Hi,

I need help! I'm hoping I've come to the right place!!

I have a very handsome male, adult, Spur thighed. He's been part of our family for many years but until now I haven't had to care for him solely and therefore haven't had to worry about hibernation.  I have several problems that I need help with as I'm having sleepless nights (like tonight) worrying about him and would be devastated if anything happened to him.

Problem 1.

I've weighed him, measured him and checked both against the Jackson ratio and he's the right weight to go into hibernation. The problem is that he isn't basking at all even though I put the light on and I'm wondering if the light he has is the correct one. I didn't buy it and haven't got a clue how it should look when it is set up so any advice would be very helpful and a picture too would be even better if that's not asking too much.  He basked previously so I'm not sure why he isn't now.

Problem 2.

I know he has to empty his stomach before he goes into hibernation but he ate 5 days ago and hasn't passed anything at all since so I'm not sure what to do.  I read that he needs heat to make this happen so I'm wondering if the two problems are connected.

Problem 3.

He has water but hasn't touched a drop. He looks as though he drinks when I bathe him but I'm wondering if that is enough.  He never seems to drink when he is in the garden but seems to like plants that contain a lot of water so maybe he's getting moisture that way during the summer but I'm now sure what's going on now.

Problem 4

Although I've inherited the tortoises' enclosure I would really like to see a picture of what it should look like and what it should contain to be suitable for the purpose of hibernation (he lives outside during the summer). Oh and 'subtrates' which are the correct ones?

Although I've planted the garden to be tortoise friendly I really don't have a clue about the rest so any help would be much appreciated by both me and Button.

Many thanks,

Wendy

Hello,

In the absence of a reply ......