Why Does My Tortoise Pee White Stuff?
- Normal Tortoise Waste Like most other animals, tortoises do urinate and defecate as part of their way of ridding their bodies of food byproducts and toxins. This is generally not a surprise to new tortoise owners; however, what may come as a surprise is a third waste byproduct that comes along with the first two. ...
- When to Worry ...
- Proper Tortoise Diet ...
- Conclusion ...
What is the White Stuff in a tortoise's urine?
This is the end product of protein digestion and is also stored in the urinary bladder as a creamy, off-white pasty semi-solid. In reptiles, uric acid is cleared from the bloodstream by the kidneys. When the tortoise urinates, it will pass the liquid urine and the semi-solid urates at the same time.
Why is my tortoise poop white and chalky?
Tortoises also occasionally pass all three types of waste at the same time, and if they do so, it may look as though their feces is white and chalky as well — rest assured, this is nothing out of the ordinary, just your tortoise’s urates passing at the same time as other waste.
What happens when a tortoise pees and poops at the same time?
When the tortoise urinates, it will pass the liquid urine and the semi-solid urates at the same time. A tortoise may urinate and defecate at the same time, which may leave urate deposits on the fecal material. This will make the feces appear as if it is white or off-white. May 9, 2010.
What does dehydrated tortoise poop look like?
A dehydrated tortoise may pass noticeably dry or crumbly poop, but more likely the white urate paste will appear lumpy and granulated, which is a sure sign of lack of hydration. Other signs of dehydration include:
Why is my tortoise passing urine?
Why do tortoises urinate?
What happens when a tortoise drinks water?
What is the liquid that tortoises pee?
What to feed a tortoise to help it not get upset?
What does it mean when a tortoise's urine is yellow?
What color are tortoises urine?
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Is it normal for tortoise pee to be white?
These urates may sometimes mix with urine or feces in the process of eliminating waste, and can make them look white or milky, which is normal as well.
What is the white stuff coming from my tortoise?
Reptile owners frequently wonder about the "white powder" that is excreted by their pets. The material is uric acid and its salts (urates). Be assured that it is normal for tortoises to pass it. Uric acid is the end product of protein metabolism.
How can you tell if a tortoise is dehydrated?
How To Tell If Your Tortoise Is Dehydrated And What To Do To Help ThemReduced, thickened, or whitish urine.Dry faeces.Dry, loose and flaky skin.Sunken or watery eyes.Loss of appetite.Weight loss.Lethargy, depression, lack of activity.Thick, ropey mouth mucus.
How often should a tortoise pass urates?
2. Is your tortoise is passing urates more than three times per week? If so, you may need to take a look at what you feeding your tortoise. Feeding too much protein to herbivorous tortoises can stress the kidneys and cause them to produce a lot of urates.
How often should I soak my tortoise?
Hatchling and young tortoises should be soaked daily decreasing this to every other day as they grow older. Older juvenile tortoises should be bathed 2-3 times a week and adult tortoises bathed weekly, but more frequently if kept indoors under heat lamps.
Is it normal for tortoises to poop white?
When the tortoise urinates, it will pass the liquid urine and the semi-solid urates at the same time. A tortoise may urinate and defecate at the same time, which may leave urate deposits on the fecal material. This will make the feces appear as if it is white or off-white.
How often should a tortoise drink water?
Pet tortoises should have access to clean, fresh drinking water at all times so that they drink whenever they want. Tortoises also drink and get hydrated from their regular soaks and by absorbing water from their food.
Do tortoises like to soak in water?
Tortoises need to soak twice a week or so to help them stay hydrated and clean. This keeps them strong and healthy, avoiding getting sick from dehydration or bacteria that can build up on their body. Tortoises also need to soak so that the shell and the skin do not crack from dryness.
How often should I change my tortoise bedding?
It is good practice to do a full substrate change every few months and while the table is empty it is a good time to replace any damaged lining and to disinfect the table and any rocks and hides.
Are urates bad for tortoises?
For all tortoises, the overwhelming majority of their diet is from plants. If the diet is too high in protein, which would be from feeding dog or cat food, there might be excess urate production, leading to an increased chance of a bladder stone being formed.
How do I know if my tortoise is healthy?
The tortoise should be able to move objects out of the way and try to squeeze through the smallest of gaps. It will dig and climb and it should have good muscle tone in all limbs. The top of the shell (the carapace) should be smooth, feel firm to touch and have no obvious bumps or signs of injury.
Is tortoise pee toxic?
Urine from turtles often contains a lot of urea. Apparently, this is harmful to people, especially to those with compromised immunity, if absorbed or even comes into touch with the skin. Getting killed by turtle pee is unlikely unless it is somehow ingested in the body.
What should tortoise urates look like?
Urates (white material excreted with urine) should range from being watery like egg whites to being soft like toothpaste and should not be hard or gritty.
What does tortoise urine look like?
Normal urine of tortoises consists of a liquid clear portion and of small to moderate amounts of white urates. The color of the liquid part varies from colorless to pale yellow. Tortoises with liver disease may show a yellow-brown to yellow-green urine due to biliverdin, and to a lesser extent to bilirubin.
What does tortoise pee look like?
Instead of wasting the water they take in, they store it in their bodies. Uric acids that other animals continually flush out get crystalized by the tortoise, allowing them to expel only those actual waste products as a white, semi-solid concentrate (the white part of bird droppings are similar in nature).
What causes urates in tortoises?
If the uric acid builds up in high enough levels, a situation that might happen if the tortoise is not drinking and staying well hydrated, the uric acids combines with electrolytes like sodium, calcium, and potassium, to form urates. In a well hydrated tortoise these urates are secreted normally when urinating.
Urate Salts in Urine - Tortoise Group
Tortoise Group is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that educates and advocates for the protection and well-being of the desert tortoise.
How does a tortoise pass urine?
When the tortoise urinates, it will pass the liquid urine and the semi-solid urates at the same time. A tortoise may urinate and defecate at the same time, which may leave urate deposits on the fecal material.
What is the liquid portion of a tortoise's urine?
Tortoises produce urine and urates. Urine is the liquid portion stored in the urinary bladder. Urine contains waste products and toxins that are filtered from the bloodstream. Reptiles also have one more type of excretion product, called urates or uric acid.
Do tortoises produce urine?
Quoted from The Reptile Channel: Tortoises produce urine and urates. Urine is the liquid portion stored in the urinary bladder. Urine contains waste products and toxins that are filtered from the bloodstream. Reptiles also have one more type of excretion product, called urates or uric acid.
Why do tortoises pee inside?
In the wild, tortoises hold their urine inside because they never know when they'll be able to find another drink. Their body uses and re-uses the urine and what is left over is called urates. It is usually pee'd out and looks like anything from white liquid, to cottage cheese to hard rocks.
How long should I soak my tortoise?
If your tort has gritty white urates that is a significant sign of dehydration....how long is the soak you are doing each day? I would say that your tort should be soaked at least one hour in warm water in a tall sided soaking container...it is acceptable for the urates passed to have a toothpaste texture or even liquid texture...but gritty is not good.
What can I feed a Mazuri tortoise?
You can feed prickly pear cactus, grape leaves, hibiscus leaves and flowers, rubelia, spring mix from the grocery store, mulberry leaves, just to name a few. I am sure others will chime in with some others. Oh yeah, and you can feed Mazuri tortoise diet that has been moistened until soft.
Can tortoises excrete urine?
It is perfectly normal for a tortoise to excrete the urates. You're not ever going to be able to make the tortoise stop this. All you can do is make sure he has fresh water to drink and soak him in a tub he can't climb out of occasionally.
What animals scoop up water?
Did you know? Many animals, such as dogs, cats, birds, and lizards lap or scoop up water with their beaks or tongues.
Do leopard tortoises need water?
Leopard Tortoise photo by Bionerds. We know that reptiles are ectotherms, which means they need much less food and water than comparably-sized mammals since they do not need to consume and burn so many calories to stay warm. That is the first thing they have going for them.
Do tortoises dig?
Tortoises mastered that process ages ago, enabling them to spend their time on more important tasks, like napping. These majestic, armored survivors plod continually along, merrily digging burrows that preserve biodiversity and often asking little more than a patch of grass , some sunshine, and some shade.
Why is my tortoise pooping?
Too much fruit can upset the fauna within your tortoise’s gut, causing watery poop. Another issue can be the lack of dietary fiber, although this is less common given that leafy vegetables are a good source of fiber. If for example you’ve made the mistake of feeding your tortoise a diet comprised solely of iceberg lettuce, ...
What does it mean when a tortoise poops?
A dehydrated tortoise may pass noticeably dry or crumbly poop, but more likely the white urate paste will appear lumpy and granulated, which is a sure sign of lack of hydration. Other signs of dehydration include: Lethargic behaviour. Skin that appears dry and flaky. Being underweight.
How to get a tortoise to take water?
If you suspect dehydration is afflicting your tortoise you should immediately provide access to fresh water and fresh vegetation to encourage your tortoise to take on water. It’s also a good idea to get into the habit of soaking your tortoise in a shallow bath (such that the head is not submerged) so that they are able to take on water from both their mouth an cloaca. Using a spray bottle to mist their enclosure also provides further hydration to the shell and skin.
Is it possible to pee at the same time?
Peeing is no less predictable, although the two do seem to take place at the same time in a lot of cases.
Can worms be seen?
Unfortunately however worms are often so small that they can’t be seen, so you’ll have to look out for other symptoms such as diarrhea, lethargy and loss of appetite.
Is it normal for a tortoise to poop?
Tortoise poop on the other hand looks exactly as you would expect it to; brown or dark green depending on what your tortoise diet consists of. Either are perfectly normal and don’t present any cause for concern.
Why is my tortoise passing urine?
If your tortoise is passing urates more than three times a week, lighten up on how much protein you are giving them — too much protein in your tortoise’s diet means their kidneys are working too hard to process and metabolize that protein, which can lead to other health problems down the line.
Why do tortoises urinate?
Like most other animals, tortoises do urinate and defecate as part of their way of ridding their bodies of food byproducts and toxins. This is generally not a surprise to new tortoise owners; however, what may come as a surprise is a third waste byproduct that comes along with the first two.
What happens when a tortoise drinks water?
When your tortoise eats protein, their body will metabolize that protein to use as energy for growth or movement, and will then filter any remaining byproducts through the blood into your tortoise’s kidneys.
What is the liquid that tortoises pee?
From there, the byproducts turn into a liquid called uric acid, which then is concentrated into urates (this concentration is what gives urates their thick consistency). These urates are stored in the bladder and then passed out of the body as waste at the same time that your tortoise urinates, making it look as though the white or pale yellow discharge is part of its regular urine.
What to feed a tortoise to help it not get upset?
Balance out any fruity treats you might give to your tortoise with a healthy mix of fiber-rich vegetables and leafy greens so that they don’t get an upset stomach!
What does it mean when a tortoise's urine is yellow?
If your tortoise is leaving behind dark yellow-brown or greenish-yellow urates along with its waste, this can be a sign of liver disease and you should take your tortoise to a medical professional to be screened for health issues.
What color are tortoises urine?
Urates will generally range from a stark white to a very pale yellow in color, and can be anywhere from the consistency of toothpaste to very thin and watery. The appearance of your tortoise’s urates depend largely on how much protein makes up their diet, as well as how much water they drink on a daily basis.
