New Arrivals! Help.

[axeman25]

Hello all!,
I am very new to tortoises, in fact, my first one's just got here about 15 minutes ago. I got them through someone who's friend was not able to take care of them anymore. They were shipped to me. The box was a little chilly as it is cold here in Michigan. I removed them and put them under the basking light (which had already been on for several hours warming up that part of the enclosure). I have no idea how old they are really, they a peer to be about 5", maybe a little less. There is a male and two females, they have been together in the same cage since they were hatchlings. I have the ability to separate if needed, but I am not going to do that right now.
My question(s) is: Knowing that they were not taken care of very well, should I soak them the same day I get them?
They are moving around pretty good already, what should I look for to indicate a problem? I will post pictures soon, overall they look healthy and pretty well taken care of, is there anything that I should keep an eye out for with their behavior? Any help is appreciated, thanks

 

[Yvonne G]

Russian, right? I usually soak tortoises when I take them out of the shipping box, so, yes soak them.

Be prepared that they may eat well the first day then just hide for a few days after that. This seems to be the norm for tortoises in a new environment.

Looking forward to seeing your pictures.

 

[axeman25]

Yes russians, sorry I got ahead of myself.

I'll soak them right now. They are eating so far. Thanks.

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

Yes russians, sorry I got ahead of myself.

I'll soak them right now. They are eating so far. Thanks.

make sure the water in around 80 and not to deep. soak them in a tub that they can't club out of.

 

[axeman25]

They are soaking right now. I have a nice deep tub, no climbing out for sure. Should I soak them daily for a few weeks or just stick to two or three times a week to start? Thanks again.

 

[smarch]

They are soaking right now. I have a nice deep tub, no climbing out for sure. Should I soak them daily for a few weeks or just stick to two or three times a week to start? Thanks again.

My opinion is theres no such thing as soaking too much in the beginning, especially since you say they weren't cared for properly before. But if they stop eating for a few days due to adjusting I'd leave them alone, but if they stay active why not soak a little extra for a little while.... although i'd only say about a week.

 

[axeman25]

They seem to be doing ok so far. They are all active in the enclosure. The male is very active and going non stop, even when we have him out he doesn't seem to want to sit still. The females explore the enclosure a lot for sure. I've decided to give them some time to get used to things though, they withdraw when taken out even to soak.They are still eating ok for sure. So far I'm very happy with their progress.......and mine.

So I have a weird observation to share. Pretty much everything I have read says that these guys only want to be around another tortoise for mating purposes. I know I'm very, very new at this, but I think there is some kind of attachment between the male and a female (always the same one). They are always leaning up against each other when under the heat lamp, I've even seen them fully outstretched laying with their necks overlapped or a head resting on the others shell. I will get pictures of this one day. I know everyone is probably thinking I'm nuts but its the cutest thing I've ever seen. LOL

Ok, enough newbie crazy talk for now..................

 

[Jodie]

Congrats on entering the tortoise world. Glad to hear they are doing well, and look forward to pictures.

 

[stojanovski92113]

Congrats on your tortoises! So I also live in Michigan & am holding off on shipment of two torts due to the cold weather! What sizes are your torts? Where did you get them shipped from? I'm afraid due to the cold weather that my baby tortoises wouldn't survive.

 

[axeman25]

Congrats on your tortoises! So I also live in Michigan & am holding off on shipment of two torts due to the cold weather! What sizes are your torts? Where did you get them shipped from? I'm afraid due to the cold weather that my baby tortoises wouldn't survive.

So I just realized that I never replied to this. Sorry for taking so long to get back. The torts were all around 4.5" when I got them. They were shipped overnight UPS from Arizona. I have a friend who lives there who had a neighbor with these three guys that wanted to get rid of them because he didn't want to spend the time or money on them anymore. Never sure if I got the real story or not. I made sure that I researched on shipping them and he did follow my instructions, the only thing that peeved me a bit was the UPS driver put them on my front porch, knocked on the door so soft that even my dog didn't hear it, and then drove away. Had I been in another room I never would have heard the knock. There was a heat pad in there and they were fairly warm when I took them out.

 

[stojanovski92113]

No worries...Wow it's a good thing your torts weren't outside too long!! I've yet to get my 2 baby torts. I hope I will be getting them in the next 2 weeks it's finally starting to warm up, but not sure how long it will last!!!!