Greetings from California

[ChloeCrull]

Hello, fellow tortoise lovers! I wanted to allow my torts the opportunity to introduce themselves to our lovely little community!


This is my 3-year old male Russian tortoise, Harold.




Next we have the rambunctious 1 year-old baby (female) Russian tortoise, Hazel.





Cheers to everyone out there!

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

welcome to the forum!!!! what part of Cali are you from?

 

[ChloeCrull]

Hi there! I was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, but I am now located in Fresno, California. The family moved down here years ago when my mother was given an opportunity to become a nurse down here! I have stayed ever since and I adore the weather; my tortoises do too!

 

[Tactical Tort]

Hello also from Nor Cal It's a great place to raise torts.
Very nice Russians Glad you've joined us!

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Chloe, and welcome to the Forum!

It's not often new members join that are from my area. Hope to see a lot of you here on the Forum!

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome. Yes the weather here in CA is certainly better than BC...

Do the two of them live in the same enclosure?

 

[kathyth]

Welcome to the forum! I'm also from So. Calif.
Your tortoises are cute!

 

[ChloeCrull]

Thank you for the lovely responses, everyone!

Hello and welcome. Yes the weather here in CA is certainly better than BC...

Do the two of them live in the same enclosure?

Hi there, Tom!


The tortoises are currently living together in a 6 foot long cage that is 2 feet across. I have plans to separate them in the future if there are any minor signs of dominance or aggression. Fortunately, they seem to get along with each other quite well and I've even seen them snuggled up to each other! One will usually rest their head on the other's shell and fall asleep or they will just rest close to each other. They often eat together as well, but they also spend a healthy amount of time apart and doing their own thing.



Hazel has found a new pillow—her neighbor, Harold!






Here is another shot of them burrowed underneath an aloe plant that I placed in the enclosure. All of my heart work was uprooted within a second!

 

[Tom]

What you have in the pictures there is tortoise aggression. They are not hanging out. The one is getting in the face of the other as if to say, "HEY! Get out of my territory." The head resting is the same thing. The dominant one doesn't understand why the submissive one is not taking the hint and leaving. The submissive one would like to leave, but can't due to confinement.

There does not have to be obvious ramming and biting for this to be a problem. Just the sight of the other tortoise across the cage can be a stressor. Chronic stress of the nature that your tortoises are currently enduring can cause a weakening of the immune system and lead to them succumbing to sickness. Eventually this is going to escalate. One will likely get sick and begin to withdraw and try to hide more and more. You may come home one day to find a missing eye or leg scales. Its just not worth the risk. They don't want or need company. They can get along in groups in large enclosures sometimes, but even that doesn't always work. Pairs almost never work.

Tortoises should not be housed in pairs. Especially not russians, which are probably the scrappiest species out there. Check these out:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/pairs.34837/

 

[ChloeCrull]

What you have in the pictures there is tortoise aggression. They are not hanging out. The one is getting in the face of the other as if to say, "HEY! Get out of my territory." The head resting is the same thing. The dominant one doesn't understand why the submissive one is not taking the hint and leaving. The submissive one would like to leave, but can't due to confinement.

There does not have to be obvious ramming and biting for this to be a problem. Just the sight of the other tortoise across the cage can be a stressor. Chronic stress of the nature that your tortoises are currently enduring can cause a weakening of the immune system and lead to them succumbing to sickness. Eventually this is going to escalate. One will likely get sick and begin to withdraw and try to hide more and more. You may come home one day to find a missing eye or leg scales. Its just not worth the risk. They don't want or need company. They can get along in groups in large enclosures sometimes, but even that doesn't always work. Pairs almost never work.

Tortoises should not be housed in pairs. Especially not russians, which are probably the scrappiest species out there. Check these out:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/pairs.34837/

Thank you, Tom. It's strange; I looked at these pictures a bit more closely after posting them. My concern arose immediately, and I just created this thread to seek out other people's opinions.

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/cuddles-or-aggression.105356/


I will look into the situation immediately. Thank you!