Meet the Boys

Soren

New Member
Joined
May 3, 2021
Messages
4
Location (City and/or State)
Philadelphia
Thought it'd be time for a formal intro! Here are Rohan and Bruno, my Russian and Marginated boys.

Rohan is suspected to be about 4 years old. He was surrendered to the store I work at, and I fell in love with his spunk. I've had him for about a year now. He's a very good eater, but doesn't stuff himself. He's a little shy but he's been getting more and more confident the longer I've had him. His favorite hobby is trying (and failing) to understand the concept of a barrier.

Bruno is a captive-bred 3 year old marginated tortoise. I started housing him with Rohan before I knew it wasn't recommended, but the two seem happy with each other. I'm always checking for any signs of aggression, but there have been none. Rohan seems to enjoy the presence of his walking head rest. Bruno is very outgoing, confident, and brave. He absolutely loves when we take trips to the park.

And a picture dump of course! Some of these are older (youll see when rohan was alone he was in a large storage container), so the housing looks a little different now. They're in a bioactive substrate with tons of tortoise safe plants, though they're not too interested in them. They have 2 hides (a moist one especially for bruno), a water dish, and a little ramp for Rohan's parkour. They also have a treat ball they roll around to try and get food from.

(And yes, they have Spinosaurus sweaters)20210505_111108.jpgScreenshot_20210502-015003_Photos.jpgScreenshot_20210514-021718_Photos.jpg20210114_190256.jpg20210114_190543.jpgScreenshot_20210514-021739_Photos.jpg20200807_114808.jpg
 

Lyn W

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5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2014
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23,497
Location (City and/or State)
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Hi and welcome,
They are lovey torts but not only shouldn't you keep 2 torts together you shouldn't mix species either.
They are both temperate species so their care is similar but that doesn't mean they should be housed together. Different species carry and tolerate different pathogens that may not affect themselves but could make the other tort very sick.
This is the caresheet you need for both torts so please read and follow the advice on substrate, temps and diet etc. Ask as many questions as you like someone is will always get back to you.

The photo of the one tort resting his head on the other is a sign of dominant behaviour - he is trying to intimidate the other tort out of his space. Bullying behaviour isn't obvious to us at first and includes things like staring, following, nudging and mounting - all often mistaken for cute affection, but they are signs that the torts are upset with having competition for space and food etc. Eventually it becomes more aggressive with barging, trying to tip the other tort over and biting. Sharing a small place is very stressful for both which can affect the immune system and cause illness and there is usually injury and sometimes even death.

They don't have the space to avoid each other so it would be in their best interest to separate them asap - they are solitary creatures and do not like or need company so they will be much happier and safer.
 

Jacqui

Wanna be raiser of Lemon Drop tortoises
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10 Year Member!
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Aug 28, 2007
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A Land Far Away...
They look handsome! Where do you work? Guessing a pet store or Vet?
 

Soren

New Member
Joined
May 3, 2021
Messages
4
Location (City and/or State)
Philadelphia
Hi and welcome,
They are lovey torts but not only shouldn't you keep 2 torts together you shouldn't mix species either.
They are both temperate species so their care is similar but that doesn't mean they should be housed together. Different species carry and tolerate different pathogens that may not affect themselves but could make the other tort very sick.
This is the caresheet you need for both torts so please read and follow the advice on substrate, temps and diet etc. Ask as many questions as you like someone is will always get back to you.

The photo of the one tort resting his head on the other is a sign of dominant behaviour - he is trying to intimidate the other tort out of his space. Bullying behaviour isn't obvious to us at first and includes things like staring, following, nudging and mounting - all often mistaken for cute affection, but they are signs that the torts are upset with having competition for space and food etc. Eventually it becomes more aggressive with barging, trying to tip the other tort over and biting. Sharing a small place is very stressful for both which can affect the immune system and cause illness and there is usually injury and sometimes even death.

They don't have the space to avoid each other so it would be in their best interest to separate them asap - they are solitary creatures and do not like or need company so they will be much happier and safer.
Thank you very much Lyn, I knew about head bobs, nudges, and the like but didn't know about the head resting. They've been together for over a year and Rohan hasn't done anything more than that, they actively share food with each other. They've also both had checkups and blood tests to make sure they dont have common sicknesses.

Because it's currently summer, they get a couple hours of outdoor time 3-4 times a week to get space from each other. I'll be re-doing my pet corner this summer and considering getting one of them a tortoise table, probably bruno.
 

Lyn W

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jul 22, 2014
Messages
23,497
Location (City and/or State)
UK
Thank you very much Lyn, I knew about head bobs, nudges, and the like but didn't know about the head resting. They've been together for over a year and Rohan hasn't done anything more than that, they actively share food with each other. They've also both had checkups and blood tests to make sure they dont have common sicknesses.

Because it's currently summer, they get a couple hours of outdoor time 3-4 times a week to get space from each other. I'll be re-doing my pet corner this summer and considering getting one of them a tortoise table, probably bruno.
There are lots of good examples in the enclosures thread.
The minimum recommended size for a young adult of the smaller species is 4 x 8 feet but the bigger the better.
 

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