but we were wondering if anyone on here could give us some helpful thoughts or comments or share some personal experiences so we could have a better idea of whats going on with our tort.
thanks in advance,
dave & krissy

If the temps are good (no lower than the 60s at night, with daytime temps in the 70s and 80s with a basking spot in the 90s), and there's plenty of bright light during the day, then you might want to consider the weather conditions. Sometimes they seem to react to cold and gloomy weather even if they are outdoors.

Also, I've noticed that indoor animals are less active than those kept outdoors. When outdoors they spend a lot of time moving in and out of prime basking areas, which changes as the sun moves, and they also spend a lot of time looking for food. And if there are other tortoises, they also like to annoy each other a lot :->

Also dehydration can slow them down. Do you soak him a couple times a week? Does his enclosure have an area with higher humidity, or a substrate he can dig into at night?

Overfeeding can slow them down. I noticed that when I kept a russian hatchling indoors and fed him lots of pelleted foods he became more sluggish.

And sometimes you just never know. Being safe and indoors, the tort probably feels less compelled to be active.

thanks for responding!
we have the correct temps and there is a spot for him to bask and he also likes to burrow at night. we do soak him once a week.
but he is indoors and that maybe the reason... also we feed him regulary/daily.
right now we're in an apartment and dont really have an option for an outdoor pen.
does that all sound correct?
he's up right now which is the first time weve seen him in about three days. so hopefully everything is ok.
thanks again for the information.
dave & krissy

If you've got the environment and food correct, then just keep an eye out for his general health. Runny nose, gasping, diarrhea, etc. Otherwise, if he eats, moves and defecates, he's probably OK.

ok, thanks a lot.
dave & krissy