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  1. M

    Northern California home available

    It's illegal to possess a desert tortoise in California without a special permit. And neither the tortoise or the permit can be transferred to a different person without approval from the Department of Fish and Wildlife. If you want to adopt a desert tortoise, you need to fill out the...
  2. M

    Fake girlfriend for my tortoise

    Thanks! I actually used to have a really nice ceramic tortoise "statue" that was about the right size, but it was hollow and became an impossible puzzle when one of my cats decided to knock it off of my desk. :( I'll look around for something sturdy so he won't break it if he gets too...
  3. M

    Fake girlfriend for my tortoise

    Where did you get the "girlfriend"? My 5-year-old male Hermann's is exhibiting the same behavior and he might need a "friend" for a while as well. :)
  4. M

    Specific Seeds for Hermanns

    For Hermann's tortoises that don't really eat grass, I would go with this seed mix from the same supplier instead of the one that SinLa linked to: https://www.carolinapetsupply.com/catalog/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=162 It still has some grasses, but not nearly as much as the...
  5. M

    White/yellow flesh? On both sides of torts mouth?

    Can you get a close up picture of the tortoise's face without the glass to make it easier to actually see the problem? The reflections from the glass make it hard to see anything more than a light colored spot.
  6. M

    Buying a tortoise

    Wait for a sulcata expert for a "final answer", but it looks pretty healthy to me, although it is showing signs of pyramiding on the shell already which could indicate that it isn't receiving proper care and might be an indicator of possible health problems that aren't visible right now. Also...
  7. M

    Is this safe to feed? Desert rose-can’t find anything online

    Adenium are dangerously toxic to humans, dogs, cats, and horses. I would not give it to a tortoise...
  8. M

    Tortoise Wheel: An Unexpected Success!

    I really like this idea! My Hermann's tortoise frequently tries to climb the walls of his enclosure, even though he has space to wander. A larger wheel (or treadmill) just might help him burn off some of that energy. I don't think a regular hamster wheel would work, though, since he's about 7"...
  9. M

    Other bark OK for substrate or only orchid bark?

    Don't use that one. Cedar is definitely bad, and Redwood might also be bad. And the fact that it "could" have a variety of things means it might also have other bad stuff in it.
  10. M

    Box Turtle 🐢 Poop 💩 Concern

    The one that's clearly visible is a lot smaller than his foot. My Hermann's occasionally passes "boulders" about as big as the bottom of his foot. I would consider those to be big. But the size in the picture would be medium to small range... That's just speaking from my experience with...
  11. M

    Box Turtle 🐢 Poop 💩 Concern

    That's really not all that large. And it looks nice and squishy so no problems squeezing it out.. :)
  12. M

    Tortoise pee

    Did he (the boyfriend) by chance dump water into the enclosure to moisten the substrate recently? I had almost exactly the same problem a while ago and discovered that the plastic "tub" base in that section of my tortoise enclosure had developed a tiny crack and the water I had put into the...
  13. M

    Hermann's tortoise poop is very stinky

    My Hermes has been living in the slowly expanding indoor enclosure that I built for him (documented in this thread: https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/help-improve-indoor-enclosure-expansion-for-hermes-tortoise.208557/) since last Fall and finally finished to its current size a little over a...
  14. M

    Help improve indoor enclosure expansion for Hermes tortoise

    I thought it was about time for an update. The seedlings are going nuts, and were tying themselves in knots in the starter trays so I've moved them to individual pots to make room for more seedling starts and to try to root some of the smallest cactus pads that I harvested in the fall. The...
  15. M

    Coco brick bedding

    Coco coir is safe for tortoise. It's sometimes a bit messy and requires frequent moistening to keep it from drying out. It does get in the food and water dishes, but it's perfectly harmless if it does, and it is a decent substrate option. Depending on the type of wood chips, they might actually...
  16. M

    Leadership lessons from tortoises! Video.

    She claims that the little Hermann's "dominates" the Sulcata. Which is just silly. Then she goes on to say, "In the tortoise world, this is absolutely natural." Nope, no it's not...
  17. M

    Water hyacinth?

    Water Hyacinth (Eichhornia), which isn't actually a Hyacinth, is safe for aquatic turtles to eat. I don't see any information online about the plant specifically for star tortoises, but if aquatic turtles can eat it, it is probably OK. Do not feed any true Hyacinths to any animals, though.
  18. M

    Help improve indoor enclosure expansion for Hermes tortoise

    I guess the greenhouse temperature is OK. It has only been three days since I planted the seeds. :)
  19. M

    Help improve indoor enclosure expansion for Hermes tortoise

    Slight change of plans that is too late for an edit on the last message. I realized that it probably is not a good idea to have the warm incandescent bulb shining directly on the mulberry trees, so I moved the lamp fixture above the seedlings (that do want the extra heat) and put part of the...
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