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The lady that gave them to us said they are almost 5yrs old. They hatched Sept of 2010.
She just called them desert tortoises and we were guessing! If someone could be more specific that would be great!
ID Help!
- Thread starter KatieandKyle
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The lady that gave them to us said they are almost 5yrs old. They hatched Sept of 2010.
She just called them desert tortoises and we were guessing! If someone could be more specific that would be great!
Gopherus agassizii or 'desert tortoises.'
Please don't put them in with your sulcata (if I'm remembering correctly). Mixing species is never a good idea, but especially bad to mix desert tortoises with any other species. Most of them are infected with URDS (upper respiratory distress syndrome). The symptoms lay dormant until the tortoise is stressed, but they are carriers and can infect other tortoises. The only way to know is by blood test.
Please don't put them in with your sulcata (if I'm remembering correctly). Mixing species is never a good idea, but especially bad to mix desert tortoises with any other species. Most of them are infected with URDS (upper respiratory distress syndrome). The symptoms lay dormant until the tortoise is stressed, but they are carriers and can infect other tortoises. The only way to know is by blood test.
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@yvonne , thanks for your help. I wasn't sure where to post! Still new to all of it.
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@yvonne Everyone is separate currently except the hatchlings. Do I need to move the leopard as well?
To be specific, the two Russian are together, the two desert tortoises are together. Delilah is by herself. The other little sulcata that's approx 1 1/2 yr old is by itself and the three hatchlings are together. Do I need to alter it??
To be specific, the two Russian are together, the two desert tortoises are together. Delilah is by herself. The other little sulcata that's approx 1 1/2 yr old is by itself and the three hatchlings are together. Do I need to alter it??
I'm afraid its a matter of - do as I say, not as I do. I keep captive bred hatchlings of different species together if the care is the same for both species. I feel that danger of pathogen cross contamination is very slight with captive bred animals. So, are you saying that you have two sulcata hatchlings and one leopard hatchling together in the same habitat? I think that would be ok until the sulcatas outgrow the leopard in size. You just have to be vigilant and keep watching to make sure there's not bullying or aggression going on. It takes different faces. One may stay hidden all the time. That's sometimes a sign that he's being told to get out of the territory. What I'm trying to convey is that you might not see an overt act, it could very possibly be what I refer to as 'mental bullying.'
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Got it. Hopefully we are catching all of our mistakes before anything occurs that we can't fix.
One more question, sorry. Is the pyramiding on Delilah stuck that way? Is all of that my fault?
One more question, sorry. Is the pyramiding on Delilah stuck that way? Is all of that my fault?
It looks like she started to pyramid at a very early age, like from hatchling to about two or three years of age, and after that all the growth is smooth. Those little bumps on the carapace will never go away, but its nothing to worry about or be ashamed of. It just gives her a special appeal. Take a look at the lower edge of the shell all the way around. See how nice and smooth that is? Most captive sulcatas have a bit of a flare around that edge, but yours is more like a Highlander's kilt. Beautiful tortoise. Keep up the good work.
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Thanks so much, I was beginning to wonder if we had been doing anything correctly! We absolutely love all of them and are finding ourselves wishing we had found the forum 6 years ago when we got Delilah. We have quite a bit to fix.
Please don't take my comment about "wondering if we were doing anything correctly" as directed at anyone or anything but us purely being uneducated. We are open to listening and learning no matter how badly we have screwed things up to this point!
Thank you for your guidance!
Please don't take my comment about "wondering if we were doing anything correctly" as directed at anyone or anything but us purely being uneducated. We are open to listening and learning no matter how badly we have screwed things up to this point!
Thank you for your guidance!
I don't think you've 'screwed anything up.' We're all still learning. It's a never ending process.
Your two new ones are beautiful (and I think the sulcata is too).
M
Maggie Cummings
Guest
Delilah is darned near perfect looking. She's beautiful... as an example on how good she looks...this is Bob look at the difference...
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dshindsley
New Member
I'm curious of where t
I'm curious to what part of the country you're in and where she had gotten them or the parents from? Cute little guys!
I'm curious to what part of the country you're in and where she had gotten them or the parents from? Cute little guys!
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We are in Arizona, I'm not sure where she got them from. They were gifted to us for my classroom. Very docile and friendly torts!
