Help IDing new Tortoise...

I live in Goodyear/Buckeye area of Arizona. My husband was driving down the road a couple weeks ago and found this little one roaming on the curb. We have no one claiming and are at the point where we will keep him/her.

What kind is it?
Sulcata? Male? Age estimate?


We will most likely devote our large side yard area (free of the wood chips) and have a place inside for extreme temps. I just need to know exactly what I’m working with!

It does look like you have found a little Sulcata but it’s a bit too small to determine the sex.. I also wouldnt guess at an age because size can be varied due to living conditions. They grow at extremely different rates... someone with more knowledge can give you more info I bet. Until then, give him a nice warm soak to hydrate and let me know if you need some care sheets linked or if you already found them. He’s lucky you found him ! Congratulations.

Yes....definitely looks like a sulcata. Check the care info under Tortoise Species at the top of this page for lots of great info for housing, temps and feeding. Congrats on your new shell baby.....and thank you for saving him/her!

It's a Sulcata, no doubt.

Another confirmation that it's a Sulcata [emoji106]

It's a sulcata that's rather dry. Looks to be more than a year of age. He needs to be set up indoors for another 6 months or so, at least until he's bigger than the palm of your hand. But for right now, he needs lots of water.

Yvonne G said:

It's a sulcata that's rather dry. Looks to be more than a year of age. He needs to be set up indoors for another 6 months or so, at least until he's bigger than the palm of your hand. But for right now, he needs lots of water.

Click to expand...

Thank you! I’ve got him soaking now and he’s a happy camper. I had read to soak 15-30 minutes twice a week and was doing that. I’ll bump it up for the time being.

He won’t be outside yet. We gotta gate off and set up space for him to keep our dopey bloodhound from getting to him.

I have chameleons, so this is a fun new little one to have and learn about.

Welcome! Good thing you rescued the suclata.