Here is Ernie finally. Got him for my birthday about 3ish weeks ago. Hes awesome!! I never thought having a tortoise could be so much fun =]
Pictures of Ernie
- Thread starter sammi
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Yes, Russian tortoises are one of the more friendly-type tortoise. They quickly become humanized and are much fun to care for.
Yvonne
Yvonne
Awww Ernie is sooo cute 
Congratulations!
Congratulations!
Have fun with Erinie...he is so cute. Your enclosure looks good too.
terryo said:
Thanks =] I actually just added the grapewood. I had been planning on buying some when I got some more money [they're 5-10 bucks a piece at the reptile shop] then I found a bag of 6 random pieces at Petco for 10 bucks!
Good to see ernie and his new enclosure.looks happy! Do you have dark hidig spots for him or is it always bright like that?
dreadyA said:
Oh yeah, the picture where hes under the grapewood and in his terra cotta house is dark, I just had the flash on the camera. Otherwise the pictures wouldn't come out.
Oh Ernie has such a sweet face ! Congrats, what a great birthday prezzie
Stazz said:Oh Ernie has such a sweet face ! Congrats, what a great birthday prezzie
You're tellin me! I had a cocker spaniel named Treasure a couple years back and when he passed I thought my life was over. I grew up with that guy, and that was how everyone knew me, "the girl with the dog named Treasure"..but luckily Ernie has helped me overcome much of my loss
now I'm the girl with a tortoise named Ernie 
Ernie is precious! Happy belated b-day and what a great present!
Thanks for sharing! Congrats. What kind of wood is he on? Can we see the rest of the enclosure? He's cute. Where was he acquired from? I love my little Russian. So much fun, agreed!
tortoisenerd said:
The first picture, hes standing on a flat rock that I found at the beach. The wood I got from Petco and its called grapewood. Really cool looking stuff..if you can't find any near your area, you can order it online at www.lllreptile.com. My boyfriend got him from Petco, and he found the reptile store near us after he bought him already. We know now that it wasn't the best place to get him from, but now I like to think of it as kind of a "rescue" for him =] We've gone back to the store where he bought Ernie, and since I've seen where he's come from now, and how he was living, I'm really glad I can give him a better life =D
P.S. I'll take more pictures of him and his enclosure tomorrow..hes asleep right now =]
Ernie is so cute. What a cute little face he has.
I meant the substrate...sorry!
Yup, 99.9% sure he's wild caught if from Petco. Please take him to a reputable vet and get a fecal test for parasites. These are more highly prevalent in WC torts, but all torts pretty much have them (my captive bred tort even has two of them). Best wishes and have fun.
Yup, 99.9% sure he's wild caught if from Petco. Please take him to a reputable vet and get a fecal test for parasites. These are more highly prevalent in WC torts, but all torts pretty much have them (my captive bred tort even has two of them). Best wishes and have fun.
What a serious face he has! Sounds like my kind of birthday present. Ummmm did anybody warn you, that you usually can't stop with just one tortoise? Glad your getting over your loss. *hug*
Sounds like my kind of birthday present. Ummmm did anybody warn you, that you usually can't stop with just one tortoise? Glad your getting over your loss. *hug*
tortoisenerd said:
Yeah, and I read about that too..I called Petco where we got him, and the girl who answered told me they got them from "many different reputable breeders, certainly no one that was doing anything inhumane.." but I'm still skeptical. I did take him to my vet though, luckily it has an exotic animals doctor, and his fecal came back negative =]
Jacqui said:What a serious face he has!
Nobody warned me, but I'm figuring that out prreeeetty quickly! Seeing all these pictues of all these fun looking little guys..my and my significant other have already come up with names for our future "herd"...Starting with Ernie, next will be Bert
and then Louie
sammi said:Jacqui said:What a serious face he has!
Nobody warned me, but I'm figuring that out prreeeetty quickly! Seeing all these pictues of all these fun looking little guys..my and my significant other have already come up with names for our future "herd"...Starting with Ernie, next will be Bert
Too late your lost. Having the names already in your mind proves it. That's okay, as far as addictions go, I think this is the healthiest and best one to have.My first Russian came from Petco, too. I hadn't thought they were cute or interesting until I saw this old and wise looking male. I had no use for him and certainly didn't plan on adding to my tortoise family, let alone really get into them again. Thru the years I have come across several more Russians in Petco that just sorta call out to me.
Yeah, I don't believe the answer you got either. I don't see anything wrong with it, you just should know is all. I have a feeling they get fed that line from corporate. I've been told the stores just get shipments in with no idea where they come from.
Wow that's awesome his fecal came out negative. I recommend a re-test in about 3 months due to the life cycles of parasites (a tort can have them and not have them get picked up on a test as they are in an in between stage). Also, most torts do have several parasites in small amounts, but the test only is said to come back positive if the numbers of a specific type get out of hand. Best wishes.
Wow that's awesome his fecal came out negative. I recommend a re-test in about 3 months due to the life cycles of parasites (a tort can have them and not have them get picked up on a test as they are in an in between stage). Also, most torts do have several parasites in small amounts, but the test only is said to come back positive if the numbers of a specific type get out of hand. Best wishes.
Some new pictures! Yay! We redid his enclosure substrate today. I switched from Cypress Mulch to a Bed-A-Beast/Sand mixture. It looks a heck of a lot better, plus the little woodchips annoyed me. A couple pictures of what it looks like. Also a picture from this morning when I found him basking. I don't know why he was sitting like that, it looked really uncomfortable with his body all tilted and his legs every which way, but he looked happy. Before I came up with the camera, he had his head laying on the wood =]
That looks cool! The basking position is typical. They like to expose as much as their skin as possible. It is a great sign he is that comfortable in his surroundings. What about more hides? I only see the one pot hide. I would suggest fake plants, a half log, box, etc. It is ideal to have different types of hides in different temperatures. Also, if the tort cannot see all the way across the enclosure, it seems larger to them. You can do away with some of the rocks if you find yourself short on space. What is your temperature gradient? Is the water deep enough for the tort to soak in and drink from? As he settles into his enclosure, you'll probably want to be on the look out for how he does with it, such as if there are any spots he gets stuck, or if he may like it a different way. Best wishes.
What about more hides? I only see the one pot hide. I would suggest fake plants, a half log, box, etc. It is ideal to have different types of hides in different temperatures. Also, if the tort cannot see all the way across the enclosure, it seems larger to them. You can do away with some of the rocks if you find yourself short on space. What is your temperature gradient? Is the water deep enough for the tort to soak in and drink from? As he settles into his enclosure, you'll probably want to be on the look out for how he does with it, such as if there are any spots he gets stuck, or if he may like it a different way. Best wishes.- Status
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