hibernation benefits

[touie]

are there any benefits in hibernating captive tortoises? and if so what are they?

[EJ]

It gives you a break on taking care of them.

It can serve as a biological que for breeding.

That's about the extent of the benefits.

Originally Posted by touie

are there any benefits in hibernating captive tortoises? and if so what are they?

[touie]

so if I don't need a break of care taking and I'm not planning on breeding is it worthwhile?

touie

most keepers do not agree with Ed reasoning behind hibernation

i believe there are more important reasons

they hibernate in the wild
why change something that torts have been doing sucessfully for thousands and thousands of years
as keepers we try hard to replicate torts living to replicate the wild
eating all year could result in obese torts

perhaps if you key in hibernation in the search tool under the banner

you will recieve a much wider view on hibernation

[touie]

It's just that I didn't hibernate last year and I'm rather scared of doing it in case it goes wrong ! I did find that my tortoise slowed down over the winter and hardly ate compared to the summer anyway even though she had an indoor heated enclosure. But obviously if it's better to hibernate I will do My tortoise is only 1 year old at the moment

hi

hibention can scare even the most experienced of keepers

you have lots of time to read up and prepare

you will not be alone

i will be hibernating for the first time this year

well not me personally but my ibera

[EJ]

There's absolutely no reason to hibernate a tortoise outside of the ones I mentioned. While many people on this list might disagree with my take on this there are many reptile keepers in general who do agree that hibernation is not a necessity if all environmental conditions are maintained at a level which promotes good health.

If you drop the tortoises temperature or you allow the temperatures to drop the tortoise will usually be inclined to hibernate because environmental conditions become unfavorable for survival.

Originally Posted by touie

so if I don't need a break of care taking and I'm not planning on breeding is it worthwhile?

[Caroline McI]

Ooh I'm glad this thread is here, will be watching it to see what replies
you get Touie. I too have never hibernated mine. Was told by the "breeder"
I didn't have to (but the less said about him the better).

This week the Vet told me the same thing so I'm really confused.

I absolutely DREAD anything going wrong. Would anyone like two very
cute tortoises for a while?

[pippin]

it absolutly petrifies me as well dreading the day. im not hibernating this year because my vet advised me against it she said with just getting her and she had few health issues i was best to wait a year. im pleased because im not looking forward to it at all, ill probably chck every 5 mins see if shes ok.

[tortoiseguy]

Touie for all the reasons that Aprillinda has mentioned the majority of tortoise keepers hibernate their tortoises if they are healthy enough to do so. The best tortoise keepers try to kep them in conditions as close to the wild as possible, while it is scary to hibernate the benefits far out-weigh the fears