New Pancake

[johanna]

I finally got Robert a friend. I put her in his cage a few times now but he wont leave her alone so I cant trust them together. He chases her non stop and nips at her shell. I only put her in for a few min so he can get used to her. When I take her out he paces around looking for her.
Any suggestions to help this behavior would be appreciated.

 

[GBtortoises]

The behavior is very normal. The only way that you're going to "help" it is by either keeping them seperate at all times or by giving them a very large enclosure with plenty of hide areas and visual barriers. This won't stop it, but it will take the pressure off the tortoise that is being chased.
The behavior is male dominance and takes place because you have a male with an established territory that now has another tortoise present in it. If the other tortoise is a female, the male is very likely attempting to court her to mate because environmental conditions in his environment are telling him to do so. Temperature, light intensity and duration are the main aspects that trigger mating behavior. Food abundance and other factors may also play a role. If the other tortoise is a female the male is most likely going to pursue her until he gets what he wants. Or until the environmental conditions change to tell him that breeding season is over. In a very confined space the constant aggression can result in physical injuries and a lot of stress on the tortoise being chased.
If the other tortoise is a male and has entered the dominant males territory the constant aggression probably won't ever stop unless the younger male grows more bold and takes over the territory. Some males of some species, Pancakes being one of them, can often live together with little or no aggression. This is usually only during off breeding seasons. During breeding seasons they will often renew their aggression towards each other. Some, based very much on the individuals involved, will never tolerate other males and the aggession will be constant. This can lead to very severe physical injury, high stress and even fatality of the submissive male and sometimes even the dominant male.
While larger enclosures with lots of hiding places and visual barriers will help greatly, the better solution for both is usually to keep them completely seperate.

 

[johanna]

My plan today is to rearrange his enclosure completely. I will put her in his tank and him in hers. Then in a day or two put him in his old enclosure which now is hers. I'm not sure the sex of either of them.

 

[dmarcus]

They both look very nice...

 

[X TORTOISE---MAD X]

STUNNING,I CANT WAIT TO GET MINE XX

 

[african cake queen]

My plan today is to rearrange his enclosure completely. I will put her in his tank and him in hers. Then in a day or two put him in his old enclosure which now is hers. I'm not sure the sex of either of them.

how old is robert? does he have a long tail? tail pictures would tell. robert does act like a male. the little one? how old? maybe new young is too young to be put in with an adult male? my male nips but never bites his girl. he does herd her around . hes the one in charge follows her every where.when i put the male in with the female for the first time, they got along. i know two male will fight. lindy

 

[johanna]

I dont know how old he is. He is probably a year and a half or less. I posted pics of his tail on a thread you started. I'lll try linking it here: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/Thread-pancake-keepers#axzz1PyCvZnnC
He is more nipping and hearding. He doesnt bite too hard or grab on. I'm scared he will though. I've left them alone in their outdoor enclosure together because it is very large and he seems to just walk over her a lot and not pay attention. I am not sure of either of their sexes. I have been told he is a she and he is a he. I call the little one she, but she is just a baby.

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Very nice.