Do Tortoises Drink Water? (+ Dangerous Mistakes to Avoid)

Tortoises are a very diverse species that live in some of the harshest environments, ranging from barren and cold tundras to empty and hot deserts. So it’s quite hard to know exactly what their relationship with water is.

All tortoises need to have constant access to freshwater, as they need to drink daily, otherwise, they risk becoming dehydrated

Now let’s see how much water a tortoise should drink, what kind of water, and then I will go over some of the biggest and most dangerous mistakes a tortoise owner can make.

How Much Water Should a Tortoise Drink?

The amount of water a tortoise needs to drink is influenced by a multitude of factors, but the most significant of them is temperature. To put it simply the hotter it is outside the more water tortoises need to drink in order to stay hydrated.

There is no exact amount of water a tortoise should drink daily. What’s important is that your tortoise should have constant access to good and clean water, as it will drink as much as it needs when it needs to.

So don’t worry about how much water a tortoise would drink, as there is no exact answer. But as a general Idea most tortoises drink water multiple times per day, I’ve seen my tortoises going to drink water anywhere from 7 to 2 times per day, which is completely normal.

Now let’s talk a little about what kind of water they need to drink.

Is Tap Water Safe for Tortoises to Drink?

The answer to this question is a little more complex as tap water is not necessarily a type of water, it’s the water that comes out of your sink. But where that water originates and how it’s treated can differ greatly from region to region. So the answer can be yes for one person and no for another person. The only certain way to know for sure is to test it.

Testing the water can be done for free most countries in the world have a specific agency that tests and provides information on the water in multiple areas. So you can google the agency in your country that does this and you should be able to find some information about the water in your area.

The problem with this is that they usually choose an area and test it there, but there can be big differences between the water in the testing point and the water that reaches your home. It’s even possible that your house has a rusted pipe which can make your water different from the water your neighbor receives. So while this is a good way to get a general idea about your water, it’s not the most precise.

Another way to test your water is to buy a water testing kit. They are quite cheap and they are really easy to use. Here is a link to a testing kit that I’ve used before: API MASTER TEST KITS for Freshwater, Saltwater, Reef Aquariums, and Pond.

Here are the criteria that you should be looking for:

A pH between 6.0 and 8
A chlorine level of 0
An ammonia level of 0
A nitrite level of 0.5 ppm (parts per million) or less (preferably zero)
A nitrate level of 40 ppm or less

If you want a more detailed guide on how to make tap water safe to drink for your tortoise you can check out this guide: How to Make Tap Water Safe for Turtles – Complete Guide.

What to Do if Your Tortoise Doesn’t Drink Water

Change the Water

The most common reason why tortoises don’t drink water is that they don’t find the water that you give them suitable.

For a while, I used to give my tortoises bottled water to drink, and most of them had no problem with it, except one, I don’t know why but my Russian Tortoise refused to drink a specific type of bottled water that all other tortoises seemed to have no problem with. So it can also be a matter of taste, in some cases.

So if your tortoise simply refuses to drink a certain type of water then try changing it, in my case this solved the problem.

Also, make sure that you change the water daily. It’s not healthy to leave the water sitting for too long.

Hydrating Foods

Another great source of water is food.

There are some fruits and vegetables out there that are full of water, for example, cucumbers are 96% water, and watermelons are 92% water.

But there is a problem with those foods, while they are full of water they don’t always have as many nutrients like other fruits and vegetables that aren’t as hydrating, so try to keep a balance between them.

Another thing to keep in mind when feeding your tortoise fruits and vegetables is the amount of phosphorus and oxalic acid that they contain. Both of those things can be dangerous for tortoises in high quantities. So I would suggest you take a look at this article: Can Turtles Eat Fruits? (How Much, How Often + List), and What Vegetables Can Tortoises Eat? There you will find detailed lists which tell you which fruits and vegetables you can safely feed your tortoise, which you should avoid, and which are ok in small quantities.

Avoid This Common and Dangerous Mistake

Before I go over the last thing that you can do to hydrate your tortoise, I want to tell you about one of the most common and dangerous mistakes that people make, and that is believing that tortoises are like turtles.

Tortoises can’t breathe underwater as turtles do. So under no circumstance put your tortoise in a tank or container filled with water, as they will drown.

A lot of inexperienced tortoise owners have made this mistake in the past since it’s not that easy to differentiate between turtles and tortoises if you haven’t interacted with one before.

If you want to know all the differences between turtles and tortoises you should check out this article: Turtle vs Tortoise – What’s the Difference? (With P i ctures).

Now that we covered this small but important aspect let’s continue with our list of what you can do to keep your turtle hydrated.

Soaking and Misting Your Tortoise

Soaking

Even if tortoises don’t live in water as turtles do, they still need to get into it from time to time, to properly dehydrate.

There are a few ways you can do this, you could either get them a small platform like this one from Amazon and fill it with water and let your tortoise get into it whenever it needs. Or you could get a separate container, fill it with water and let your tortoise sit in it for 20 minutes, twice a week.

Very important, make sure that whatever method you choose the water won’t get past the neck of the tortoise, as they are not able to breathe underwater like turtles are.

Another thing to keep in mind is that you should avoid weather with chlorine in it. While nothing bad will happen if you use water with chlorine a few times, in the long run, it will have negative effects.

I used to buy bottled water for my tortoises, but I recently switched to filtering cans that seem to be doing quite a good job at removing the chlorine from the water. So there are quite a few affordable ways to dechlorinate the water, you don’t need to install an expensive water filtering system for the whole house.

Misting

Filling a spraying/misting bottle with water and misting your tortoise once a day can be a great way to treat and prevent dehydration.

Just make sure that you don’t overdo it, otherwise, their substrate might become damp which will make mold and bacteria grow.

Signs That Your Tortoise Is Dehydrated

The most common signs of dehydration in a tortoise are:

Closed or sunken eyes
Loss of appetite
Dry feces
Thickened or reduced urine
Dry skin
Weight loss
Lack of activity (Lethargy)
Poor muscle tone
Thick mouth mucus

One thing to keep in mind about these symptoms is that some of them, like lethargy and loss of appetite, can also mean something else. So if your tortoise is only showing one of those signs, it could mean that there is another problem, not necessarily dehydration.

I would suggest you check out this article: 9 Signs That Your Tortoise Is Dehydrated (+ What to Do), where I cover those symptoms in detail.

Dehydration, while it can become a serious problem, can easily be treated. But if your tortoise is in really bad shape or if it has another health problem my suggestion is to go to the vet as soon as possible.

Common Questions

Do tortoises drink and pee at the same time? Tortoises have been known to drink and pee at the same time. So if your tortoise is doing this don’t worry it’s perfectly normal. While there is no clear reason why they do this, it is perfectly normal behavior.

How do tortoises get hydrated in the wild? In the wild tortoises don’t always have access to clean drinking water so most of their water comes from the food that they eat and from soaking.

Can tortoises drink water through their tails? No, this is a very old and strange myth, tortoises don’t drink water through their tail or butt. The most likely source of this myth is probably the fact that turtles can breathe through their butt underwater.