Two box turtles?

leigti

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I have the opportunity to get a Nother rescue box turtle. This is aunexpected :) Is it okay to house one male and one female box turtle together? And if so what a 4 x 5' outdoor enclosure be adequate temporarily? What about a 4 x 3 indoor Enclosure over the winter? How long should one be quarantined before putting them together?
 

leigti

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6 months quarantine is good.

Some male /female pairs of box turtles do fine together. Some don't. You'd have to watch it.

Your space could work.
Thank you for responding. My computer is down so I can't do any research right now. I told the people I'd let them know by Tuesday if I'm going to take him or not. I know that tortoise pairs are not a good idea but I didn't know how turtle pairs do. He only has three legs but I hear that doesn't slow him down at all :) I can make improvements to the outdoor enclosure next spring but not this year. I can keep them separated for the winter if need be.
 

diamondbp

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I do 3-4 weeks quarantine and have had good results. The are would be big enough depending on how it's set up and the hides available
 

leigti

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I do 3-4 weeks quarantine and have had good results. The are would be big enough depending on how it's set up and the hides available
I'm in the process of making new enclosures so I can make him anyway I need to :) my main concern right now is if the female is going to be bothered to death by the mail. I know there's no guarantees but it seems like a lot of people have pairs or groups of box turtles and do fine.
 

johnsonnboswell

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I had a pair by accident. One young female turned out to be male. It wasn't a problem.

My old gulf coast male, on the other hand, cannot live with even three females because he's such a bully.

So you have to pay attention, which is a great deal of the joy of living with these creatures.
 

leigti

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I will definitely keep an eye on them. If it doesn't work out I will find him a new home but I think I can make it work. I will just have to add onto the outdoor enclosure again :) i'm more worried about the indoor one because it is smaller but if I have to I can set them up separately.
 

lisa127

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I have two boxies. I am pretty certain they are both female. They have to have separate indoor enclosures as one bullies the other.
 

leigti

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Compared to Russians, are box turtles easier more difficult or about the same to house in pairs? Somebody told me I would be better off with three box turtles one mail into female but I think that might be getting in over my head.
 

johnsonnboswell

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With Russians, there is no hope of having a pair together. With boxies there is hope. Not certainty, but hope.
 

leigti

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With Russians, there is no hope of having a pair together. With boxies there is hope. Not certainty, but hope.
Well I will take hope. I know that there's no hope with two Russians but will see with the box turtles. I went ahead and told them that I would take the turtle. I'll post pictures when I get him so that people can confirm that he is a he :) and also what kind he is, they think he might be an eastern but they're not sure. I will keep them separate all winter and put them in the outdoor enclosure next spring after I enlarge it again. Pretty soon it's going to be easier to fence off the part of my yard that does not contain a tortoise or a turtle or chickens or a dog :)
 

leigti

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Well the opportunity to get another box turtle fell through. I was a little anxious about getting another one but now I'm really disappointed that it's not going to happen. I even had everything all set up for him. Oh well I'm sure another one will come along.
 

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