Desert Tortoise Hibernation Season

Mischa visiting the living room

November 19, 2009 -

Michelle T. -- PetSmart Charities

The weather in Phoenix has finally stopped hitting the 90s, and should be dipping into the 40s this week (at night). This is the time of year that my low-maintenance desert tortoise becomes even more low maintenance, but requires some very specific care. As soon as the weather reaches the 30s at night, I need to cover Mischa’s den with a blanket, ensuring her a happy, warm hibernation.

Last year, Mischa was new to my life, and her previous owner was still in the state, helping me figure out what she needed. It was a big adjustment to add Mischa to my pet-care routine. Since I’m used to cats, it was incredibly difficult to understand that Mischa just wanted her fresh food out in the yard on her feeding stone, and that I didn’t need to poke or prod her if she was just lying in a corner. Since she came to me in fall, it took me while to understand that I wouldn’t see her every day, and that she would spend long hours huddled in her den, waiting for the sun to be warm enough to bask.

Even though she’s far from cuddly, and she’s definitely independent, I learned this year that my desert tortoise is not lacking in personality. During the summer, she made it very clear that she prefers lettuce and kale to mustard greens, and that an apple was an especially welcome treat. She decided that if the cats and I got to be inside, she should be welcome too. She started "knocking" on the patio door, rubbing her front feet and claws on the glass. It made such a loud noise that I sometimes relented and let her in, where she would stroll around the dining room and kitchen. She even came in and tried to burrow under my CD tower one night. Unfortunately, desert tortoises aren’t housebroken, so after a few minutes inside I would politely invite her to go back to the yard. She learned quickly that staring in through the door would convince me to bring her a treat, and that she could even climb onto my lap if she wanted to.

I have a small yard, but the whole thing is open to Mischa. There’s something very soothing about watching a big tortoise make its way across the yard, slowly tromping along her path and persistently pushing anything out of her way. I would occasionally have to right flower pots that she had knocked over, and I had to repair the river rock that she dug up.

I’ll keep a close eye on Mischa this winter, but I won’t feel as compelled to check on her every day. I know now that she can take care of herself, with a little help (and a warm blanket) from me. After 37 years, her instincts still instruct her very well.