Another tortoise?+new tortoise owner tips

harrythetortoise

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Well I am thinking of seriously expanding the tortoises outdoor encloser by like 20 feet! So they will have like half the yard to themselves. And they will get so much sunlight. Also I Don't mean to be rude or anything but what makes you so sure they will fight and bully each other? I mean you cant tell the future. They wont always fight.
No one can predict the future, but if there is a possibility, why risk it?
 

Krista S

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What do you guys think
You aren’t going to get the answer you’re looking for.
Well I am thinking of seriously expanding the tortoises outdoor encloser by like 20 feet! So they will have like half the yard to themselves. And they will get so much sunlight. Also I Don't mean to be rude or anything but what makes you so sure they will fight and bully each other? I mean you cant tell the future. They wont always fight.
It is rude that you’ve come here admitting you’re new to tortoises and asking for input and advice, only to argue with every single point thing that the members are telling you. People who have literal decades of experience are taking time out of their day to share their knowledge with you for the sake of the tortoises health and well-being and you still completely disregard everything that has been said. It’s clear you came here looking for someone to just agree with you that 2 tortoises in an inadequate sized enclosure is a good idea. Nobody here will say that this is a good idea. Please, I beg of you, for the sake of those poor tortoises, please reread this thread and the care sheet and fix this situation you’ve created.
 

Lovethetorts!

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Your right all of you I am sorry I just got really ahead of myself there and now I think i have made a mistake! I am sorry if I was rude to you I do make a lot of mistakes. I really don't know why I didn't listen to you. I would return the male tortoise but the breeder said there is no refund or returning. I do not understand why but that is what he said. So know I just have to do the best I can. I guess we've all made mistakes and I have made a pretty big one. I am just trying to make the best of it.
 

Lovethetorts!

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I have started to make the 20 foot encloser for the tortoises. I will try to put some photos tomorrow. I figured since you said that my encloser was to small for Sophie I would give her an upgrade. The sooner the better. I am considering rehoming the male tortoise though becuse you said they might bully each other I think it is kind of cruel for me to do it so soon he hasn't even adjusted to his new home. I have only had him for two days. It probably will stress him out. I have a question about them though it was so hot today it has never been this hot for a while I think it was maybe in the 90s! We'll I decided to put the tortoises out in there outdoor pen for some sunshine and after like an hour I noticed that the male tortoises was digging in the ground during the day he normally only does that at night to make a den for him to sleep in. And Sophie was all in her shell eyes closed she had been blinking a lot that day. And it got me a little worried I did everything I could to make sure they weren't to hot. Eventually I just put them back in there encloser. Do you think they got to hot? Possibly dehydrated? They seemed fine later though.
 

Lovethetorts!

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Though my best bet is to just make the male a separate encloser instead of rehoming him becuse I feel like I have a close bond with him he is just such a sweetheart!? As I am sure most of you here have special bonds with your
tortoises to. I just love tortoises.?
 

Jan A

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So far so good! The encloser I am building is coming together. I have not seen any bullying between my new tortoise and Sophie which is good.
I'll give this a go. Without pictures of their outdoor enclosure, we can only make guesses. It sounds like from your description, that both torts got overheated today. If there is no shade, they will overheat in hot, sunny weather & die unless they can burrow into cooler ground. Did they have water to drink and shallow water dishes they could cool down in? If they are babies & not adults, they shouldn"t be outside all day anyway. Put shade in if there is none.

In your expansion of your outdoor enclosure, you should still consider splitting their enclosure in 2 so that each has his/her own enclosure. Like everyone has explained, torts are territorial, non-social animals. What you're not understanding is that in captivity, in the same enclosure, one tort cannot get away from the other like they can in the wild.

So if they're fighting over territory (their enclosure), food, mating, basking, sleeping, hides, etc., the one losing cannot get away from the winner (bully) & even if not physically injured, will suffer by losing access to food or other needs not being met.

In any event, you should be quarantining your new tort from the other for a good 2-3 months to make sure the new one is not sick.

"Bullying" for torts comes in all shapes & forms. What looks like being "buddies" to us is not the same for torts. There are many threads on bullying on this site. If you love your torts, please do some reading.
 

Lovethetorts!

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Got it. On the hot day they did have plenty of shade not including three hiding places And they had a shallow water dish. I will try to post some pictures of the encloser I am building when it is close to getting done and will I consider separating the two tortoises but so far everything has been fine.
 

Lovethetorts!

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So have a quick question it has been kind of cold and cloudy like around 70-76f for like 2 days now and the tortoises have not been moving around almost at all they just stay in one place, sleep or hide underground. Is that normal behavior when it is a little cold and there isn't that much sunlight? I have been trying to do everything to make them a little warmer like giving the warm soaks twice a day and letting them out in the grass where it is warmer I think.
 

harrythetortoise

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So have a quick question it has been kind of cold and cloudy like around 70-76f for like 2 days now and the tortoises have not been moving around almost at all they just stay in one place, sleep or hide underground. Is that normal behavior when it is a little cold and there isn't that much sunlight? I have been trying to do everything to make them a little warmer like giving the warm soaks twice a day and letting them out in the grass where it is warmer I think.
Yes I believe they become more active at warmer/ideal temps. Hopefully it gets warmer soon!
 

Lovethetorts!

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Same here! I mean I kind of miss them when they are sleeping all the time or hiding. So is it bad for them if it is kind of cold and there isn't much sunlight for them? Will it make them sick or something?
 

harrythetortoise

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Same here! I mean I kind of miss them when they are sleeping all the time or hiding. So is it bad for them if it is kind of cold and there isn't much sunlight for them? Will it make them sick or something?
It could, they need to be able to warm their bodies to be able to digest and function. Do you have any indoor enclosure or a temperature controlled night box outside?
If you’re keeping them outside all the time you should have a night box where they can go inside at night or when it isn’t warm enough. I only have one baby tortoise so I would also wait for the experts to respond as well!
 

Lovethetorts!

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I do not currently have an indoor encloser I used to have one but broke and they do not have a night box but they do have a Terra cotta pot with nesting hay in it and a whole different big pile of nesting hay where they sleep at night.
 

harrythetortoise

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And I have been giving them warm soaks.
Warm soaks are good, but I just checked the weather there and looks like it's going to be high 60's and low 50's until sometime next week... that is too low for tortoises. Mother nature is very fickle around this time of the year.
 

Krista S

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I know the care sheet link has been provided to you in the past on a different thread, but I’ll provide it again. Please, please take the time to read it before your tortoises get critically ill.


Only adult tortoises should be kept outside full time, and as @harrythetortoise pointed out, they require a temperature controlled night box.
 

Lovethetorts!

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Really? I have never heard of that! Ok well I will do the best I can right now to get them warm. I just hope they will be ok for a little while until I get the night box. Is there anything else I can do in the mean time?
 

Lovethetorts!

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I know the care sheet link has been provided to you in the past on a different thread, but I’ll provide it again. Please, please take the time to read it before your tortoises get critically ill.


Only adult tortoises should be kept outside full time, and as @harrythetortoise pointed out, they require a temperature controlled night box.
In the link you gave me it said that adult tortoises can tolerate temperatures in the low 50's and 60's and right now the lowest temperature it is supposed to be is 55f so my tortoises should be fine. Right? Becuse they are almost adults.
 

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