Other Turtle Discussion :: Turtle keeps making noise

[emma]

I have 3 turtles, but the female is always making noise all the time in the tank. Usually around bedtime, which is 9:30 or so, then again at 6:30 in the morning. She just climbs the basking area and then tries to get out of the tank, or splashes a bunch in the water. I have the tank in my room, so it is really annoying when I am being woken up morning after morning only getting a few hours of sleep. Sometimes she even wakes me up in the middle of the night.

I bought sand and filled up a box with that in case she was trying to get out to lay eggs or something. But she isn't using that either. She just tries to get out of that also.

She is going to be 5 years old this August.

What could be causing her suddenly to being trying to get out of the tank all the time and making all these annoying noises?

[michaelg]

My guess is she is probably gravid and needs to lay eggs. Sand is not an ideal substrate for fresh water turtles to lay eggs. You should use dirt instead. Take a few shovel fulls from the backyard or get a bag of top soil from a garden center. Make sure the container with the dirt is about as deep as her shell is. She'll usually dig down about 1/2 the length of her shell to lay the eggs. If she is gravid, you should be able to feel the eggs along the sides of her shell.

-Michael

[steve]

She's doing this when the lights are out? Is she biting anything or just splashing around? Have tried feeling for eggs?

[emma]

Ok, so I've been trying to get her to lay eggs, because her gravidness has caused me to think she needs to. So I let her outside today and she dug for about an hour and a half and finally laid 2 huge eggs! then I let her cover them up again and finally she walked away, which took another 30 minutes... Well I was taking her inside to put her back in her tank and while I was holding her she laid ANOTHER 2 eggs! Then I took her back outside again and let her walk around for 20 minutes or so to see if she needed to lay more.... Then I took her back inside again and while I was holding her AGAIN she laid 1 egg. So now she's back outside... and I'm just waiting...

What do I do now? Why did she dig forever and only lay 2 of the 5 eggs she has produced? HELP.

[steve]

Wow, I guess keep letting her try to lay them. If this is her first time, it will be a bit harder for her... especially with large eggs.

[michaelg]

What do I do now? Why did she dig forever and only lay 2 of the 5 eggs she has produced? HELP.

It's possible that you covered her nest up before she was done. Like Steve said, if it is her first time, laying eggs will be difficult for her. She may have just been resting when you covered her nest. If she is still acting like she was before she laid the eggs, you probably need to let her try laying eggs again. Keep in mind that she has to push these eggs out. She doesn't just dig a hole and they slip out of her into the hole. She could have a decent number of eggs to lay. It could take a few hours for her.

-Michael