Most new turtle owners face this problem at some point, for some reason, your turtle will always be asleep, and nothing will convince it to be more active. When I just got my first turtle, I was also faced with this problem, and I ended up spending entire days doing research on what is happening. So, now, I decided to write this short guide for people facing the same problem.
Turtles tend to sleep for longer when the temperature in the tank gets too low, but other common causes include low basking area temperature, lack of UVB light, improper diet, and illness.
As you can see there are quite a few things that can make your turtle sleep all day, but don’t let this intimidate you. All of the things that I listed, can be really easy to spot and just as easy to fix. So, let’s start with the most common cause, a change in the temperature of the water.
The Temperature of the Water
There are two very important things that you need to know about turtles.
The first is that turtles are cold-blooded animals, which means that they can’t heat or cool their bodies on their own, so they rely on the environment to do so.
The second is that they also have the ability to hibernate. This means that when it gets really cold outside, they will automatically enter into a long sleep, and will only wake up when it warms up.
But, turtles don’t suddenly start hibernating, the whole process takes time. As the temperature starts to drop, so will the activity of a turtle, and only when it gets cold enough the turtle will start hibernating.
If there was a drop in the temperature of the water, then your turtle is most likely preparing to hibernate. Now, turtles don’t actually have to hibernate, and just because they are getting ready to do so, doesn’t mean that they can’t go back.
This usually happens when winter is getting close, and the overall temperature of the house drops. If the temperature in the room drops by a couple of degrees, you can expect the temperature of the tank to drop by at least double that amount.
On average the temperature of the water in the tank should be between 75 and 80°F (24 and 27°C). If the temperature gets below that, then your turtle will prepare for hibernation, and as a result, it will have a lot less energy, and sleep more.
Solving this problem is very easy, just increase the temperature of the water. If you don’t already own a water heater, now it’s time to get one. Most water heaters will work, the only two things that you need to look for are that it comes with a guard, so that your turtle won’t break it, and that you can set the temperature.
If you are not sure which heater to pick, here is a link to the one that I’ve been using for the last 5 years: Submersible Aquarium Heater. I don’t have too many things to say about it, it’s a good and reliable heater, it comes with a guard, and you can easily select the temperature. So everything that you want from a heater.
Now, let’s move to the next area where the temperature could be the problem, the basking area.
The Temperature of the Basking Area
While turtles need to have warm water, that is not actually the place where they get most of the heat that they need, that place is the basking area.
The average basking temperature is between 85 and 90°F (29 and 32°C). If the temperature drops below this range your turtle won’t get enough heat, and its body will start preparing for hibernation.
There are quite a few other problems that can arise from the lack of heat in the basking area, so it’s really important to make sure that you get the temperature right.
This problem usually happens due to two reasons, the first being a drop in the temperature of the room, and the second is improper heat bulb placement.
Here is an illustration showing you how close or far away the heat bulb should be based on its power (wattage).
For a more detailed guide on this, you can check out this article: Guide for Lighting and Heating a Turtle Tank and Basking Area.
I would also recommend you get an Infrared Thermometer, it will come in handy when trying to tell the exact temperature of the basking area.
Now, there is one more thing in the basking area that we have to take a look at, and that is the UVB light.
Lack of UVB Light
UVB light has nothing to do with temperature, instead, UVB light plays a vital role in the production of Vitamin D3 which is essential for the calcium in the body. Without UVB light, turtles wouldn’t be able to get the proper amount of calcium which can lead to improper bone growth, metabolic bone disease, softshell, shell rot, lack of energy, and many other bad things.
If you already have a UVB bulb you should know that all UVB bulbs stop producing UVB rays, way before they stop producing light. Most of them only produce UVB rays for 6 months.
If you don’t have one you should get one, as soon as possible. Here are a few recommendations, and at what distance they should be placed.
| Zoo Med | |
| UVB Bulb | Distance |
| ReptiSun 5.0 Mini CFL | 5 inches |
| ReptiSun 5.0 CFL | 7 inches |
| ReptiSun 10.0 Mini CFL | 7 inches |
| ReptiSun 10.0 CFL | 10 inches |
| ReptiSun 5.0 T8 Linear | 6 inches |
| ReptiSun 5.0 T5 Linear | 8 inches |
| PowerSun 80W | 7 inches |
| PowerSun 100W | 10 inches |
| PowerSun 160W | 22 inches |
Now, let’s move away from the basking area and talk about the diet.
Improper Diet
An improper diet will mean that your turtle doesn’t get all the nutrients and energy that it needs in order to be active.
There are two things that you could be doing wrong, the first one is that you are giving your turtle the wrong type of food, and the second is that you might be giving your turtle the wrong amount of food. So let’s go over those two things.
Overall the diet of a turtle should consist of:
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Dried Insects
- Fish
- Meat
- Pellets
Pellets should be about 80% of their diet, and the rest having more the role of a treat. This is because pellets are made so that they contain all the nutrients a turtle will need. While things like fruits, fish, dried insects, etc. are good for a turtle, none of them have all the nutrients a turtle needs, on their own.
If you want to know which is the best turtle food on the market you should check out this article: Best Turtle Food (We Tested 20 Different Brands) where we take a look and test 20 different brands.
The next thing that you should look at is the amount of food that you give your turtle.
One great and simple way to give your turtle the correct amount of food is to use the size of the head method.
To put this method into practice is to find a small container, like a medicine cup, a shot glass, or a bottle cap. This container has to be approximately the same size as the head of your turtle, without the neck. Then you fill that container to the top with food. This is the amount of food that you should give your turtle every day if it’s an adult. If your turtle is a juvenile you have to do this once every two days, and if your turtle is a baby you have to do this once every 3 days.
Illness
If none of the things that we discussed until now seem to be the problem, then you have to take into consideration that your turtle might be ill.
Unfortunately, there are o specific signs that you have to look for, in order to see if this is the case. When it comes to turtles a lot of illnesses don’t manifest physically, and the only way to notice them is through behavioral changes, like the lack of activity.
If you suspect that there is even a small chance that your turtle might be ill, you should take it to the vet as soon as possible.
The only thing that I would like to add to this part is that you should look for a vet that specializes in turtles or exotic animals, as not all vets know how to treat them. So make a call before going to a vet.
Now that this part is covered, let’s take a look at how much time a turtle should sleep, and when do turtles sleep, do they sleep during the day or the night?
How Much Do Turtles Sleep?
On average a turtle will sleep somewhere between 4 and 6 hours per day. But the amount of time they will sleep will be greatly influenced by their activity during the day.
If they spent the whole day basking, which basically means that they are napping while laying in the sun, then they probably won’t need that much sleep for the rest of the day.
But, if they spent a good part of the day chasing fish, then there is a good chance that they will sleep more than 6 hours on that day.
And speaking of basking, turtles can bask for anywhere between 2 to 6 hours per day, depending on how intense the heat and UVB light is. During this time it might seem that they are sleeping, but that’s not always the case. Sometimes they just lay there without moving, but they are not really sleeping. This is completely normal behavior.
Do Turtles Sleep During the Day or the Night?
Turtles sleep during the night. But taking into consideration that they don’t sleep for that long, it is possible that they are sleeping when there is nobody around them, and are awake when people are around. But don’t let this fool you, most turtles sleep during the night, not during the day.
If you want to know what turtles do during the night while everybody is asleep you can check out this article: Are Turtles Nocturnal or Diurnal? (With Pictures and Video)
Final Thoughts
A turtle that is sleeping too much is not good, but fortunately, it can be easily solved, and it won’t have any lasting effect on your turtle.
In most cases, this is happening due to a sudden drop in temperature that ends up affecting the temperature of the water, or the temperature of the basking area. And this can be easily solved.
Another possible cause is the lack of UVB light, which is as simple to solve as changing a light bulb.
An improper diet can also cause a turtle to sleep too much, and this, just like the rest can be measly solved by adjusting the diet of your turtle.
There are of course some cases where things get a little more complicated, and excessive sleeping is caused by an illness. And as I said if you think that there is the smallest chance that this might be the cause you should go to a vet as soon as possible. Most turtle illnesses can be cured quite easily if they are noticed in time, and they won’t have any long-lasting effects.
And make sure that you are not mistaking basking with sleeping, while it might look like your turtle is sleeping, it’s most often not. It is simply enjoying some heat and some UVB rays.
I hope this article will help you solve your problem. But if you can’t still figure things out, or if you have any questions don’t hesitate to leave a comment in the section below, and I will do my best to answer as soon as possible.
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