You should track your pet’s weight throughout hibernation to know if your pet is healthily losing weight or dangerously starving. Weigh your turtle or tortoise now to get a baseline weight, and keep weighing your pet every 2-3 weeks.  Use the same scale you will use leading up to and during hibernation. Use a digital scale for animals under 6 lbs (2.5kg) to ensure accuracy. Before you fast your turtle or tortoise, you should feed your pet higher levels of vitamin A since hibernation depletes stores of vitamin A. At the beginning of summer (12-16 weeks before hibernation), begin adding vitamin A-rich foods to the turtle's diet.  You can simply swap out some of these foods for other things your turtle normally eats.  Some good sources of vitamin A include:  For tortoises: carrots and squash For turtles (non-meat): Leafy green vegetables like kale, broccoli, mustard and collard greens, and dandelions; orange vegetables, like alfalfa, squash, carrots, sweet potatoes; orange fruit, like cantaloupe and peaches For turtles (meat): fish and baby mice If your pet already gets a lot of vitamin A, just keep feeding it as normal. Towards the end of summer (late July, or 6-8 weeks before hibernation), swap out some of your turtle's normal food for higher-fiber options.   Good sources of fiber for both turtles and tortoises include alfalfa and timothy hay, both which are high-fiber weeds and grasses. If your pet normally eats a high-fiber diet, just keep feeding him as usual. Many turtles and tortoises die because owners hibernate them with undigested food still in their digestive tract. Do not try to hibernate a turtle or tortoise who has eaten within the last month; instead, delay hibernation. Ask your vet for a specific fasting time for your species.  Undigested food kills hibernating pets in 2 ways. Either the food decays and causes fatal bacterial infections inside your pet; or the food decays and creates large clouds of gas, which press internally on your pet’s lungs to suffocate it. When in doubt, contact your vet.  Your pet’s digestive system is controlled to a large extent by temperature. Tortoises can need 3-6 weeks.  Small tortoises (<1kg) need 3 weeks; medium sized (1-1.5 kg) need 3-4 weeks; large tortoises (2-3kg) need 4-6 weeks. Turtles need roughly 2-3 weeks. A small turtle like a Box turtle might need only 10-14 days. While fasting, soak your tortoise or turtle every other day 20-30 minutes in chin-deep water. Ensure your turtle or tortoise has access to drinking water constantly, from now until the end of the entire hibernation. This helps encourage the tortoise to expel waste from its digestive tract and stay hydrated. Temperature determines your pet’s metabolism, which is why hibernation happens when it is cold. Ensure that all food is out of your pet’s body before you go onto the next step. Do not go below 50°F (10°C).  Turtles: start 1 week before hibernation. 65°F (18°C) for 2-3 days, gradually reduced to 60°F (15°C) over 2-3 days, then gradually reduced to 50°F (10°C) or a little below.  Tortoises: start 4 weeks before hibernation. Gradually reduce temperature to 60°F (15°C) over 1 week, then keep temperature 55-60°F (13-15°C) for 3 weeks so your tortoise can fully digest its last meal. 50°F (10°C) is the maximum (warmest) temperature for hibernation to occur. If your turtle or tortoise is at 50°F (10°C), they will begin to hibernate. Most pet owners use fridges for indoor hibernation, but only with a lot of care and caution. Make sure your turtle or tortoise is completely safe from predators such as rats, which like chewing on hibernating tortoises.  If you have an aquatic turtle that is staying in water outdoors, make sure the water does not freeze and has a depth of at least 18 inches. If your pet is staying indoors, scope out a cool location in your house for your turtle or tortoise. Many people use refrigerators. Others use garages, basements, or any room at room temperature. Pick a location that stays above 50°F (10°C) as its default. If your power goes out, your pet escapes, or another accident occurs, you want your turtle or tortoise to live despite the temperature change. If you are choosing to place your pet in a fridge for hibernation, you must watch your fridge and pet carefully to avoid death.  Ventilate properly. A fridge is air-sealed, so you must provide air to your turtle or tortoise. Open the fridge door at least 3 times a week, for 1-2 minutes.  Test the fridge temperature. Place a thermometer in the fridge and monitor its fluctuations and accuracy. If there is a lot of temperature fluctuation, fill your fridge with other masses, like water bottles, that will hold the temperature steadier than just air will.  Pick a fridge that you will not be using often throughout the day. Opening and closing the door often can deregulate the temperature, as well as flicker the fridge lights on and off. Your tortoise or turtle might become less active, but it should still seem alert and reactive. If your pet is sick, listless, or otherwise abnormal, check with your vet. Do not go onto the next step: hibernation can kill a sick turtle or tortoise.
زِنْ حيوانك الأليف. أطعم حيوانك الأليف فيتامين أ خلال الصيف. زد من حصة حيوانك الأليف من الألياف الغذائية. صوِّم سلحفاتك لمدة 2-4 أسابيع قبل السبات. حافظ على رطوبة حيوانك الأليف. قلِّل درجة الحرارة قبل السبات. قرِّر أين سوف يسبت حيوانك الأليف. جهِّز ثلاجتك ، إن احتجت لذلك. تابع حيوانك الأليف بانتظام.