Hi, Hello, HELP!!!Newbee here with big big torts

[wizard1962]

Greetings from Phoenix all..Newbee here...They were cute (150 and 60 pnds), credit card, heart and back yard all had lots of room..bingo...my back yard is no longer mine. Have lots of questions as to weather I doing this right. seems everyone has a different opinion on something...I got 2 Sulcattas bout a month ago. They wonder the yard. I am getting the Bermuda lawn fired up over the last 3 weeks, but have brought in Bermuda grass hay in the interim. People at Pratts - eh they say they hibernate, all reading says they don't. Designing house as I go. Feeding Greenleaf/romaine/red lettuce heads every couple of days to. Water dishes are the bottom things from plant pots. Read that was a good idea for lowness to ground. Working on cooling system for Rubbermaid bicycle sliding roof shed I got for them. Someone in PHX already did that. But will 2 of these guys live in the same shed for cool and hot weather? Big Big question. O well..All info welcomed. Hi all I', wizard1962 - Jim

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome Most likely you will need to house them separately. Tortoises are loners and rarely get along specially in pairs. Keep a close eye on bullying. Torts that large can really do damage or death. By the photo, it looks like the one may already be a big bother to the other and that's not good.

 

[mctlong]

Welcome to the forum! Your big guys are beautiful. Have you named them yet?

I'm not sure if you've had a chance to browse through the forum yet, but there are some sulcata caresheets stickied to the top of the sulcata section. The caresheets provide info on food, housing requirements, and general background info on the species. They're the first five posts located here: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/forum-88.html

The plant dishes are great for young sulcatas, but consider going with bigger water dishes for the big guys. Plant saucers don't provide much water (its like one big sip for a sully) and the water in those tend to evaporate pretty quick in the heat. Consider getting something that will hold more water - preferably something wide enough that they can walk into (but is still shallow enough that they can't drown). This will help keep them cool during those hot Phoenix summers and you won't need to refill them as often as you would the plant saucers.

I'd love to hear more about your shed cooling system. Can you post pictures when you're done? It gets HOT where I live too and I'm always looking for good ways to keep my torts cool during the summer.

Again, welcome.

---

Also, you're right, the people at Pratts are wrong. They do NOT hibernate. They also need to be fed every day, not every couple of days.

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome. You chose a species that does very well in your area, and are over all very adaptable and hardy. Here are some tips:
1. Your shed should work, but something like these will work much better and save you tons on electricity during the colder months.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-20527.html
Or this one: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-66867.html
2. Your diet is off to a good start, but needs some help. In addition to the bermuda hay, get some orchard grass hay too. Then add in as many safe weeds as you can find or grow. Look for broadleaf plantain, dandelion, sow thistle, clovers (not oxalis), wild mustard, and a whole bunch of others. Then grow some grapevines for the leaves, find mulberry trees in your area (leaves again), and start growing some spineless opuntia cactus pads. From the grocery store, favor endive and escarole, and add in as much other variety as you can. No fruit is needed or good for them. This will all make your "babies" much healthier and happier.
3. Pairs. Not a good idea. Your male will harass that lone female endlessly. The long term chronic stress could kill her. You either need to separate them, or add a couple more females. Don't forget that any new animals need to be individually quarantined for a few months, so basically, you will need to divide up your yard, or find a new home for one or the other. The seller really should have told you this... Sorry man.
4. Sulcatas burrow. When it gets hot there over the next few weeks, your new tortoises will likely want to get underground to cool off. They usually pick the worst areas for this, like right under the foundation of your house. You'll need a substantial cooling system with misters and sprinklers to get you through a Phoenix summer without burrowing, OR you can get a shovel and start them a couple of burrows in an area where you WANT them to burrow.

Good luck. Come back with lots of questions.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Jim, and welcome to the Forum!

Be prepared...if you thought they were big at the size they are now, wait til next year. Your tortoises have the potential to get to about 150lbs.

If you're trying to grow grass, it would be a good idea to divide the yard in half with a fence and let the grass grow on one half without the tortoises on it. Read up on pasture management. Its written for cows and horses, but that's what you have, only with a hard shell instead of fur. I have a male sulcata, Dudley, and his yard is divided into three sections. I water two of them for a week while he mows the third section, then after a week I move him to a different section and water the one he was just on. This gives the grass a chance to grow.

Another good food choice for large tortoises is Mazuri Tortoise Diet. YOu can buy this at any feed store that sells Purina products. They may have to order it for you, but it can be done.

 

[AZtortMom]

Hi wizard! Welcome to TFO! Did you get the torts from Pratts? I'm from phx as well and I'm not a big fan of Pratts...they had two male sullies housed together in a very small enclosure and didn't care when I told them they needed to be separated. Anyways I'm glad you are here where the information is MUCH better


Life is good

 

[waterboy]

Nice torts hope you know what your getting into. Check out threads and read up here. For a water dish go to home depot and get a dish washing machine drain pan, they are big and durable just berry it so its flush at ground level. also dig a nice mud hole and fill it up for them daily so they can cool off and soak. enjoy them and make sure they stay hydrated those big guys need lots of water.

 

[wizard1962]

Yea, I bought two males and the big one is treating the small one like his prison b****. Not to happy about it. Pratts assistant mgr said o yea they have been together for ever....big guy mounts the other one continuously but he is learning how to run away...problem is I'm designing the cooling house and heating house for winter for them both to live in. Wonder if I'm going to have to get rid of the big guy. Pratts already has the same large/smaller combo in their tub again as of last weekend. I got these two a month ago. Thought they like being in pairs. Always liked pratts...Wonder if it's time for them to close shop giving such bad info.

 

[sibi]

Hi and welcome. Tom has given you some good ideas. Below my name is another thread that Tom wrote. If you have a dog, plan to get a dog, or slow dogs to visit your home, then you need to read this thread.

 

[Chinque]

Hello and welcome to the forum! I'm sure everyone here will help you out! I'd love to, but I dont have any sulcatas... just a Russian! So, I don't know that much about them

 

[lynnedit]

Yea, I bought two males and the big one is treating the small one like his prison b****. Not to happy about it. Pratts assistant mgr said o yea they have been together for ever....big guy mounts the other one continuously but he is learning how to run away...problem is I'm designing the cooling house and heating house for winter for them both to live in. Wonder if I'm going to have to get rid of the big guy. Pratts already has the same large/smaller combo in their tub again as of last weekend. I got these two a month ago. Thought they like being in pairs. Always liked pratts...Wonder if it's time for them to close shop giving such bad info.

Sounds like an irresponsible place. That's too bad.
You sound like you have the means to keep this kind of tortoise (and have some wonderful plans), but they won't be able to reside in the same enclosure, the smaller one will fade away and likely die. He is probably miserable.
I hope you can separate them or find a new home for one.
Tom's threads and the other advice are well worth looking at!
Your yard looks like it has a lot of promise!

 

[erica anne]

I just looked at those two males over at Pratts! I really wanted the female that was there but 300 bucks is a little beyond my budget. There are some people that work there that know a lot about tortoises, one of them is a member here. Unfortunately, it sounds like you happened to talk to an employee that didn't have good information. I often saw the males walking around the store so hopefully they weren't in that small area together for to long!

 

[AZtortMom]

Yea, I bought two males and the big one is treating the small one like his prison b****. Not to happy about it. Pratts assistant mgr said o yea they have been together for ever....big guy mounts the other one continuously but he is learning how to run away...problem is I'm designing the cooling house and heating house for winter for them both to live in. Wonder if I'm going to have to get rid of the big guy. Pratts already has the same large/smaller combo in their tub again as of last weekend. I got these two a month ago. Thought they like being in pairs. Always liked pratts...Wonder if it's time for them to close shop giving such bad info.

Sounds like an irresponsible place. That's too bad.
You sound like you have the means to keep this kind of tortoise (and have some wonderful plans), but they won't be able to reside in the same enclosure, the smaller one will fade away and likely die. He is probably miserable.
I hope you can separate them or find a new home for one.
Tom's threads and the other advice are well worth looking at!
Your yard looks like it has a lot of promise!

The smaller male tort was there a lot longer then the bigger one, and the smaller one is SO sweet! We would of taken him if we didn't have the two babies at home.


Life is good

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I just looked at those two males over at Pratts! I really wanted the female that was there but 300 bucks is a little beyond my budget. There are some people that work there that know a lot about tortoises, one of them is a member here. Unfortunately, it sounds like you happened to talk to an employee that didn't have good information. I often saw the males walking around the store so hopefully they weren't in that small area together for to long!

I hope that's all I encountered because it made me very sad!!


Life is good

 

[mainey34]

Hi neighbor..welcome. i must say, you have been given some good advise. Make sure you have shade, water and a place for them to hide. I think as long as you have plenty of room you will be ok with the 2 of them. I would also suggest getting a square bale of hay for them to lay on and also to munch on. If you have the room to, you can grow a garden full of things they like. Just some suggestions of things i do

 

[AZtortMom]

Definitely keep us updated with pics I personally would love to know how they are doing


Life is good

 

[AustinASU]

Never feed them iceburg lettuce, it has zero nutrition and will give your torts the runs. Also they will aquire a liking to it and will avoid eating the other greens.

 

[Tom]

You need to separate them immediately. The little one is being tortured and that is not okay.

 

[Levi the Leopard]

Re: RE: Hi, Hello, HELP!!!Newbee here with big big torts

You need to separate them immediately. The little one is being tortured and that is not okay.

Please heed this.

Heather
sent while on my purple android TFOapp

 

[AZtortMom]

You need to separate them immediately. The little one is being tortured and that is not okay.

Please separate these guys..


Life is good