Red foot and cherryhead together or yellow foot maybe??

[deer_tribe_gold]

So my red foot baby tortoise seems very depressed he's recovering from worms and a respiratory infection. He's better now but still in shock and sleeps all day long. Could I get a cherryhead or a yellow foot tortoise to live in the same Rubbermaid enclosure?

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I want to lift his spirits and am hoping this will help... How about when they grow older can they live in the same enclosure?

 

[Madkins007]

They don't really get lonely, although some species, like red-footeds, do better in groups. There are some rules/guidelines to follow, and some philosophical issues to consider.

Rule 1. Make sure they have enough room. This means plenty of space to get away from each other- ideally out of sight of each other, and plenty of space for each to bask comfortably, hide/sleep comfortably, not get crowded around the food dish, etc. They may spend 80% of their time side by side, but they need space for the other 20%.

Rule 2. Make sure the gender mix works. For example, cherry-head (Eastern red-footed) males are more aggressive, usually, than the normal (Northwestern red-footeds) are, and yellow-footed are often considered more aggressive yet. This won't affect them as babies, but if you have the wrong mix, it will cause problems as they get older and bigger.

Now, a couple of philosophical considerations.

A. Keeping one each of several different species or sub-species is sometimes called 'a postage stamp collection'. Many keepers (and increasingly more zoos) feel that it is more interesting, natural, and rewarding to keep naturalistic groups of the same species/subspecies together to get more natural behaviors out of them.

B. While there is a division between breeders of pretty much every species kept as pets about this, many breeders would strongly prefer that sub-species or types be kept and bred separately to protect the blood-lines. Again, this is not an issue with young'uns, but may pop up later.

 

[Steve_McQueen]

Remember that it's a generally good idea to quarantine any new tortoise before introducing it to your current animal(s). Are you equipped to house the new addition for up to 3ish months?

 

[kjr153]

I know what you mean... I wanted to get a second baby Sulcata because I thought my baby was lonely but I was quickly assured that my tort does not want or need a buddy