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I came home and didn't see Toutolina in her tank - looked down, about 4 feet and she was basking in the sun on the floor!! She seems alright...like it was nothing . I just want to know, how strong is the shell? If this happens again, can it break? I think I'll surround the area with pillows so if she does do that again, she won't get hurt.

Yes, she can break her shell in a fall. My recollection is that her shell probably isn't that strong to begin with due to some past dietary problems, so it's especially important to keep her from falling. She was lucky this time.

The thing to do is figure out how she got out and fix it so she can't get out again. She most likely either climbed up on her basking platform, then stood up and lifted herself out with the strength in her front arms, or else she stood up on the filter or heater. To make sure she doesn't do it again you need to do something like lower the water level along with the basking platform and/or heater and filter or whatever else it was that she could conceivably have climbed up on.

Putting the pillows down won't hurt as a backup but you really need to find out how she got out and fix that because if she falls again she might miss the pillows.

Thank you...
Toutolina (the big one) is actually a he - and so he is very aggressive. He's climb up past the basking area, or on the heater or whatever. I will definitely have to lower the basking area and then eventually get a new tank.

Thanks again!

Oh crap, as I'm writing it, he's trying to climb over again!!

Just make sure you make it so that he doesn't get out of the tank again. It isn't good for them to fall down like that....the danger isn't so much in the shell breaking, it's more about them breaking an arm or leg. Not to mention, he could get lost in your house & die from dehydration if you don't find him in time.

my turtle has fallen atleast ten times from about 4 feet before i fixed it and she was fine

A turtle's shell getting injured/cracked from a fall would depend in part on the distance and type of surface the turtle landed on. My RES has fallen several times, but the distance was never that great and never on a really hard surface. The worst thing that happened to him was that he got the wind knocked out of him.

this is why im putting a cover on my tank. i dont understand why most ppl dont.

Thank you all!
I'm not sure about the covering - Toutolina seems to be claustrophobic...gets really stressed in small areas or when covered up. I know he won't get lost because he's huge - not easy for him to hide at all. I think I'll just work on getting a bigger tank!

Thanks again!

What do you mean he gets claustrophobic? What symptoms does he display?

well id be surprised if a mesh top caused a feeling of being trapped since it isnt a solid lid.

My turtle is very large....she weights 4 & 1/2 lbs and shell is 9 inches long. She took a fall once from about 4 feet & sprained her arm (!). During the fall, she stretched her arm out to catch herself, but the edge of her very heavy shell came right down & nailed her arm into the ground as she hit the floor. Thank goodness her arm didn't break, but she didn't use it for a while. Vet said she sprained it.

Point is this: just make sure they can't get out of the tank. It's not good for them to fall down. Turtles don't "learn the lesson" and not walk off an edge after falling off 20 times (not like a dog). They don't know any better. It is up to US (the caretakers) to prevent these needless falls from happening.

Thanks industrial_girl

When in a small area, Toutolina goes into his shell and stays still. This happened recently, when I tried to feed him into a different container and he wouldn't eat - he just went into his shell and wouldn't come out. I had to put him back into his tank and for 20 minutes it stayed low like it was traumatized. This also happens when I clean the tank and let it rest in the sink...