I think my Tortoise is depressed

I have a fairly large (for the breed) Tortoise, Darwin, who has lived outside for a few years, and just hibernated briefly each winter.
This year, as we approached hibernation time, he caught a cold. With tortoises this can easily go to respiratory issues and pneumonia, and it can do for them.
So in vet’s advice, I brought him in and built him an indoor playpen, sleeping zone terrarium thing, with specialist lamps and lovely reptile soil and rocks and a shrubbery etc., but in comparison to my garden it’s very small.
He is also going to miss hibernating this year, as he has to be 100% fit for that, and he has to stay indoors. This also means he may never hibernate again.

No idea why, but I get the feeling he’s a bit glum. It got me thinking about whether I could release him (no, not just into the Nottinghamshire countryside!) - i love animals and have always been unhappy with caged or contained things that shouldn’t be.

He’s a Russian, or Horsefield’s type, so central Asian naturally. I wondered if I could re-patriate him somehow..... or what to do. It’s a long old flight but wondered if I could combine it with a holiday somewhere :)
He’s actually my young Son’s, so would need to sound him out first - but it’s either that or build something outside with a heatlamp installed and get him roaming again.

Anyway, I’m rambling, more for clarifying my own thoughts really.
Any tortoise specialist here??


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I’m sure someone on TZ will have some advice, we have at least one expert on every topic imaginable on here.

Not sure how you can tell when a tortoise is glum or happy. As for hibernating, I could fancy that myself, spend all winter asleep and wake up in spring.

Just tell him to wind his neck in.

Very similar thread on this tortoise forum. Yes there is a tortoise forum hahahaha :

https://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...pressed.79327/

I'd contact Russian or Central Asian Embassy and ask if they would take him/her back. Failing that, try asking here - https://www.tortoiseforum.org/ and here http://www.shelledwarriors.co.uk/forum/ I am sure there are more online resources including pet stores who may want to buy it from you.

I'm certainly no expert, but I imagine re-patriating would mean you'd have to smuggle him over the border, right? The process for getting live animals through customs seems very stingy.

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Originally Posted by JimSclavunos

I'm certainly no expert, but I imagine re-patriating would mean you'd have to smuggle him over the border, right? The process for getting live animals through customs seems very stingy.

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Agreed - I thought I would disguise him as a large brooch, and just walk through the airport.


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Originally Posted by walkerwek1958

I’m sure someone on TZ will have some advice, we have at least one expert on every topic imaginable on here.

Not sure how you can tell when a tortoise is glum or happy. As for hibernating, I could fancy that myself, spend all winter asleep and wake up in spring.

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Yeh, they’re not overly expressive - but I can tell just from his idiom.... or I could be projecting onto him, and really need to be looking inward for the real issue. Who knows.

I do use him as a sounding board, chat to him when I’m in need of a non-judgemental ear. Maybe I’m bringing him down with my negativity, man....


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Has he gone into his shell?

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Originally Posted by notenoughwrists

Yeh, they’re not overly expressive - but I can tell just from his idiom.... or I could be projecting onto him, and really need to be looking inward for the real issue. Who knows.

I do use him as a sounding board, chat to him when I’m in need of a non-judgemental ear. Maybe I’m bringing him down with my negativity, man....


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Maybe Brexit?

I know nothing about Testudines, and I blame my school because they never tortoise.

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Originally Posted by Kingstepper

Maybe Brexit?

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Possibly. He has a great friend in Europe....
Mishell Barnier


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Lonely? What about a zoo or wildlife park with a colony of them.

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Originally Posted by notenoughwrists

Agreed - I thought I would disguise him as a large brooch, and just walk through the airport.


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...or a meat pie.

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Originally Posted by Jeremy67

Lonely? What about a zoo or wildlife park with a colony of them.

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They tend to be quite solitary. They fight a lot with others! Not sure how but they have a decent set of tin-snips at the head end!


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We hibernate ours (12 year old Hermans) in a fridge from December to February. Uk winters are it cold enough these days for them to hibernate properly in the open. From March to June he lives in a pen in the log cabin, July and August he roams around in the garden and then back in the cabin from sept to Nov.


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I wrote this in another thread a couple of days ago.

"I have a friend who is the same age as me (70yrs) and he was given a Tortoise on his tenth birthday and it is still alive and kicking today.

The only downside is that the thing has a positive urge to copulate in any shoes or slippers it can find."
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If your tortoise is a male, just get a supply of clapped out old shoes and slippers from the SC and the old chap will have the time of his life. This is one occassion when henk and Cannloni may be useful to know.

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Originally Posted by Riley

...or a meat pie.

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Reminds me of an old joke............

I have a couple of female horsefields. Maybe he should come for a long weekend, might pick him up?

The advice i’ve Had is that horsfields are very sensitive to UV and really need it. If it has been absent this can cause renal harm. Did you or have you taken him to a specialist reptile vet? That would be the thing to do. Also, build an outside run, and have a house with built in heat lamp and high rated uv lamp. Feel free to pm if you want.

Hope he gets well but could be a slow recovery.

Perhaps it’s time to shell out on some therapy?

(He might like screamager)

Has he been reading the forum!

so you say "No idea why, but I get the feeling he’s a bit glum. "
but you answered your own question with the info that you've moved him to a smallerr enclosure indoors.
you've disrupted his routine - he simply prefers being outside in the bigger garden

he'll get over it or get used to it the shoes idea or long weekend away is worth a try but I reckon he is just sad his normal routine place is gone - so for him its like he's moved place
i'm not sure repatriating him will solve the depression

Our two tortoises have become quite lately and not active as they were when we got them earlier this year. Least now I know other tortoise owners worry about them as much as I do about our two.

Could it be a climate thing?