Hibernating???

[Val and Renee Morel]

Hello All, Thank you to everyone who offered advice during our evacuation from Slidell, LA. Our DBT, Flipper, did just great on the road. 🙂 Flipper is now 4.25 inches, and I think he is a actually a SHE. The turtle’s tail is rather short… maybe 3/4 of an inch. And, I think she might be hibernating. I am hoping you guys can shed some light on this for me. Before the Hurricane, I kept Flipper in a large plastic container, well lit, with a docking station and in brackish (bayou) water. Flipper has been thriving since we found her as a hatchling in Feb. Due to our temporary housing setup at our condo in Gulf Shores, I didn’t duplicate her housing setup. I have her in a large plastic container, in sand (from the beach), with a lamp shining into her container. She is sleeping almost ALL of the time. She looks very healthy and relaxed in her sunny sand box. 🙂 Every other day or so, she wakes up and looks at me….. when she does, I put her in another plastic container which I fill with frsh bottled spring water. I fill the container about 2 inches. She swim around and eats a couple food pellets. After she eats, I dry her offer and put her back in the sand. I’m concerned that she doesn’t seem to need to be fed or watered every day. But, then I figured this may be normal if she’s hibernating. What do you all think? Do you see any problems with this routine/activity? I’m all ears……. Thanks in advance for your input and suggestions, Renee’ 🙂

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