{"id":1248,"date":"2022-08-30T11:11:59","date_gmt":"2022-08-30T11:11:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beingreptiles.com\/?p=1248"},"modified":"2022-08-30T11:12:01","modified_gmt":"2022-08-30T11:12:01","slug":"can-turtles-drown-how-to-help-a-drowning-turtle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beingreptiles.com\/can-turtles-drown-how-to-help-a-drowning-turtle\/","title":{"rendered":"Can Turtles Drown? How to Help a Drowning Turtle"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Sea and pet turtles can drown since they have lungs instead of gills. <\/strong>Drowning occurs due to delayed resurfacing to breathe in air. Although turtles hold their breath underwater for long periods, stressful situations such as being entangled in a net or underwater plants cause drowning. Also, turtles that swallow debris while inside water find it hard to breathe. This causes panic which leads to quick oxygen loss and death. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In other cases, turtles flip over and struggle to get back up. Though accidental, a turtle being upside down has a serious impact because it could easily drown due to lack of oxygen. Once turtles use up stored oxygen, it leads to anaerobic respiration, producing lactic acid. Lactic acid is toxic and causes death within a short time. So, if you find a turtle drowning, take it out of the water and perform turtle CPR. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Can regular turtles drown?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n
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Regular turtles can drown because they have lungs. <\/strong>Turtles cannot breathe underwater. Yes, they hold their breath for a long time but need to resurface occasionally for air. While sleeping or resting, some turtles remain submerged for up to seven hours. However, drowning results from trapping by fish nets, choking on debris and the inability to reach basking docks in time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although all turtles can drown, baby turtles are at greater risk due to weaker bodies and inexperience. Their ability to assess their need for oxygen also places baby turtles at a higher risk of drowning. Most drowning incidents for baby turtles also involve exhaustion while they head to basking spots outside the water. Other reasons for drowning include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n