How Do Hatchling Turtles Get Through Winter? Safe Overwintering Methods and Precautions

Turtles are animals that need to hibernate, but the mortality rate of hatchling turtles during hibernation is too high, and it is very hard for them to make it through the long winter. So how do hatchling turtles get through winter? Let's take a look together below.

First of all, the issue of water level is very important. For daily keeping, a water level of generally 10-15cm is quite suitable for the turtle, and it will like it very much, able to swim happily in deep water. If it is kept in shallow water all the time or even kept completely dry, that is extremely wrong and will directly keep it to death. The lowest water level should completely submerge its whole body, covering the shell, even several times higher than the shell. If it is kept at a low water level of less than 5cm, it will affect the turtle's daily growth and health. Long-term shallow-water keeping will cause the turtle to climb the tank all day long; you may think it is very noisy but not know the reason, and it will lie around all day with its eyes closed and dozing, have no appetite and not open its mouth to eat, and its body will grow weaker day by day. Overall it will look very listless and be in poor condition, and in the end it will be kept to death~! Low water level keeping will also cause it to develop diseases. For example, if its eyes are not in water for a long time, the conjunctiva becomes dry, and the eyes remain tightly closed and dozing; over time it is prone to eye disease. Or if it has always been kept dry after being bought and never goes into water, that is even more harmful to the turtle and will cause it to dehydrate and die.

When raising hatchling turtles, do not worry that the water level is too deep. On the contrary, too little water will make them impatient, and they will have no appetite to eat. Their physical condition will remain in a state of depletion, and they will gradually become weaker and weaker. Abnormal metabolism in all aspects of the body will easily trigger disease. Whether the daily keeping environment is correct and whether the water level is deep enough determines whether it can eat normally and grow healthily~! So deep-water keeping in daily care is no problem at all. If the most basic conditions such as the daily keeping environment and water level are not done well, the turtle will not eat. Turtles must enter the water before they are willing to eat; they need the assistance of water to swallow food. Otherwise, if the water level is too low, no matter how you put food by its mouth to tempt it, it will not eat. Only a few semi-aquatic turtles and tortoises, such as these types of turtles, can eat on land and can also eat in water, while aquatic turtles must enter the water before they are willing to eat.

It is not recommended to let small turtles enter hibernation; the survival rate will be very low. You should use a heating rod to raise the temperature and keep them, replenishing their strength so they can get through winter smoothly, and then they can eat and move normally just like in spring and summer. Otherwise, due to physical exhaustion, they will not be able to last until they wake from hibernation and will die. Generally, when keeping with heating, the water temperature should be 22-25 degrees, which is quite suitable for turtles. If the water temperature is too low, their appetite and activity will also decrease. The daily eating and activity of turtles follow changes in water temperature. Because of low temperature they enter a state of depletion and fall into a closed-eye dozing state. Below 10 degrees they enter deep hibernation, while at a water temperature of 22-25 degrees they will be very active and will also eat a lot~! If the water temperature cannot reach the standard of the temperature at which it feeds, even if it starves to death it will not eat. So to make it start eating as soon as possible in winter, you must keep it with heating, ensure the water temperature, and feed it every day. After buying it, place it in deep water and heat it so the water temperature is heated evenly. Setting a constant temperature of 22-25 degrees is quite suitable for turtles, and just keep it powered on the whole time; when the temperature is not high enough it will automatically heat up again.

Hatchling turtles need careful care to get through winter, otherwise it may lead to the death of the small turtle.