Hi TortoiseForum.org,
I'd like you to meet my Russian tortoises, Mims & Ranon.
Ranon (left) is a male and Mims (right) is a female. They have lived with me here in Wisconsin since I adopted them 18 months ago.
Before coming into my care Mims and Ranon were purchased from a Petco and lived with a family in Wisconsin for 5 years. Unfortunately, during this time they had lived in a 15-gallon aquarium in which half of the space was taken up by a water dish and the other half was a 1/2" deep layer of sand. They had been living on a diet consisting mostly of iceberg lettuce. Ultimately the family became disinterested and the tortoises were given to an animal shelter.
When I discovered them at the shelter I had not initially intended to adopt them. I only wanted to meet them because I had only seen one Russian tortoise in person at a Petco previously. However, they seemed to be on their deathbeds, so I decided to rescue them.
At first they were very lethargic, dehydrated, and almost unresponsive. After about 3 months of proper diet, baths, lighting, and space they became active and their personalities began to show. Now, over a year later, they seem to be healthy and in good spirits.
Mims
Ranon
However, now that Ranon is healthy again, he is almost always interested in initiated mating with Mims. Over the last few months he has become increasingly more aggressive, including biting off quite a few scales from her legs, causing her to retaliate with dominance behavior as well. I know it is not ideal to have one female housed with one male, but I wanted to at least try to keep them together since they had lived together for over 5 years already without harming one another. The behavior continued so now they have been separated.
Unfortunately I do not have room for two tortoise tables, so as sad as it seems, I think it is time for a tortoise divorce. I wanted to introduce these two to the forum not only to become more connected to this community, but ultimately I will be looking to adopt one of them to a new home.
Sincerely,
Beak Jr
I'd like you to meet my Russian tortoises, Mims & Ranon.
Ranon (left) is a male and Mims (right) is a female. They have lived with me here in Wisconsin since I adopted them 18 months ago.
Before coming into my care Mims and Ranon were purchased from a Petco and lived with a family in Wisconsin for 5 years. Unfortunately, during this time they had lived in a 15-gallon aquarium in which half of the space was taken up by a water dish and the other half was a 1/2" deep layer of sand. They had been living on a diet consisting mostly of iceberg lettuce. Ultimately the family became disinterested and the tortoises were given to an animal shelter.
When I discovered them at the shelter I had not initially intended to adopt them. I only wanted to meet them because I had only seen one Russian tortoise in person at a Petco previously. However, they seemed to be on their deathbeds, so I decided to rescue them.
At first they were very lethargic, dehydrated, and almost unresponsive. After about 3 months of proper diet, baths, lighting, and space they became active and their personalities began to show. Now, over a year later, they seem to be healthy and in good spirits.
Mims
Ranon
However, now that Ranon is healthy again, he is almost always interested in initiated mating with Mims. Over the last few months he has become increasingly more aggressive, including biting off quite a few scales from her legs, causing her to retaliate with dominance behavior as well. I know it is not ideal to have one female housed with one male, but I wanted to at least try to keep them together since they had lived together for over 5 years already without harming one another. The behavior continued so now they have been separated.
Unfortunately I do not have room for two tortoise tables, so as sad as it seems, I think it is time for a tortoise divorce. I wanted to introduce these two to the forum not only to become more connected to this community, but ultimately I will be looking to adopt one of them to a new home.
Sincerely,
Beak Jr
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