February 26, 2008: Tortoises Hibernate
 

From the Daily Mail.
http://cellar.org/2008/turtles.jpg
A friend of mine is a dog catcher... er, Animal Control officer... I'll bet she wishes she could put her menagerie in the fridge, once in a while.

I like the way the fridge is still in use for food and wine!

Species have been moving to higher altitudes to escape the effects of global warming. But eventually there is no more mountain to climb. Warmer weather then deletes that species. Ecologists call this "falling off the mountain".

Warming has been occurring so quickly that species cannot move northward fast enough. Those who climb mountains tend to last longer until eventually they run out of mountain.

I see Mrs. Neely likes to keep a couple of large severed penises (peni?) on hand on the top shelf. You never know when you might need one.:speechls:

The red tub with aluminum foil must be the tortoises (torti?) that wouldn't settle down and go to sleep. Man, she's strict!

What the?
 

Air, I need air!!!!! (plus it's dark in here!):o

Cool. I suspect since they are underground during hibernation and that metabolism is so slow they don't do much breathing lack of air should not be a problem. Open it up and close quickly every few days and it should do the trick. Of course I have no idea what the metabolic oxygen requirements of a hibernating tortise are either.

And then there is this:

Hibernating Terrestrials And Semi-Aquatics Indoors And Out
Freezing and drowning are the two biggest hazards faced by captive terrestrial and semi-terrestrial turtles and tortoises hibernating outdoors, so keepers often provide containers in which their animals can spend the winters indoors. A box-within-a-box that is filled with wadded or shredded newspaper provides insulation and darkness. Place the box in a little-used room, closet, a shed or a garage and keep a thermometer on the box. Check it frequently, especially if there are external weather changes.

Hibernating species can tolerate a temperature between 39°F and 50°F (3.8°C and 10°C) when artificially hibernated. A temperature above 50°F may precipitate torpor, not a true hibernation, and your turtle or tortoise may use up precious fat reserves with its raised metabolism. If that happens and too much fat has been expended, you'll have to take the turtle or tortoise out of its hibernation container and allow it to gradually come up to a warmer temperature. The animal must then be fed and maintained at non-hibernating temperatures. One way to tell your tortoise isn't truly hibernating is if it is active in its hibernation box or if you find it has urinated . Remove him and hydrate him and move the box to a cooler, protected spot. Provide fresh, dry substrate and monitor him to be sure he will sleep.

It's critical to weigh your turtle or tortoise prior to hibernation and chart its weight throughout the hibernation period. Invest in a digital scale for weighing the smaller species (under 6 lbs.) for best accuracy. Based upon the size-to-weight ratio, your vet or another keeper can tell you if hibernation is safe. During hibernation your frequent checks can be used as a time to gently weigh your tortoise. An excellent rule-of-thumb is that a tortoise or turtle should lose only 1% of its body weight per month of hibernation. For example, a 400 gram tortoise should not lose more than 4g per month. Multiply the animal's weight in grams by 0.01: 0.01 X 400 = 4.0 grams. Chart it on a piece of paper you keep taped close to the hibernaculum/container as a guide for next year's hibernation.

Wild tortoises and turtles will select a burrow that has slightly humid soil or leaf litter to decease evaporative water loss through the skin and lungs. Captives that are being hibernated in unnatural conditions indoors risk dehydration due to low humidity. However, because they're poikilotherms, they mustn't be allowed to become wet and chilled, either; they won't be able to dry off. Check the skin condition of animals spending the winter sleeping indoors. If the skin is drier than usual or the animal has lost too much body mass in that period, wake it and soak it in shallow (below the bridge), room-temperature water for two hours to regain lost fluid. Dry it thoroughly (but do not warm it!) and return it to its box. Younger tortoises and turtles (hatchlings and juveniles) should have this done for them every three weeks if necessary.

Body water partitioning in hibernating turtles and tortoises changes in the fall, allowing them to store more water in winter than in summer, so hydration is critical to a successful hibernation. If your hibernating turtle or tortoise voids its water stores (you find the substrate is wet), you absolutely must bring it out for rehydration in shallow water as previously explained.

If your animal is used to hibernating outdoors, make sure it has access to drinking water at all times, but don't let it hibernate where rain can drown it or wet it to the point it gets chilled. Check the hibernation spot frequently. If you see a turtle or tortoise out trying to bask on a rainy or cloudy day, it's indicative that something's wrong with the hibernation process. Bring the animal indoors for an examination to determine whether hibernation should be allowed to continue. Better to be safe than sorry!

Intimidated? You should be. Attention to detail makes the difference a successful hibernation and one that harms your animal. But you've got several good tools with which to work: a scale, a thermometer, a humidity gauge-and resources like your club and the internet.

And this:

It has been revealed that, upon hypnosis resulting from the winter hibernation, the content of
glucose in the blood of mamals (Marmota menzberi Kaschk.) and reptiles( Testudo horsfieldi
Gray) has decreased whereas the components of the lipid exchange and the activity of the
enzyme alanin and aspartat transaminase have increased, the changes observed being more
pronounced in the tortoise than in marmote.
On a level of the intact organism in vitro, over the 30 fold and 100 fold decrease of gas oxygen
exchange takes place in marmots and tortoises, respectively upon the body temperature
decreases as low as 4-50C as a result of winter hibernation.
At a mitochondrial level, a decrease in the bioenergetic parameters by 4-6 times with a
prevailing inhibition of succinate oxidation was recorded in marmots and by 3 times in tortoises
in the state of hypobiosis, which witnesses deep restructuring of the enzymatic metabolic
characteristics of the tissue energetics under these conditions. More significant inhibition of the
respiratory activity in the mitochondria of the liver, kidney and heart against the other organs
was reported in ground squirrel when in the state of natural winter sleeping.
Upon the temperature drop in vitro by 37,25,160C the respiratory activity of the liver
mitochondria of active rodents was recorded to decrease to a significantly smaller degrees ( by 4
times ) than in those of the reptiles ( by 12 times ), thus witnessing a smaller temperature
dependence of the subcellular energetics of the warm blooded animals and the necessity of
functioning of special mechanism decreasing mitochondrial respiration in this group as
compared with the cold blooded animals while in hypobiosis.

http://kutuphane.taek.gov.tr/interne...ication-25.PDF

"Frankie, stop standing there with the door open."
"But mommmmmmm, there's nothing to eat in here."

Tortise soup?

I'm gonna name my pet tortoise Swanson.

ahaha, the tortoises are colour coded,
awsome

I thought they were BRRRRRRRR coded. :-)
Welcome Timo.

Timo! Welcome.

In High School we had an exchange student from, Sweden, I think. His name was Timo. Are you him? ;)

thank you guys!
and hahah Shawnee123, nope, not me! I'm English!
(Timothy turned to Timbo to Timo)
thanks again for the wecome,
long live the fridge tortoise!

OH darn, cause he was really cute! ;)

Tortoise Shell Power!

boy, that must be some hypnotist to hypnotise all those tortoises. Wonder if they now think they're human?

There's a kid called Timo on our swim team, I suspect you're not him either. he never speaks. And it's his given name.

wow I had no idea there were so many Timo's.
When i googled it all I found was a jazz musician.
Then again... how are these Timo's pronounced? I say mine Tim-O,
but on xbox live its always pronounced by people as "Teem-O"

Timo.

here is you heart burn, fallen awake at 5am, headache, toothache, waiting for the advil and glass of soymilk to take effect, gotta get up for real at 8 am 300mph outpour blues quizzo:

1. have you ever been arrested?

2. Do you like ketchup or mustard on your hot dog?

3. Is England America's bitch?

4. How many fingers am I holding up?

5. Would you like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony?

6. What color is the number 3?

7. Boxers or briefs?

eight. Do you know the square root of 81?

IX. Just who the hell do you think you are?

10. Led Zeppelin or the Beatles?

ok Lumberjim, i'm not 100% sure what you're taking about :blush: :p was I supposed to do this once i woke up at 8am? i'ts not so far off... it's about 11.30 and I woke up at 8.14 and I feel a little dizzy and a bit grumpy. (im on British time and I didnt bother to change my account settings....)

but i'll do your quiz anyway!

1. have you ever been arrested?
- no, but I have been cautioned and questioned for being in a playground at 11am on a tuesday... they thought we were ne'er do wells,

2. Do you like ketchup or mustard on your hot dog?
ketchup, mustard frightens me,

3. Is England America's bitch?
uhm, I guess we are... we're so affected by America, I'm not big of my polotics but as far as entertainment and technology goes... Americas in charge!
Redcoats and Yanks. =[

4. How many fingers am I holding up?
seven. ish.

5. Would you like to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony?
not really, you know there'd be some sticks in the mud who just wouldnt cooperate. I'd probrably get shivved.

6. What color is the number 3?
im thinking and it's between blue and green but it isnt turquoise, or teal,

7. Boxers or briefs?
I hate when you but boxers on... and you pull up your jeans, and the boxers bunch up because they're too big... but then again if anybody finds out you're wearing breifs you become a total pariah, its a tricky one. I'd go with boxers though, the physical limitations of breifs are quite troublesome,


eight. Do you know the square root of 81?
9, of course. B in GCSE maths :cool:

IX. Just who the hell do you think you are?
I'm pretty sure I'm decended from vikings...
Irish bithparents... decended from vikings I think...
i'm pretty sure anyway,

10. Led Zeppelin or the Beatles?
oh Zeppelin everytime, although I couldnt believe 'Thats the Way' didnt end up on 'Mothership'
poor show, poor show.

excellent. 9 out of 10.



There are some who call me.....Timo?

Greetings, Timo the enchanter

9/10?
Beetles fan?

that is easily the greatest video I have ever laid eyes on.
I have been known to enchant from time to time..

Our tortoise is in a cardboard box in my closet right now, where he has been since November. Every couple of weeks, we open it, and touch his foot to make sure he is still alive

Sounds like a low maintainance pet -

when I was a kid I found an old paintbrush at the beach, I kept it for like a year... THAt was a low maintanence pet for sure,

oh and Binky, you put food in there right?

No food actually, they don't eat while hibernating(VERY low maintenance) but they go on a hell of a binge when they wake up

wow, thats amazing,
do you know the science behind staying alive so long without food? even if all they do is sleep?

not so much.

....mustard .....ketchup is for fries. IMO

WHAT HE SAID. Seriously their metabolism slows to the point where they can live on stored fat during the winter

I wish I could live on stored fat during winter - I'd actually be ready for swimsuit season come May!! ;)

But seriously - I have learned more about the hibernation habits of tortoises than I ever wanted to know!!

thats simply amazing,

if you look on cellar images post your pets page 27 I posted a picture of him

I wouldn't be suprised if four of them came out with bandana's around their joints and eyes, wielding various weapon's.

He'll start to smell if he dies. ;)

as will everything in my bedroom closet :greenface

That is not the fridge I want to see in the same house as someone who likes to raid the fridge at 3 am while half-asleep.