How long did your Russian take to get adjusted?

[J.Gatz]

Hi! I'm waiting for my new Russian to start eating and exploring... I was wondering if anybody could share around how long it took for their Russian to get settled and start eating regularly? And was there was anything you did to help them get comfortable? Thanks in advance! I'm so grateful for this forum, it's a wonderful resource for this clueless new mommy

 

[wellington]

I got my russian from a young teenager that no longer had time for it. They took good care of him, large enclosure everything. I adopted him as a favor for a friend. It didn't take him long to start to eat, about a week. It took longer for him to get used to the fact that I was the new food cart and that I wasn't going to eat him. Be patience, and don't worry to much, specially if it's and adult. Just be sure to keep it hydrated.

 

[WallieWay]

I got my russian from the store roughly two months ago and it took him nearly a month to really settle down into a good routine. Granted at first I had him in a very small enclosure and was doing what I thought was correct, which was letting him roam around my empty bathroom while I was home. Once I had his larger enclosure set up (two weeks later...dang snow delayed drop off), I found he was much more comfortable the less I messed with him. I created my own little lights/feeding/misting routine and within a week he settled in nicely. Now he greets me when I enter the room and even lets me know when he's ready for bed and wants his lights off!

Congrats on the new addition

Edit: Also...I couldn't remember why your name looked familiar and I realized you commented on my first time tortoise owner thread! As you can see since then I've gained some seriously awesome knowledge from these great folks here (even letting me know what I thought was a female totoise is intact a male...lol!) ...and these folks are simply the best. You're in great hands here!

 

[J.Gatz]

@WallieWay I'm happy to hear your tortoise is doing so well!! That gives me so much hope! Yup, this forum has been a lifesaver. I had no idea what I was getting into when I agreed to let my kids get a tortoise... Could you share what your routine is?