OrangeBlossom
New Member
Hey all. this is probably dumb. I'm posting anyway. I have two choices of possible tortoise, which were supposed to be a Christmas gift for my daughter.
I was going to buy one off Craigslist that comes with a cracked aquarium (which I now know is not even what I want). for $150. He's cute in the picture, but hasn't had lights on him for two weeks. The guy has the lights, which need new bulbs, in storage. He says he only needs lights for heat, and the tank is heated. So who knows when the last time this poor guy got UVB is.
So I went to Petco. They stupidly put two Russians in one space, and one bit the other. The bit one is in the back recuperating. His foot looks terrible but they say it's going to look much better. He's been getting regular vet care, shots, etc. Once he is cleared by the vet he can be "adopted" for just $20. This is exciting for me. I'll have more to spend on a better enclosure, better lights, all that stuff. I also figure - he's been seen by the vet, and is probably the healthiest tortoise I could get. he's also quite a bit smaller than the Craigslist tortoise. He was supposed to go to the vet today and possibly be cleared by the reptile vet wasn't there, so he's going Tuesday. I think waiting a few days after Christmas is ok. The one that bit him looks mean. . . and he has a lot of dry flaky skin around his neck and he was kinda stinky. . I don't want him.
Part of me wants to rescue the other guy. But I don't want my first (and probably only) tort to be sick or something. I worry about the Craigslist one. I also worry about the seller who seems pretty sketchy. Anyway, there's my long unnecessary rambling intro.
I was going to buy one off Craigslist that comes with a cracked aquarium (which I now know is not even what I want). for $150. He's cute in the picture, but hasn't had lights on him for two weeks. The guy has the lights, which need new bulbs, in storage. He says he only needs lights for heat, and the tank is heated. So who knows when the last time this poor guy got UVB is.
So I went to Petco. They stupidly put two Russians in one space, and one bit the other. The bit one is in the back recuperating. His foot looks terrible but they say it's going to look much better. He's been getting regular vet care, shots, etc. Once he is cleared by the vet he can be "adopted" for just $20. This is exciting for me. I'll have more to spend on a better enclosure, better lights, all that stuff. I also figure - he's been seen by the vet, and is probably the healthiest tortoise I could get. he's also quite a bit smaller than the Craigslist tortoise. He was supposed to go to the vet today and possibly be cleared by the reptile vet wasn't there, so he's going Tuesday. I think waiting a few days after Christmas is ok. The one that bit him looks mean. . . and he has a lot of dry flaky skin around his neck and he was kinda stinky. . I don't want him.
Part of me wants to rescue the other guy. But I don't want my first (and probably only) tort to be sick or something. I worry about the Craigslist one. I also worry about the seller who seems pretty sketchy. Anyway, there's my long unnecessary rambling intro.