? about hingeback tortoises

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mattk

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Hello everyone. i was looking at and thinking about maybe adding a hingback tortoise to my ever growing zoo i have lol. not sure realy what to ask about them any information would be helpful. i like personal experince more then just reading care sheets on them. so any info would be helpful. plus any idea how to convince your better half to agree on letting you get another tortoise lol
 

Tortoise

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Firstly you would want to research all of the Hinge backs available to you as there are quite a few and their needs differ in regard to humidity in particular.
I have Bells.
They are quite shy but will eat worms, meal worms from my fingers as they love them so much-but watch the fingers as they are quicker than you think-I speak from experience.:D

I soak them weekly to ensure hydration but they both use their water containers a lot.

They love mushrooms and fruit, they eat greens too. The Bells don't need as much humidity as the other species so mine have peat moss for a substrate with mulch on top too-some of their enclosure is moist , some areas dry. I use a ceramic heater. they love to have a secure place to hide.

I really like them, they are cute, great to observe eating worms etc and stay nice and small. They are shier than other tortoises but do adjust.
I know if a person gets a wild caught Hinge-you need to aggressively treat for parasites as they are very susceptible to these. Captive bred would be a lot better.

I have only had my boys since the Summer so I hope the small amount of knowledge I have so far is helpful.

Jacqui is another member here who is Hinge back crazy-so I'm sure she will reply later. Another member is Turtletary who has the Forest-hingeback.. Kinixys erosa www.turtletary.com

Good Luck
 

Jacqui

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It really makes a difference as to which kind of hingeback are you thinking of getting?
 

mattk

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Thanks. I'm not exactly sure yet which hingeback I'm going to get. I would like a bells but I will have to see what they have at the hamburg reptile show. I have read up on all of them I was kind of looking for personal experinces with them.
 

EricIvins

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mattk said:
Thanks. I'm not exactly sure yet which hingeback I'm going to get. I would like a bells but I will have to see what they have at the hamburg reptile show. I have read up on all of them I was kind of looking for personal experinces with them.

Your only going to find Homeana, if that at a Reptile show.......

If you want the more uncommon Hingebacks, your going to have to do your research and start digging......Deep.......
 

Jacqui

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The most common;y available hingeback in the USA is currently the Home's hingeback. These guys are selling for a pretty cheap price, which makes them seem like a great tortoise to get. They are all almost WC (wild caught) and they can either be easy to get adjusted or it can be a slow hard process. The major hurdle is to get them to eat. Once they are eating, they rather quickly as a rule get over their shyness and become begging machines. They are fairly active tortoises, which have amazing abiities to climb. They need a high humidity (actually much along the lines of a redfoot).

Erosa (which like the Homes are often labeled Forest hingebacks) are also available in limited numbers. These guys are WC. Needs are much like the Homes as are their personalities.

Bells are hard to find in this country, due to the tick issues from the wild. They are more of a drier kept tortoise then the other two types of hingebacks listed above. They don't have the amazing doe like eyes you notice immediately in the above species.

Keeping a hingeback can be easy or very very frustrating. I have had several Homes and Erosa both which took years to get really established. On the other hand, I have had some of both that were fresh off the plane, yet acted like they had been born in captivity.

Variety of food is important with these guys, as they are one of the worse tortoises in my experience for getting hooked on one food and becoming single minded about their food. Bananas are the worse. We keepers tend to feed them a rather unbalanced diet heavier in fruits then I think it should be.

Hingebacks all love water and spend a lot of time soaking, so you have to provide them with a deep enough body of water at all times.

The Erosa/Homes tend to do well with just ambient lighting, but do like some chances at basking. They also need to feel secure and have plenty of hides and plants.

These guys can be fun and challenging, but are certainly not for everyone.

As for the convincing part: give them something in exchange that they are wanting. An addiction to tortoises is much better then spending the money on booze, smokes, whatever. It's rewarding to watch them thrive. Healthy for you to be outside creating them outdoor living spaces or finding/growing food for them. Inside their environments can become a much loved visual point in your home, which will be the envy of friends and relaxing to you both.
 

mattk

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Thank you everyone for all the info. i will see what they have at the reptile show. Jacqui your probable right on the Homes hingeback as that is all i have seen online for sale. i might just set everything up expecting to get one. i just have to see how to convince the wife i need yet another critter in the house.
 
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