I feel so mean :(

[em7070]

I've not hibernated my Hermanns before but decided to give it a go this year as Squirt had been showing signs that he'd like to hibernate I've read tonnes of information and found the Tortoise trust website extremely helpful.

However.... I feel so mean not feeding Squirt He's only into his first week of no food with another 2 weeks to go yet! He didn't seem too bothered with food before I started his 'starvation' period so I'm worried he'll lose too much weight. He currently fares as average and the ideal weight/length to hibernate on the Jasckson Ratio, but I still worry as he seems to have lost a couple of grams over the past month and has only had a week of no food... he's perfectly healthy, bright eyes, drinking, baths daily, rather active still (although nowhere near as much as he has been prior to me reducing the 'daylight' hours).

Any help would be greatly appreciated or maybe just for someone to tell me that I'm not a mean mummy... :S

Thanks!

[ElHein]

I feel so mean when I do it myself. Hehe. The thing about hibernation and tortoises is that the. Chemical reactions within the metabolism and digestion of food has an optimal temperature reflected in the tortoises' natural habitat. As they do not produce any warmth themselves, they are dependant on the temperaturw of their environment to remain active. As we go towards autumn the fall in the temperature as well as the tortoises' inner clock sets to pre-hibernation mode. If you want the tortoise to eat more, try to raise the temperature how much does the tortoise weigh and how long is he? Someone told me that a 10% drop in the tortoise's total weight would be a sign to abort the hibernation.

[Bindi]

You're not a mean Mummy, if you are going to hibernate and your tort is indoors then these are the steps you need to take for a safer hibernation Em
As the heat and light decreases over wind-down then he will be less active and use up less energy, if however after wind-down his weight is too low you may have to re-think.