Galapagos tortoises care guide?

[pacific chelonians]

It has been many years in the making and working with tortoises a lot but I am finally ready to buy a few baby Galapagos’s and I do not know if there is a care guide for them but I do not want to make any mistakes I will be housing them in closed chambers that Will hold a high enough humidity to prevent any pyramiding and don’t worry I will be housing them separately I know general tortoise care for a lot of species and I am not a beginner by any means I was just wondering if there was a care guide I could look at to make sure there’s I am doing everything thing right and I really do trust to inform on here

 

[wellington]

I don't believe we have one. Maybe @Markw84 can help, as he is raising some.
Otherwise I do believe it's like raising the Aldabras. If there is a caresheet for them.
Congrats and good luck keep us updated.

 

[pacific chelonians]

Well I guess at least I have a friend who has raised Galapagos’s is from babies and they are now 28 inches now I don’t expect mine to get anywhere near that large for an extremely long period of time but once they do I will definitely update you guys

 

[Tom]

Well I guess at least I have a friend who has raised Galapagos’s is from babies and they are now 28 inches now I don’t expect mine to get anywhere near that large for an extremely long period of time but once they do I will definitely update you guys

Here is the care info. This works perfectly for them:

The Best Way To Raise A Sulcata, Leopard, Or Star Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. Babies hatch during the...

tortoiseforum.org

We've debated about the merits of letting them get a little cooler at night, but anything from 70 to low 80s works for night temps for them.

I also recommend you stay away from regular Mazuri and stick to LS, or other things instead. You'll need lots and lots of grass. That should be the main component of their diet. Start growing opuntia too. Make lots of stands of it. You'll need it.

You have a problem though... No one is currently breeding them in CA (at least that I know of...), and you can't legally buy them from other states anymore because no one can get a CBW permit. Are you planning on buying larger ones that were here in CA when people still had CBW permits?

 

[pacific chelonians]

Ok thank you I have raised many leopard tortoise according to the care guides and it has worked out beautifully I have already located the tortoises within California and I have waited for a long time at it is really not a bad price for them

 

[Tom]

Ok thank you I have raised many leopard tortoise according to the care guides and it has worked out beautifully I have already located the tortoises within California and I have waited for a long time at it is really not a bad price for them

Someone is producing babies in CA? Where? Who? PM me if you don't want to say it publicly.

I'm not saying this is not possible, but be careful you aren't being scammed. I've not heard of anyone producing babies in CA right now. And why would they sell them at lower price when no one else has them? That doesn't add up. Be sure they aren't illegally bringing them into the state for re-sale. You don't want to mess with something like that. You'll lose them.

I have some friends that are sitting on eggs right now, but no babies yet.

 

[pacific chelonians]

I misspoke when I said babies they are yearling around 7in the are still not cheap but they seem to be at the market price not supper over priced

 

[Tom]

Ag

I misspoke when I said babies they are yearling around 7in the are still not cheap but they seem to be at the market price not supper over priced

Again, I've not heard of anyone in CA producing and selling hatchlings. Not even in the last 10 years. So where did these babies come from? There was a court case recently where a stupid kid was convicted of smuggling them out of a zoo in another state and another man who had galaps was selling them. The second man has since died, but some of those babies might still be out there. I'm just saying to be cautious, Are you sure of the origin of these tortoises? If someone is successfully breeding in CA, I'd love to know about it.

 

[pacific chelonians]

Ok I will see if I can get more information on these torts

 

[pacific chelonians]

If I can’t get better information on these I will just have to wait I guess can you pm a list of the people who have eggs I would be helpful to get onto a list of at least be able to purchase them when they hatch thank you

 

[Tom]

If I can’t get better information on these I will just have to wait I guess can you pm a list of the people who have eggs I would be helpful to get onto a list of at least be able to purchase them when they hatch thank you

I know of only one group that is actively breeding and producing eggs in CA, but they haven't hatched any yet. When they do, they've told me they intend to sell the babies. Not sure they want to be named publicly yet. As an enthusiast that loves the species, it would be great to know that someone else in our big state was successfully breeding. That is why I'm so interested in what you've found. It sounds to good to be true. If its some type of scam, then I really want to prevent you from being ripped off or getting into any trouble with the law. If its legit and not a scam, then we have reason to celebrate!

 

[pacific chelonians]

I agree I have been in the Tortoise business for around 4 1/2 years now in many years before that just collecting but I have learned about pretty much all of the scams and how to avoid losing my money With these tortoises I am having a family member pick them up for me and ship them to me there in Northern California and I am in Southern California But the second I do smell any inconsistencies I will become very cautious and still am at this point

 

[adptorts]

I agree I have been in the Tortoise business for around 4 1/2 years now in many years before that just collecting but I have learned about pretty much all of the scams and how to avoid losing my money With these tortoises I am having a family member pick them up for me and ship them to me there in Northern California and I am in Southern California But the second I do smell any inconsistencies I will become very cautious and still am at this point

Hi there. My name is Amber, with Rodriguez Chelonians. I am the Galapagos tortoise breeder in Southern California. We have a breeding group and have been getting eggs from our group for several years now. We haven’t made a big public announcement yet but we successfully incubated a hatchling last year unfortunately it did not pip and died full term in the egg. ? I do have several eggs this year that are fertile. Wahoo! Let me know if you would like to be added to our waiting list. ?

I agree with Tom. There is no one else breeding in CA that we know of. There have been a few juvenile galaps floating around CA legally but if someone is telling you they produced them I would be very cautious and make sure they can provide you proof. I have to admit I’m curious who this seller is and where the animals came from if you’re willing to share or share where you saw them advertised? Meeting other breeders is great.

 

[William Lee Kohler]

It has been many years in the making and working with tortoises a lot but I am finally ready to buy a few baby Galapagos’s and I do not know if there is a care guide for them but I do not want to make any mistakes I will be housing them in closed chambers that Will hold a high enough humidity to prevent any pyramiding and don’t worry I will be housing them separately I know general tortoise care for a lot of species and I am not a beginner by any means I was just wondering if there was a care guide I could look at to make sure there’s I am doing everything thing right and I really do trust to inform on here

Why not just go to the San Diego Zoo and ask them? They are experts after all.

 

[Tom]

Why not just go to the San Diego Zoo and ask them? They are experts after all.

This could not be farther from reality. They've gotten very little reproduction over the years and animals that should survive for hundreds of years have died off in two or three decades. They hardly have any left. Couple these facts with employee turn over, and this is not a good resource for tortoise info.

 

[pacific chelonians]

Well an update for y’all I have decided not to go through with the purchase after further look at the photo I have noticed that they are not Galapagos’s but Aldabras with no nuckel scoots I have Heard stories about the SanDiego zoo that are not giving me loads of confidence I will share that story if I can verify it

 

[Tom]

Well an update for y’all I have decided not to go through with the purchase after further look at the photo I have noticed that they are not Galapagos’s but Aldabras with no nuckel scoots I have Heard stories about the SanDiego zoo that are not giving me loads of confidence I will share that story if I can verify it

Thank you for keeping us updated. Its such an important species and I follow what is happening with them with great interest. If you, or anyone else, is interested in working with Galapagos tortoises, Rodgriguez Chelonians is your only option in CA that I know of. Lucky for all of us, they are fantastic people. True tortoise lovers who start babies correctly and do everything responsibly. They are personal friends of mine and I now them well. I HIGHLY recommend them for any species. They also sell true SA leopards, stars, and others. I've personally bought from them and still have the animals I purchased from them. They get an A+ from me.

 

[pacific chelonians]

I have multiple Tortoises that were bred by Rodriguez chelonians