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What is the legality of keeping a desert tortoises, outside of their natural range? Someone has approached me (because I'm the local tortoise guy) with two (presumably) WC desert tortoises. Lord knows where they came from. I'm in Alabama and these are not gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus)...

So I had made the decision to let my sulcata winter in her burrow outside as opposed to bringing her inside. Here in southern Alabama, we don't get too many terribly cold nights where it doesn't get fair back during the day, but January can get pretty chilly (below 20'F at night and 40-50's in...

So last night, I had a headache when I came home from work, and coupled with the typical stress of helping the wife with getting everything ready for the holidays, I forgot to do my evening check of the pens outside and put the redfoot tortoises in their heated shed. This morning I went outside...

Okay, so this weekend, I have embarked on building a night box for my adult redfoots. The design is more or less what Tom has shown us in this thread. Unfortunately for me, Tom did not bother to write the exact dimensions for each portion of the assembly :P, and me without a table saw. So I'm...

Found this in Kobe's pen this morning. About 3 ft in less than 24 hrs.

Okay, so I rescued some eggs from a person's house a few weeks back. Didn't know what they were at the time, but they said they would crush them in case they were snakes, so I took them home to incubate. All but one didn't make it, but last night, a baby box turtle finaly came out (took him 2...

Is okra safe for tortoises? Someone gave me a big bag and I hate to let produce go to waste, but was not sure if its safe.

Am toying with the idea of raising either chickens or guineas. I know that tortoises can be opportunistic and chomp on birds! But aside from that, would there be anything else one should worry about regarding the welfare of tortoises or poultry kept together in the same area? I would...

So I was driving to work yesterday morning when I noticed that a gigantic portion of land had just been cleared out near where I live. This was an area where I and several of my friends have herped many times. It was once great habitat for gopher tortoises, eastern diamondback rattlers, black...

So I think I'm going to be a little lazy and just purchase a dog house to modify as heated shelters over the winter. Should I go with wooden ones or plastic ones, like dog igloos? I would think wood insulates better, but I dunno...anyone with past experience want to chime in?

This is what I took off work today to do...

I "may" be in a position to take in some Star tortoises in the future. May be many months, and possible years from now...but I would like to get an idea of what I may be stepping into. I have a pretty good handle on basic tortoise care, and specifically, sulcatas and redfoots. How does a star...

All of these wonderful chelonians can be found at the Environmental Studies Center here in Mobile, AL. If you're ever in the area during normal business hrs, might want to make time for a visit! This is where my local herp society meets every month.

So southwest Alabama weather sucks. Its freaking May, and this sudden rainy weather we're having brought some wonderful 45'F chills. Sooooo...Had to bring my redfoots in for the night. Very vocal...sounds like the herd of brachiosaurs from the first Jurassic Park movie. Anyone else have...

Had some leftover watermelon this morning, so I gave it to the tortoises. Here's Lobo and Lola enjoying a slice or two. And here is the revised juvenile outdoor pen for Toby and Moby. I scrapped the turtle pond idea, and this seemed a good alternative for the work already done.

Meet Lola, the new redfoot to my little "herd," Previous owners were in the Coast Guard and moved around a lot. They said she was generally happiest in this area, so they brought her to the rescue. She's about 5-yrs-old and obviously has some pyramiding. Hopefully, the natural southern sunshine...

Here is the outdoor pond I am in the process of building for my false map turtle. Any suggestions for filtration?

A couple weeks ago, I ordered a pallet load of cinder blocks and created this 19' x 19' pen for my juvenile sulcata, Kobe. Hopefully, this will last her for about 2 years, and I will just systematically order another pallet load and expand the enclosure as needed every 2-3 years or so. I still...

For some reason, my juvenile redfoots (which are kept indoors) have been going crazy. They are more active, even at odd hours of the night, climbing on everything, and making all sorts of racket. They typically weren't this rambunctious during the warmer months. Is it just cabin fever? Anyone...

One day (couple months ago - just now grabbing pics off my camera), I walked outside to see my juvenile redfoot "Moby" climbing on the back of the lame one "Lobo." Here are some pics. Now, before anyone chews my head off, I am totally aware of the potential risks of putting these...