How old is my tortoise?

WallieWay

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wellington

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It's really hard to tell the age of tortoises. However, russians coming from a pet store are usually wild caught and any where from 5-7 years and more. No one can say for sure, just guesses.
 

WallieWay

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What makes you say male? I've take her (him?) to a few different people and they've all said female!

Though Wallace is probably a name more suited for a male...haha
 

tortdad

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Without knowing the hatch date all we can do is guess. There are many growth factors such as care, diet and genetics. What we do know is that Russian torts are slow growers. It's hard to tell size from your picture but it looks to be about 4-5" long, which is at the very least 5 years old and more likely to be in the range the R/S/T said (10+)
 

tortdad

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Without knowing the hatch date all we can do is guess. There are many growth factors such as care, diet and genetics. What we do know is that Russian torts are slow growers. It's hard to tell size from your picture but it looks to be about 4-5" long, which is at the very least 5 years old and more likely to be in the range the R/S/T said (10+)
Get us a better shot of the tail and plastron
 

WallieWay

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Thanks for all the replies!

The diagram is very helpful. It does seem like Wallace may actually be a boy! I forgot to mention...Wallace's shell is flat on the bottom, which is mostly why all of the people I have shown has said female. Here is another picture, hopefully it's a bit better for you experts. I have no idea where I would be without y'all :)

http://tinypic.com/r/2q0irdk/8

Also, what does a female look like just for comparison? At this point I'm not too trusting of Google!
 

Yvonne G

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Russian male tortoises don't get the curved plastron. It stays flat all his life.
 

WallieWay

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Well thank you everyone! Hopefully HE is not offended that I've been calling him a SHE! haha :)

Sorry if this is a silly question, but are there any major differences in care for a male or female? Wallace is my first ever tortoise so I don't know very much.
 

leigti

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The female tortoise would need more calcium. And there is the chance of being a good bound. But with the mail no problems :) but eventually he will probably flash you, which is a pretty scary experience The first time I've been told. I've heard that tortoises technically never stop growing but after a certain age it slows down drastically. You can measure your tortoise now and then check and see in a year or two if he's gotten any bigger. My female has grown an inch and a half since I got her, and I thought she was full-grown when I got her.
 
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