General Care Discussion :: restless behavior

Taking care of your turtle's overall health.

Post Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2009 7:45 am   restless behavior

my turtle is always very good at letting me know when hes hungry. i always feed him in the morning, so if i'm sleeping in one day, he tends to make a lot of noise and slap against the water to wake me up. the past couple of weeks though, he's been doing it more often. my tank is in my bedroom, and i swear my turtle is smarter than he looks because if i'm sleeping, he'll make a lot of noise, but the second i wake up and look at him he stops.

lately, however, he's been acting more restless. i will wake up and feed him and turn his lamp on, and he will still slap the water with his arms and make all this noise. we had some particularly warm days this week, and i realized that i had kept the heater on during these, so im wondering if his tank was just too warm and hes letting me know? how do turtles usually react to a change in season?
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kitkatl3ar
 
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Post Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2009 8:41 am   

Well a normal turtle would speed up there actions.

Basically your turtle warmed up and its moving faster and its metabolism is working faster. So yea your turtle would become restless and want more food.
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Diamondbacks4Life
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Post Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2009 11:34 am   

My turtles react to changes of seasons.

You're heater doesn't have an automatic thermostat? If it did, it would turn off automatically when the temp reached the degrees it was set to and not remain on.
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Post Posted: Wed Apr 29, 2009 5:37 pm   

Many people think reptiles in general aren't very intelligent or feel very few things. I so disagree with that. Turtles are observant little buggers and very clever. I know they can see colors, since they have such attractions as we've mentioned so many times on here, to different kinds of colors/shades. (Heck, my turtles like red and green, but only certain shades).

Your turtle has basically figured out how to get your attention. You are quite loved my friend, and very lucky. One of my turtles really likes me, but the other only puts up with me for certain things, like food or games. Otherwise, she wants little to do with me. Heh, I love her anyways.

I try not to do this, but, yeah, I really do think turtles change their behavior for the seasons. That's what my turtles have done. I think it's basically caused by the different photoperiods of the seasons. Autumn/Winter days are shorter, and they are naturally less active. Spring/Summer days are much longer, so, they will be more active and curious.

Winter... ugh... go away...
IT'S SPRING!!!!!!! *trumpets sound*[/i]
Phryne - Japanese bobtail, 11 y.o.
Hurricane - RES, approx. 19 y.o., 7.00in. long
Typhoon - RES hybrid, approx. 19 y.o., 8 in. long
Sadie - RES, approx. 30+ y.o., 11.5in. long
Sophie - Colombian red tail boa, 15 y.o., 5 ft. long
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theartbook35
 
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Post Posted: Thu Apr 30, 2009 6:47 pm   

They're supposed to be able to see the same colors as humans. And, since people have their preferences in colors, it's not surprising that turtles do as well.
"You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed." -Antoine de Saint Exupery-
marisa
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Post Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 6:08 pm   

marisa wrote:They're supposed to be able to see the same colors as humans. And, since people have their preferences in colors, it's not surprising that turtles do as well.


I just find that so fascinating, ya know?

I wonder how far their vision can go, like, a few feet, or as far or farther than us...
Phryne - Japanese bobtail, 11 y.o.
Hurricane - RES, approx. 19 y.o., 7.00in. long
Typhoon - RES hybrid, approx. 19 y.o., 8 in. long
Sadie - RES, approx. 30+ y.o., 11.5in. long
Sophie - Colombian red tail boa, 15 y.o., 5 ft. long
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theartbook35
 
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Post Posted: Fri May 01, 2009 8:40 pm   

My female RES recently was gravid and splashed profusely, tried to climb over the top of aquarium, etc. until I took her outside. Then she searched for the perfect spot and commenced to digging. She spent from one-half hour to almost two hours and exhausted each session. I cleaned her up and put her back in the tank. Lately, when she sees me she splashes and follows me around the tank. Now, she's just begging for food.
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Post Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 3:15 pm   

They're supposed to have keen eyesight, especially for distance (to see predators). They tend to be somewhat nearsighted, however.
"You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed." -Antoine de Saint Exupery-
marisa
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Post Posted: Sat May 02, 2009 9:20 pm   

Yes, I agree. My RES often watch me when I enter the room or sit at the computer. They can see the turtle food container and may "snap" at my finger until they realize that it's not dinner. I do feed them by hand occasionally and are usually pretty gentle at retrieving the food.
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