Russian Tortoise Newbie

[KayluhhKay]

Hi, guys. I'm new to the forums (and new to tortoise motherhood), just got two beautiful Russian tortoises, Koopa and Bowser. They're doing great so far, but I just had a few questions. I've been reading up a lot about their specific needs as far as having a low humidity environment. I live in Florida where it's common to have 75-80 percent humidity so I've decided to keep them indoors. They love roaming around outside though (supervised of course) so I was hoping it would still be okay to take them out occasionally.

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome. Russians do need humidity, hatchlings high then adults need. However, an outdoor enclosure at least for day time would be best for them. You could bring them in at night to a lower humidity enclosure. The real problem is that you have two Russians and most if not all species do not do good in pairs. They will bully and fight not only each other but over food, water, best basking slots, etc. unless you can give them a very large area with a lot of sight barriers, feeding stations, water sources and hides, they will need to be housed apart. Even with all that I mentioned, they may still need to be separated.

 

[Grandpa Turtle 144]

Hi

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome to the Forum!

 

[teresaf]

I too got two tortoises before I knew not too. I'm looking for more MEPs(Burmese black mountain tortoises) because of this. You can keep tortoises individually, or in groups. NOT pairs. They are solitary animals and will try to kick other tortoises out of their territory. Very stressful for the one being kicked out since they can't get out. The bullied guy ends up hiding in a corner all the time. In groups no one tortoise is getting solely picked on. Groups work best with only one male if any. If you show us pics of your tortoises bellies (plastron) with tail extended we should be able to tell you male or female if theyre big enough.

 

[Rachael403]

Welcome to the forum!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Welcome fellow Floridian.
Not only do pairs not do well together, but you've just aquired about the scrappiest tortoise species that there is. They will bully each other. Eventually turning into a blood bath with missing parts. Not nice. And still 100% preventable for you.
Separate them. Trust us.
And make a nice outdoor enclosure. Maybe one that is devided.
My brother keeps a Russian outdoors in Tamarac Fla. It's been fine for 7 years. Healthy and angry.

 

[RosemaryDW]

Welcome! Very good looking tortoises you have there!

I'm in a fairly high humidity area as well, but not as hot as Florida. Our Russian is exclusively outdoors, other than hibernation. Healthy and feisty, like @ZEROPILOT's brother's tortoise.

I think the issue for desert type tortoises is that they can't be cold and wet, versus warm. Interested to hear more opinions on the subject.

Those two are adults or near to it. You need to be ready to separate them; Russians cannot be together. Some of their bullying is subtle--a human might not notice--evently it will be all too obvious. You're not alone, most places that sell or advise on tortoises don't actually know much about them so we see Russians sold as pairs all the time. Hopefully you've got some good space and it won't be a problem.

 

[KayluhhKay]

Welcome! Very good looking tortoises you have there!

I'm in a fairly high humidity area as well, but not as hot as Florida. Our Russian is exclusively outdoors, other than hibernation. Healthy and feisty, like @ZEROPILOT's brother's tortoise.

I think the issue for desert type tortoises is that they can't be cold and wet, versus warm. Interested to hear more opinions on the subject.

Those two are adults or near to it. You need to be ready to separate them; Russians cannot be together. Some of their bullying is subtle--a human might not notice--evently it will be all too obvious. You're not alone, most places that sell or advise on tortoises don't actually know much about them so we see Russians sold as pairs all the time. Hopefully you've got some good space and it won't be a problem.

Thanks for all the replies! I was really hoping to be able to make outdoor enclosures, so I'm happy to hear that we can! I actually got them at Petco where they were housed together and when we were checking out with one the cashier mentioned that the other tortoise would be sad to see her buddy go, so we felt bad and got them both.

I actually just walked in on some suspicious behavior and have since come to realize that we most likely have a male and female. I have them separated now and am going to be starting their outdoor enclosures tomorrow. We got more than we bargained for with having to make room for two enclosures but I couldn't imagine taking one back to Petco, it doesn't seem like they're very informed.

 

[KayluhhKay]

I too got two tortoises before I knew not too. I'm looking for more MEPs(Burmese black mountain tortoises) because of this. You can keep tortoises individually, or in groups. NOT pairs. They are solitary animals and will try to kick other tortoises out of their territory. Very stressful for the one being kicked out since they can't get out. The bullied guy ends up hiding in a corner all the time. In groups no one tortoise is getting solely picked on. Groups work best with only one male if any. If you show us pics of your tortoises bellies (plastron) with tail extended we should be able to tell you male or female if theyre big enough.

Here are pictures. I'm starting to think they're male and female though. Just walked in on Koopa on top of Bowser. They're separated now.

 

[Eduardo Hernandez]

They both look like males to me.

 

[RosemaryDW]

I actually just walked in on some suspicious behavior and have since come to realize that we most likely have a male and female. I have them separated now and am going to be starting their outdoor enclosures tomorrow.

Tortoises bully each other with mounting behavior, it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with gender.

A good example of behavior humans interpret differently than tortoises.

Glad to see you're hoping to find a way to care for them separately.

 

[teresaf]

I'm not an expert at this but.... that top one looks female and the bottom one looks male to me.

 

[KayluhhKay]

I'm not an expert at this but.... that top one looks female and the bottom one looks male to me.

That's what I thought too

 

[teresaf]

Some people think that because their male and female that they're allowed to be kept together but the mail will try to breed the female over and over and it will hurt her... Add that to the bullying issues. It'd be best to find one of them a home, keep them in separate enclosures or get a couple more females. Having a group of them doesn't mean that you'll never have to separate any of them though so you still might end up with two enclosures.

 

[ParisBloom]

Hiya,
Congratulations on your two new babies It is shocking that the pet store misinformed you. But great you have joined the forum, as everyone gives the best advice around. I am in the exact same situation as you (see my intro post "Hello From London"). As everyone has said, two Russian torts, no matter what sex, cannot live together. Luckily I work from home, so noticed the sudden bullying and attempts to mate swiftly - and it is really so very shockingly vicious. Since separating my dynamic duo, they are so much happier. My smaller one is way more relaxed and for want of a better phrase really coming out of his shell. My bigger one was really angry at first, trying everything in his power to break down "the wall" pretty much non-stop. He has pretty much stopped this now and seems to be accepting the situation - finally!

One amazing article about outside enclosures and much more by Tom can be found here - http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

I took his advice about a heat temp gun and it is brilliant (I had the stick on dial one that you have) but this temp gun is great at ensuring tip top tort temps from all around their outdoor enclosure & stopping me from worrying about them being cold too. I got mine for about £6 on eBay and its worth every penny.

Your torts are sooooooooooo cute Have a Good Evening Paris

 

[KayluhhKay]

Hiya,
Congratulations on your two new babies It is shocking that the pet store misinformed you. But great you have joined the forum, as everyone gives the best advice around. I am in the exact same situation as you (see my intro post "Hello From London"). As everyone has said, two Russian torts, no matter what sex, cannot live together. Luckily I work from home, so noticed the sudden bullying and attempts to mate swiftly - and it is really so very shockingly vicious. Since separating my dynamic duo, they are so much happier. My smaller one is way more relaxed and for want of a better phrase really coming out of his shell. My bigger one was really angry at first, trying everything in his power to break down "the wall" pretty much non-stop. He has pretty much stopped this now and seems to be accepting the situation - finally!

One amazing article about outside enclosures and much more by Tom can be found here - http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/

I took his advice about a heat temp gun and it is brilliant (I had the stick on dial one that you have) but this temp gun is great at ensuring tip top tort temps from all around their outdoor enclosure & stopping me from worrying about them being cold too. I got mine for about £6 on eBay and its worth every penny.

Your torts are sooooooooooo cute Have a Good Evening Paris

Thank you for the suggestions! This forum is really helpful for getting the best information. I'm still weighing my options on the best type of outdoor enclosure so I'll definitely look into that thread. We've really grown found of our two, they both have very different personalities which is super entertaining.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I agree.
A lot of "mating" type behavior isn't mating at all. It's dominance being asserted.
I had a female Redfoot that did this.

 

[TammyJ]

Nice way to go for the pet shop to grab your sympathy and your money, making you sorry for the one that may have been left behind. Such drivel.
Best of luck with them and they are adorable!

 

[Tidgy's Dad]

Hello, and a very warm welcome to Tortoise Forum to you,Koopa and Bowser.