Why does my Russian pace along the enclosure walls?

[Oxalis]

I searched the forum briefly and found this mentioned here but I wasn't sure if the behavior was completely related to the enclosure size? I notice this mostly in his outdoor enclosure (8' x 12'), where I'm trying to get a few more plants to grow near one corner (it's bare because I had to tear out some mustard greens that cabbage worms had gotten to). But I've had Steve for almost 5 yrs, and although this is his first summer in his new garden, he's been out in it quite a few days now (mostly since it warmed up) so I assume he's pretty familiar with the area. There are also plenty of places to hide; most of the plants are huge and it even takes me a few minutes to locate him. The substrate is just plain dirt and the temps are plenty warm enough for him.

The bare corner where he paces is just above (behind) the flamingo...


So why does he pace along the walls and try to climb up them? Is he not happy with his big garden?

 

[dmmj]

Russians pace, it's what they do. They are hard wired to walk square acres of territory. I doubt any outdoor enclosure is truly big enough to satisfy a russian. I imagine sooner or later, he will realize his territory, and settle down.

I should mention sight barriers, when a tortoise can see their entire enclosure from end to end, they know iy. Placing logs, big rocks, and plants in there, to break up the sight, helps them think it is bigger.

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

My russian paces the day away, even though his pen is very big. It's just what they do in the wild they cover miles of territory in a day, in a pen with out any walls and infinite amounts of pacing room!

 

[Oxalis]

I should mention sight barriers, when a tortoise can see their entire enclosure from end to end, they know iy. Placing logs, big rocks, and plants in there, to break up the sight, helps them think it is bigger.

OK, I'm glad I'm trying to get those plants to grow in that area. He does still walk along the wall under all the plants, but he seems to enjoy that more, I think, probably because he has so much cover to hide under.

 

[ascott]

Because his is a captive tortoise....

 

[bouaboua]

Those Russians.........

 

[Shakudo]

Yes in the short time I have had a Russian tortoise I must say, I have never encountered such a character, very interesting.

Joey

 

[ascott]

I went back and looked at the enclosure pic....I would seriously use some type of cap at each of the corners of the enclosure...the way the plants are nice and thick I see an easy way for the tort to use the plants or use the corner of the enclosure walls to ali up.....just my observation.

http://startortoises.net/images/golden-6585.jpg

 

[johnsonnboswell]

Try feeding him more & see if it makes a difference. Worth a try. My crew gets restless when they're hungry.

 

[Oxalis]

Try feeding him more & see if it makes a difference. Worth a try. My crew gets restless when they're hungry.

Thanks for the tip; we'll see! As for the wall corners, he's definitely unable to reach them and none of the plants are strong enough to hold him up. Usually my boyfriend or I am outside here watching him while he's playing in his garden -- actually right as I'm typing this! So far, it seems like he's not tempted to challenge his escape artist talents probably because there are so many tasty foods to try and lots of space to explore. So yes, I guess the more plants he has around him, the more content he'll probably be. I am glad to see him trying new foods that his previous owners probably never even knew he could have. He's getting a much more varied diet now!