Hi all. I have a male and female Russian that both just came out of hibernation. They are approximately 5 years old. Will they breed on their own or do they need help. They have been housed together over winter during their hibernation. Now Both are awake and I was wondering about breeding.
breeding russians
- Thread starter Realsis
- Start date
I doubt they will breed. First off, its more likely to work if there's a proper ratio (one male to several females).
There's no way to really "help" them. Russians are tricky to breed in captivity.
Because its unlikely they will breed, you should sepertal them. 1:1 groups housed together are very dangerous. The male will court the female until she eventually closes off and dies. Just because he is mounting her, it doesn't mean "anything happened".
There's no way to really "help" them. Russians are tricky to breed in captivity.
Because its unlikely they will breed, you should sepertal them. 1:1 groups housed together are very dangerous. The male will court the female until she eventually closes off and dies. Just because he is mounting her, it doesn't mean "anything happened".
In order for one pair of Russian tortoises to live peacefully together, and not have the male pester the female continually until she stays hidden from him, you have to have a pretty large outdoor habitat with many sight barriers and several hiding places. Without this, the male will breed the female from dawn to dusk. And part of the breeding ritual is biting, ramming and more biting. I've seen female Russian tortoises with their eyelids bitten off and scales bitten off the front legs, bleeding.
I would discourage you from keeping one male and one female together in an indoor habitat.
To answer your question, the only help they need from you would be a place deep enough for the female to dig a nest and a separate habitat to put the male into so she can be left in peace to dig it.
I would discourage you from keeping one male and one female together in an indoor habitat.
To answer your question, the only help they need from you would be a place deep enough for the female to dig a nest and a separate habitat to put the male into so she can be left in peace to dig it.
Where and how were they hibernated? Are they normally housed separately? What size enclosure and indoors or out? How do you know their age and what are their sizes?
Generally, a male with a lone female with pester her to the point of sickness or death. If you just have the pair, I'd house them separately, give them a week or two to come out of hibernation, soak daily and get them eating again, and then start introducing them for breeding. The males can be pretty rough on the girls, so be careful. The males usually bite, shove and intimidate them into submission, se be prepared for that.
Generally, a male with a lone female with pester her to the point of sickness or death. If you just have the pair, I'd house them separately, give them a week or two to come out of hibernation, soak daily and get them eating again, and then start introducing them for breeding. The males can be pretty rough on the girls, so be careful. The males usually bite, shove and intimidate them into submission, se be prepared for that.
Breeding is an entirely different subject from general keeping. Because of this species temperament mating is aggressive and brutal at times. Stressed females run several risks. Injury from mating, becoming egg bound if there's no suitable nesting sites and if the males are not separated so they can nest in peace. If your female is only 5 years it is unlikely she will produce viable eggs right away. She will only need to be exposed to the male occasionally to be able to fertilize any eggs she develops. It is likely that if she does lay eggs that she will break them as she is digging. Experience is a great teacher for them. I don't recommend a new keeper with such youngsters for tortoises attempt breeding.
