Fully Grown Female Sulcata Tortoise for Sale in Arizona

[Edward's Mom]

On another note, if Edward had given us babies after mating her with Bubba, I had agreed to give a stud fee and 2 of the babies to his owner. This guy was a reptile expert who bought and sold all kinds of reptiles for side income. Seems doubtful he would have wanted to get them together if Edward was really a male. Call it unknown if you want, but I'm pretty sure Edward is a girl.

Anyway, for the purpose of this forum, I guess we'll have to admit that experts don't agree and call it unknown. I better go check on Edward. Heat is really kicking in right about now.

Edward's Mom

 

[TylerStewart]

Ok, new to the forum as of only yesterday...
You asked me to deliver Edward, Tyler. I had no idea you were making plans to get her. Obviously I can't misrepresent Edward's sex, which is why this discussion has become so lengthy in the first place. I had no way of knowing you were still interested in owning Edward, Tyler, so when Spike asked to see pics, I took and submitted them, especially since he had every intention of coming to get her. I never intended to slight you in the least.

At this point, I have rearranged Edward's pen. The back neighbor isn't thrilled with her underground tunnel system going into his yard. I just came in from adding damp sheets to a large corner for her because it's our hot season and she's used to being underground during the day. I'm hoping this will help her stay cool since she no longer has access to her burrow. Under the circumstances, I hope she gets used to her new pen, as this entire discussion has left me with little alternative.

I'm disturbed that anyone would question my integrity about selling Edward. She's been our baby since she could fit in the palm of our hands. If it was so easy to tell what sex she is, there would have been 100% concensus right here on the forum. Since she was about 7 years old, we've been told by those who should know that she's a girl. There have only been replies from about 4 or 5 people on this forum, and they can't conclusively agree what sex she is. I've had several more than that over the years tell me Edward is a girl. Why you would even suggest I would misrepresent Edward's sex to sell her...yea, better not go there, Tyler. That really wasn't very nice of you though!

Anyway, Edward is not a problem. I was hoping to give her a better home, that's all. She's been so cute needing to be pet since we blocked her hole. She hasn't given us this much attention in a long time...coming up and nudging us like she used to...following us around even after we put fresh food out. You guys are missing out. Edward's really cool and whoever gets her will have one of the greatest pets ever born!

Well, I asked what it would take for you to deliver it, and you said you didn't want to. I then asked how long you could hold it for if I paid now, and you never got back to me. It's no biggie, though, my feelings aren't hurt. I knew several others were after him (her?), so I figured, as a female at the time, it'd be bought before I was able to get someone to pick it up.

I was in no way questioning your honesty - if you don't know better, you're not lying if you call it a female. But I was simply warning that if someone like Spike or me had made a day trip to AZ to pick "her" up, they would likely be upset when they get there to discover a male since it was advertised as a female. It was just a heads up to you. Call it what you want, but it's a male. If a real tortoise "professional" said it was a female, it was probably before the tail shot out like that or before the belly tucked under. If it was indeed a female, she would have been sold by now to either Spike, or me, or Tom, or any number of other people that were considering it (when it was a female). If you can get a local buyer to look at it and they think it's a female, more power to you, and you should have charged more!

 

[spikethebest]

i am showing these as a comparsion. these are Female Sulcatas

these are Male Sulcatas

 

[agiletorts]

Edward's Mom - whether it's a he or she, your sulcata is one of the best looking one that I've ever seen. And I've seen so many of them before so you should be proud of yourself!

 

[Motara's Mom]

I agree, she is absolutely beautiful, and if I still lived in Sierra Vista AZ I would have been there yesterday to get her.

 

[Edward's Mom]

At it again...comparing the pics, and I really don't see it.

Your pics rear ends show spikes coming out by the tail, for both male and female. Edward doesn't have spikes. She has a smooth upside down "U" shape. Your male gulars are also much longer and thicker than Edward's. I can't tell about the concaveness from your pics. I don't know how old yours are, so I can't compare size reasonably either. I can see the short tail in your pics and if Edward ever stuck her tail out, I'd be able to give you more info on that.

Clearly I should charge more for my beautiful tortoise, no matter what sex she is. On that note, the price just went up to $500. Thanks for the expert advice, everyone. I'll go ahead and edit the appropriate posts I've made. This discussion has taught me a lot, and even if we can't be sure what sex she is, I should get a fair price for her.

Edward's Mom

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Okay, well I can't edit any of my posts because Admin has set them to only be edited within the first 1/2 hour of posting. Admin, if you are reading this, I'd like to edit my posts to reflect appropriate pricing based on expert advice I've received here on this thread. I've been advised to charge more for my beautiful tortoise. Thanks for your help.

Edward's Mom

 

[Laura]

I have 4 sulcatas.. IF yours is a Female.. then somebody may pay for her.. they arent as common.. However. lots of rescues are overrun with sulcatas.. the four I have. All FREE. People couldnt keep them, raised them wrong, had no clue, yard not big enough etc... etc..
Good luck Finding a GOOD home for your tort.. as that is the Most important thing.

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If the burrowing is the problem.. can you just provide a dog house for her so it has something to go into? Mine dont burrow.. they have serveral hiding places.. if you make a big enough area/dog house and put some soil inside then you might be able to keep her above ground and Keep her in the family.
Does she eat grass hay? Might save your feed bill if you can get her to eat it.

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If the burrowing is the problem.. can you just provide a dog house for her so it has something to go into? Mine dont burrow.. they have serveral hiding places.. if you make a big enough area/dog house and put some soil inside then you might be able to keep her above ground and Keep her in the family.
Does she eat grass hay? Might save your feed bill if you can get her to eat it.

 

[RichardS]

The smoothness of the shell clearly looks to have a least a little to do with the burrowing. You can see all the ridges are worn down from contact. Torts that don't have a chance to burrow like that will clearly still have small raised bumps from pyramiding at a young age.

I'd love to see pics of the tort before he\she started burrowing... Do you have any??

Chad,

I think you hit the nail on the head with this comment. We really don't get too much talk about the effects of burrowing on the shell. Those photos are a great representation of how honed it can look.

 

[chadk]

Mods - can we split this post. One post should ONLY be focused on the FOR SALE posting by the OP. Out of repsect for the OP and the intent of this forum section, I think the back and forth debate would be better served in a seperate thread in a different section related to sexing sulcatas...

And regarding the OP - I'm amused that you are jacking up the price more than double because of "expert advice". Yet the "expert advice" regarding the sex is thrown out the window. LOL

Personally, if was me, I would advertise it as a female if that is what you think it is. But I would say (in the fine print) that it can be hard to tell with some torts and the buyer takes responsiblitiy for positive sex verification. I just did that with a pair of dumerils boas I re-homed. I was told they were M and F. I never verified that myself, so I made this clear in my ad and repeated it to the guy that ended up getting them. He later verified that they were both female and had no hard feelings because I was honest about the possibility.... Just my 2 cents...

 

[Edward's Mom]

Ah, c'mon Chad. Tortoises like mine sell for over $1,000 (M or F). Even at $500. it's a great deal! I was in a bit of pickle when I listed her yesterday. My neighbor wanted me to block her hole so he could fill in the one in his yard. Edward was not happy about this at all, and I wanted to get her situated as soon as possible, without upsetting her further. She seems to have settled down now, and while I still need to find her a good home because she definitely needs more room, I've bought myself a small bit of time because she picked a spot to rest (without burrowing) during the heat of the day. She's been my prime concern the entire time. None-the-less, we could use the extra cash, so I may as well ask for a reasonable price if I can get it.

On that note...

For sale, 12 year old (female*) tortoise, extremely friendly, loves kids, gets along fine with the family dog, needs large yard to burrow and graze in. *It is difficult to determine sex in tortoises. Buyer takes full responsibility for positive sex verification. Experts have mixed reports on Edward's actual sex identification. As the owner, I've been assured Edward is female from vets and reptile experts throughout her growing years. Some experts who have seen pictures, however, have determined she is male. Without attempting to mate Edward, owner has no way of knowing for certain. Thank you for your interest. Please email me if you are interested in purchasing Edward.

Edward's Mom

 

[chadk]

Hey, I support you getting as much as you can. No reason why you shouldn't try.

 

[TylerStewart]

Hey, I support you getting as much as you can. No reason why you shouldn't try.

Agreed, I think you and anyone/everyone should try to get as much as possible for what they are selling. Making money by selling an animal doesn't make someone evil, as much as some people would want it to be that way.

 

[Edward's Mom]

I'm not out to make a lot of money on Edward. But if someone is willing to pay a decent amount for her, chances are they'll give her a real good home. I wish there was a way to redo this thread like Chad suggested. I found this forum looking for a way to give Edward a decent home, and this thread sort of took a major detour. It doesn't change the fact that Edward needs a new home though. I may have to find another forum or something to sell her. This just didn't turn out anything like I'd hoped it would here. So many experts and so much indecision. The only experts who agree are the ones who have seen her in person, and they all say she's a girl! Go figure...

Edward's Mom

 

[Laura]

E's Mom.. Just post a seperate ad that she needs a home.. ADD No Discussion.. see other thread. They can change this one.. but it may fade out..
I posted pics of the four i have to see and compare. They all look different, but pretty sure all male.

 

[Candy]

I was convinced when Danny posted that it's a male. I myself think that $200.00 dollars is not enough for this little guy. I expected she'd want more and probably get it. At the last expo I was at they had two that were over $500.00. I don't know if they sold them at that price or not though. Probably not. Chad the burrowing thing makes sense of why the shell is so smooth, but I would have not ever thought of that since I didn't even know that they burrowed to begin with.

 

[Edward's Mom]

Edward has a wonderful new home now. She is no longer available for sale. We will miss her, but are glad she'll have plenty of yard to do whatever it is tortoises like to do.

All our best to her new owner!