Age

[Fishtank307]

Hi!

I'm going to buy a three-year-old male eastern Hermann's tortoise next week. I already have a six-year-old female. At what age can they mate? I have found different answers online and they're not really consistent. Is it unhealthy for the female if they breed at a young age?

 

[Yvonne G]

It goes by size rather than age. I'm not familiar enough with the Hermanni to know the answer to your question about size/age, but I know that on my tortoises I prefer the female to be full size before I introduce a male for breeding.

 

[JoesMum]

Hi

You do know that these torts must be kept entirely separate from each other in quarantine for 6-12 months to minimise the risk of either making the other sick?

That kind of limits it anyway.

How big are these torts? That's the straight carapace length.

Sexual maturity goes by size, not age.

 

[dmmj]

a small female that is sexually mature but small is in danger of becoming egg bound if she becomes gravid

 

[Fishtank307]

Hi

You do know that these torts must be kept entirely separate from each other in quarantine for 6-12 months to minimise the risk of either making the other sick?

That kind of limits it anyway.

How big are these torts? That's the straight carapace length.

Sexual maturity goes by size, not age.

I have a second enclosure in which I'm going to keep the male until next year. The female is 11 cm scl. I think the male is about 7 cm, but I've only seen pictures of him. I'm going to see him tomorrow and if he's healthy, I'll buy him.
How big do they need to be? I really don't want to risk anything...

 

[JoesMum]

I think we ought to call in @HermanniChris for opinions on the right size for breeding.

Personally I would have thought that 7cm was a bit small to sex - that's less than 3 inches! Maybe he flashed.

And as for the female - she's only 4 inches and that's too small to call too in my opinion. However, I'm no expert in Hermann's unlike Chris.

 

[Fishtank307]

a small female that is sexually mature but small is in danger of becoming egg bound if she becomes gravid

I think we ought to call in @HermanniChris for opinions on the right size for breeding.

Personally I would have thought that 7cm was a bit small to sex - that's less than 3 inches! Maybe he flashed.

And as for the female - she's only 4 inches and that's too small to call too in my opinion. However, I'm no expert in Hermann's unlike Chris.

I'm getting the male from a breeder and he told me he incubated a clutch at a lower temperature. Hopefully he's right about the sex. I'm pretty sure about the female. She was also incubated at a higher temperature and as far as I can tell now, she is indeed female.

 

[dmmj]

I'm getting the male from a breeder and he told me he incubated a clutch at a lower temperature. Hopefully he's right about the sex. I'm pretty sure about the female. She was also incubated at a higher temperature and as far as I can tell now, she is indeed female.

the incubation temperature for higher and lower are just a greater probability of a certain sex there is no guarantee. And all young tortoises look female

 

[JoesMum]

the incubation temperature for higher and lower are just a greater probability of a certain sex there is no guarantee. And all young tortoises look female

I agree that hatched as male does not mean it is actually male. You cannot know until this tort is much bigger and/or it flashes.

Personally, I don't think your female is big enough to sex accurately either. They all look female to start as dmmj says.

 

[Fishtank307]

I agree that hatched as male does not mean it is actually male. You cannot know until this tort is much bigger and/or it flashes.

Personally, I don't think your female is big enough to sex accurately either. They all look female to start as dmmj says.

I didn't know that. Well, this makes things more complicated! Maybe I'll post a picture tomorrow. I'm curious what Chris has to say about the size for breeding.