Help we are going on a long 9 hr drive

[Tom]

Well .. we can agree to disagree. Idk how anyone knows how a tortoise feels ( including me) if there is proof of a tortoise getting sick from travel then fine im wrong.

I agree!

You've never heard of a healthy tortoise getting moved around and then getting sick from the stress of it and the change of environment? Not every time, but sometimes. You do what you can to minimize the stress. You don't move them around unless you really need to. I don't anyway...

 

[Chubbs the tegu]

Its all opinion about travel... i guarantee there are ppl here that travel with their tortoise and are just to afraid to speak up

 

[Tom]

Its all opinion about travel... i guarantee there are ppl here that travel with their tortoise and are just to afraid to speak up

No doubt. I agree again.

 

[Chubbs the tegu]

No disrespect here Tom.. just my opinion. Ive learned so much from u and i appreciate you and ur knowledge.. im just not a “yes” man

 

[Maggie3fan]

It should not be left alone for a week, but the tortoise will be happiest of left at home, with someone checking on it and feeding it once every day or two.

What if everyone said: "I can't leave it home. It has to come with me."? I'd be hauling 50 tortoises around with me all over the country.

Type out a whole treatise for me on how to travel on a week long trip with a total of 18 hours of driving with 5 sulcatas (80-100 points each), and 25 other large adult tortoises... What about my snakes and Ackies? All my tarantulas and roach colonies? Can I bring them too? I'm down to 8 dogs but three of them are small. Then there are my 7 birds. OH! And my daughter's crested gecko and tarantula. We can't leave them behind either...

Sorry Tom...that's almost the dumbest thing I have ever heard from you...(said with respect lol).Not a one of us is talking about taking more than one or a couple of tortoises with them. And, holy catfish, how did the trip go from 9 hours to a freakin week??? I didn't say i also brought 19 birds and 2 cats...I did bring clutches of hatchlings on a generally 10 hour trip...certainly not as 'stressful' as a 24 hour plane ride. It's a lot easier to have someone care for the birds and the cats...then to trust an ignorant person with reptiles...
and 2 questions, I think...who decided that traveling in a dark box asleep is 'stressful'? Now, I'm not talking about a Rubbermaid tub that's not dark and that tortoise is not sleeping. I disagree with using a tub that's not dark. My point is the darkness and the animal is sleeping what is there to stress him out. Get to Yvonne's house and put'em into a pen...
The OP talked about 1 tortoise and 9 hours...not all the tortoises, snakes, apes, birds, mice, rats etc. and 9 hours not a freakin week.

 

[Tom]

Sorry Tom...that's almost the dumbest thing I have ever heard from you...(said with respect lol).Not a one of us is talking about taking more than one or a couple of tortoises with them. And, holy catfish, how did the trip go from 9 hours to a freakin week??? I didn't say i also brought 19 birds and 2 cats...I did bring clutches of hatchlings on a generally 10 hour trip...certainly not as 'stressful' as a 24 hour plane ride. It's a lot easier to have someone care for the birds and the cats...then to trust an ignorant person with reptiles...
and 2 questions, I think...who decided that traveling in a dark box asleep is 'stressful'? Now, I'm not talking about a Rubbermaid tub that's not dark and that tortoise is not sleeping. I disagree with using a tub that's not dark. My point is the darkness and the animal is sleeping what is there to stress him out. Get to Yvonne's house and put'em into a pen...
The OP talked about 1 tortoise and 9 hours...not all the tortoises, snakes, apes, birds, mice, rats etc. and 9 hours not a freakin week.

The drive is nine hours, each way, and they are staying there for one week.

Moving them one way to a new home is done for a good reason. Its still upsetting to the tortoise, but its necessary sometimes. There is no reason and its not necessary to take your tortoise on vacation. It serves no purpose that is beneficial to the tortoise. Transporting baby tortoises to the reptile show to be purchased and go to a permanent home, or you moving babies to Yvonne's serves a purpose that is good for the tortoises.

Again, the best thing for the tortoise would be to stay home and have a care taker stop by.

 

[waretrop]

Spitting match!!! This is why you loose people.. Where there is a will, there is a way. This place is for helping not intimidating people.

One should know to keep any of these animals, you need to have a little extra money. Someone can hire a professional or there are plenty of items to keep a critter comfortable and healthy in a car. I have travel with 25, hand feeding, baby, birds. Some just a week old. I made a heated case complete with muffin fan, that sat on the back seat of the car. It all plugged into the cigarette lighter. Made arrangements with a motel and it worked out fine. I not only couldn't have someone hand feed my little birds but I was SAVING MY DAUGHTERS LIFE. She had to get a medical treatment 12 hours from my house in the winter. It worked out well. Cost more and there was lots of wear and tear on me. I bounced from the motel and the hospital all day BUT I MADE IT WORK. There was no room for failure.

One small tort doesn't take a scholar to make it work.. just a little money and some help with ideas...HELP IS MUCH BETTER THAN SPITTING AND SPUTTERING AROUND.

 

[quasimodo]

So we are going on a 9 hr drive to BC for a week and i dont know if i can bring my tort

it might not be the best idea but you can try to keep your tort super comfy. For example, I used bring my tortoise home from college for the summer. (it's only a three hour drive tho) I used a black tub that I put soft substrate in that I made super moist. I used black because it holds heat better. I keep the Heat cranked up to max the whole drive.

 

[LasTortugasNinja]

It should not be left alone for a week, but the tortoise will be happiest of left at home, with someone checking on it and feeding it once every day or two.

What if everyone said: "I can't leave it home. It has to come with me."? I'd be hauling 50 tortoises around with me all over the country.

Type out a whole treatise for me on how to travel on a week long trip with a total of 18 hours of driving with 5 sulcatas (80-100 points each), and 25 other large adult tortoises... What about my snakes and Ackies? All my tarantulas and roach colonies? Can I bring them too? I'm down to 8 dogs but three of them are small. Then there are my 7 birds. OH! And my daughter's crested gecko and tarantula. We can't leave them behind either...

you just need a panel van with a bunch of cubbies, pillowcases, and zipties. You’ll be fine! ?
In my teens I ran a one-man reptile rescue/rehome. I used to always keep a pillowcase, zipties, duct tape, and Rubbermaid just in case I needed to make a instant run, or if I was out and about and a reptile was distressing the public (snakes LOVE showing up where they aren’t wanted). Always worried if I got pulled over & searched they’d think I was a teen serial killer. Lol

 

[Tom]

you just need a panel van with a bunch of cubbies, pillowcases, and zipties. You’ll be fine! ?
In my teens I ran a one-man reptile rescue/rehome. I used to always keep a pillowcase, zipties, duct tape, and Rubbermaid just in case I needed to make a instant run, or if I was out and about and a reptile was distressing the public (snakes LOVE showing up where they aren’t wanted). Always worried if I got pulled over & searched they’d think I was a teen serial killer. Lol

HA! I have a large extended super duty cargo van. That will accommodate the dogs, but no room for all the other animals.

I used to do the same thing with pillow cases and snake boxes for the venomous stuff. Now we just use 5 gallon buckets with screw top lids.

This does remind me that its about time to put the buckets, tongs and snake sticks back in the cars... Its THAT time of year...

 

[Maggie3fan]

Spitting match!!! This is why you loose people.. Where there is a will, there is a way. This place is for helping not intimidating people.

One should know to keep any of these animals, you need to have a little extra money. Someone can hire a professional or there are plenty of items to keep a critter comfortable and healthy in a car. I have travel with 25, hand feeding, baby, birds. Some just a week old. I made a heated case complete with muffin fan, that sat on the back seat of the car. It all plugged into the cigarette lighter. Made arrangements with a motel and it worked out fine. I not only couldn't have someone hand feed my little birds but I was SAVING MY DAUGHTERS LIFE. She had to get a medical treatment 12 hours from my house in the winter. It worked out well. Cost more and there was lots of wear and tear on me. I bounced from the motel and the hospital all day BUT I MADE IT WORK. There was no room for failure.

One small tort doesn't take a scholar to make it work.. just a little money and some help with ideas...HELP IS MUCH BETTER THAN SPITTING AND SPUTTERING AROUND.

I'm really sorry you see it as a "spitting match"...@Tom and I have known each other for, well I'm not exactly sure, 10-15 years. We disagree about most things. but there is, I believe, a mutual respect and a genuine affection. We bluntly state our opinions, without anger or mean sarcasm. The ppl who read the Forum regularly, know Tom and I and understand us. I would NEVER contradict Tom in a very serious kind of 'my tortoise is sick' problem...again...I apologize.

 

[waretrop]

I have complained about this before. Enough said...except it doesn't speak well to this wonderful place. d

Disagreeing is one thing but to go back and forth on and on is another thing. Maybe I am more sensitive about this and I am sorry if I am....It kept me away when I first got here...

 

[LasTortugasNinja]

HA! I have a large extended super duty cargo van. That will accommodate the dogs, but no room for all the other animals.

I used to do the same thing with pillow cases and snake boxes for the venomous stuff. Now we just use 5 gallon buckets with screw top lids.

This does remind me that its about time to put the buckets, tongs and snake sticks back in the cars... Its THAT time of year...

Tom's Summer Vacation... aka "Noah's Ark on Wheels" … hehehe. Yeah, snake wrangling was almost a full time spring job in AZ when I was a kid. All those people doing gardening and not realizing they SHARE their boulders, rocks, and bushes with lots of life forms, not just cute hummingbirds and quail. I would try to explain the benefits of having a gopher snake in the barn, and if they didn't agree, I would rehome the snake outside of the city limits. So many people just wanted to hit them with a shovel!

 

[Tom]

Spitting match!!! This is why you loose people.. Where there is a will, there is a way. This place is for helping not intimidating people.

One should know to keep any of these animals, you need to have a little extra money. Someone can hire a professional or there are plenty of items to keep a critter comfortable and healthy in a car. I have travel with 25, hand feeding, baby, birds. Some just a week old. I made a heated case complete with muffin fan, that sat on the back seat of the car. It all plugged into the cigarette lighter. Made arrangements with a motel and it worked out fine. I not only couldn't have someone hand feed my little birds but I was SAVING MY DAUGHTERS LIFE. She had to get a medical treatment 12 hours from my house in the winter. It worked out well. Cost more and there was lots of wear and tear on me. I bounced from the motel and the hospital all day BUT I MADE IT WORK. There was no room for failure.

One small tort doesn't take a scholar to make it work.. just a little money and some help with ideas...HELP IS MUCH BETTER THAN SPITTING AND SPUTTERING AROUND.

I don't know who you are referring to here, but how are you supposed to proceed when there are differences of opinion? What way is there other than us talking it out and each expressing our views? OP asked for opinions and each of us are giving ours. How is that a spitting match? Who is sputtering?

Birds are not tortoises. I intentionally move birds around while hand feeding them. Birds are social animals. They NEED to be exposed to different sights, sounds and surroundings as babies. Birds also travel great distances once they fledge. I simulate this for them too by taking them every where with me, with proper accommodations.

Adult tortoises wander within their own territory. They become very stressed out when they find themselves outside of their known territory and in unfamiliar surroundings. They can certainly survive this if need be, but a one week vacation should not be a "need be" type of situation. I move tortoises all the time, but I have a good reason for doing it when I do it, and I minimize it as much as possible.

 

[Maggie3fan]

The drive is nine hours, each way, and they are staying there for one week.

Moving them one way to a new home is done for a good reason. Its still upsetting to the tortoise, but its necessary sometimes. There is no reason and its not necessary to take your tortoise on vacation. It serves no purpose that is beneficial to the tortoise. Transporting baby tortoises to the reptile show to be purchased and go to a permanent home, or you moving babies to Yvonne's serves a purpose that is good for the tortoises.

Again, the best thing for the tortoise would be to stay home and have a care taker stop by.

Eek...I didn't realize it wasn't a one way trip...but still...you and my sister think about your chelonia as wild animals...my, not as many as your creep, 1 or 2...are pets. I always mess with them, change pens around, take them for professional pictures...I take Big Sam for walks in my neighborhood. All the places and things I did with Bob...I know ppl are tired of hearing about him, but think about all the public places I took him to. He wasn't stressed, he was showing off...
I'm thinking a lot lately, about how I keep and treat Sulcata, and how the animal reacts, and how I react or think, and I spend daily time with my two, it might be just pestering them or feeding carrots, chasing them around their pens, teaching them how to swim in the box turtle pond, teaching them how to play soccer with a 5 gallon bucket, etc. You are a trainer, a good trainer...I saw you in action, remember? I was seriously interested in that German Shepherd...impressed. Anyhow, possibly what I do long term accidently is to desensitize them to what might cause stress and teaching them a sign to follow me, a 'come along' sign...just a thought anyhow...
Here's a picture of Big Sam... he had been chasing me around with a big dandelion hanging from his mouth...right before he rammed the camera...and to me that's not aggression...it's Sulcata being Sulcata...love ya...

 

[waretrop]

Big Sam is very cute...Love to hear stories like that...

 

[Tom]

Eek...I didn't realize it wasn't a one way trip...but still...you and my sister think about your chelonia as wild animals...my, not as many as your creep, 1 or 2...are pets. I always mess with them, change pens around, take them for professional pictures...I take Big Sam for walks in my neighborhood. All the places and things I did with Bob...I know ppl are tired of hearing about him, but think about all the public places I took him to. He wasn't stressed, he was showing off...
I'm thinking a lot lately, about how I keep and treat Sulcata, and how the animal reacts, and how I react or think, and I spend daily time with my two, it might be just pestering them or feeding carrots, chasing them around their pens, teaching them how to swim in the box turtle pond, teaching them how to play soccer with a 5 gallon bucket, etc. You are a trainer, a good trainer...I saw you in action, remember? I was seriously interested in that German Shepherd...impressed. Anyhow, possibly what I do long term accidently is to desensitize them to what might cause stress and teaching them a sign to follow me, a 'come along' sign...just a thought anyhow...
Here's a picture of Big Sam... he had been chasing me around with a big dandelion hanging from his mouth...right before he rammed the camera...and to me that's not aggression...it's Sulcata being Sulcata...love ya...

Maggie, I like your method of pet raising and see nothing wrong with it. Gradual desensitization and interaction is good for them in my opinion, and I support anyone that wants to enjoy their pet tortoise in that way. Tortoises are a type of animal that are generally fine with that, and also fine with a more hands off approach too. Many retiles are this way.

The subject matter here is whether or not to take the tortoise out of its element for a week long vacation book ended by two nine hour drives. If the OP wants to handle and desensitize their tortoises the way you do, I'm all for that. Taking the tortoise on vacation for a week doesn't benefit the tortoise.

 

[LasTortugasNinja]

I have complained about this before. Enough said...except it doesn't speak well to this wonderful place. d

Disagreeing is one thing but to go back and forth on and on is another thing. Maybe I am more sensitive about this and I am sorry if I am....It kept me away when I first got here...

Every forum on the internet is like this. Go to a star wars forum and dare say you like the recent movies and a war will break out. Call Billie Eillish overrated sludge on reddit and angsty GenZers will crucify you. There are all sorts of "button pushing" issues that each community deals with, and every community also has its "white knights" or outspoken voices. It's just a byproduct of human interaction. Overall, this community is one of the better ones I've seen. Yes, some people don't sugarcoat their opinions, but also with this community there is the fact that a living being's life is on the line most of the time. Nothing dies if you say you like Rise of Skywalker. People come on here asking why the tortoise they bought at a garage sale that lives in a shoe box in the basement is acting funny. It's understandable to take the direct response. Thankfully, I've never seen any of the outspoken members take personal shots at the poor husbandry skills of others. They will say harsh comments about the shoe box, but I've never seen "You idiot! Get that tortoise out of a shoebox!"

Sure, lots of people will take that personally, but that's on them. The internet isn't safe for sensitive people. They should stick to cat videos on youtube.

I agree, however that sometimes people do push their opinion for too long. Most times it's just fine to state your opinion & supporting circumstantial evidence, and move on. Let the other readers make the judgement on who they want to believe. There have been zero hardcore opinions changed on an internet forum.

 

[Jennie Dlenxh]

Mine have been regular commuters. I keep them warm and dark, soak before and after and keep their food as similar as possible. They’ve always been just fine.

 

[Maggie3fan]

Mine have been regular commuters. I keep them warm and dark, soak before and after and keep their food as similar as possible. They’ve always been just fine.

hey there, Happy Birthday!!!