new to egyptian tortoises, is it healthy and subspecies/location please?

Status
Not open for further replies.

tortoisept

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2013
Messages
47
Greetings everybody, I've been a keeper for horsfields and hermanns tortoises and recently I've been introduced to the wonderful egyptian tortoise.
here's a 17 y old male testudo kleinnmani.

Could please some of the experts around advise if he looks healthy and if you can pinpoint a bit his origins? Egypt? Lybia? Israel?

All the possible information would be much welcomed.

img0490hr.jpg


img0492dg.jpg


img0493ae.jpg
 

Yvonne G

Old Timer
TFO Admin
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
93,405
Location (City and/or State)
Clovis, CA
Sorry, I can't help you...I just wanted to welcome you to the Forum! and to say that the little tortoise is a very clean-looking, and well-kept tortoise.
 

tortadise

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Joined
Mar 2, 2012
Messages
9,560
Location (City and/or State)
Tropical South Texas
Looks pretty good photo wise. How is he acting is the question. No way of knowing locale. All regions showed not enough haplotype DNA differences in the negev, Libya, or egypt locales so they all are breedable and considered pure kleinmanni still. Grass, weeds, some succulents is best diet. No fruit. These guys also are not in desert regions, but coastal arid areas with vegitation. So dont use sand for substrate. Fun guys. Congrats.
 

tortoisept

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2013
Messages
47
so Kelly, I should not use sand as substract? I thought I should use sand as they are "desert" tortoises! lol

My mediterranean tortoises (horsfields and hermanns) are kept in guinea pig cages and as substract top soil only.

Should I keep the egyptian in top soil also? I really thought I should use sand on it.
 

tortoisept

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2013
Messages
47
food wise I was thinking basically giving the same kind that I give to the meds torts (weeds, weeds + weeds like dandellions, plantain, violets, pansies, lavander and hebe leaves, roses, sedum, hollyhock, mulberry/strawberry and other berries leaves only - not the fruits obviously, lavatera, geraniums, aloe and opuntia now and again) this is more or less my diet for the meds.
winter time, when its hard to get all these weeds, I give a mix med salad with lambs lettuce, radicchio, etc..

is this ok for the egyptian, or should be more specific on something?
 

billskleins

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2013
Messages
89
Nice looking.
How do you know his age?
Did your source actually hatch him?
 

tortadise

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Joined
Mar 2, 2012
Messages
9,560
Location (City and/or State)
Tropical South Texas
That diet is just fine. More variety the better. So your on the right track. Testudo genus is pretty similar in food intake requirements. What you listes is good. I use decomposed granite on top of dirt. Sand is messy and if ingested can cause issues. Papers? So where did you get this guy from with papers. What kind of papers?
 

tortoisept

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 4, 2013
Messages
47
Hi tortadise, so you think I should use top soil with decomposed granite on top?
A10 papers ofcourse. I'm not in the US
 

pepsiandjac

Well-Known Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Oct 2, 2012
Messages
519
Location (City and/or State)
Swansea UK
Are you in the UK lol,I've had my eye on a 17 year old male egyptian, i thought he was a bit overpriced,but temptation was getting the better of me lol
 

tortadise

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Joined
Mar 2, 2012
Messages
9,560
Location (City and/or State)
Tropical South Texas
tortoisept said:
Hi tortadise, so you think I should use top soil with decomposed granite on top?
A10 papers ofcourse. I'm not in the US

I used in a small group years back(about 9 years or so) and lost a couple females. They had been impacted with sand. Was a rookie mistake on my part I suppose. I know a lot of people use sand. But I do not. I have found, as well many zoos use decomposed granite for desert and arid enclosures. It provides the same ecosystem achievements as a natural sand. Keep in mind the wild is different from captivity. They eat growing plants that are high up and not placed flat or on the side in a pile on the sand. The water sources they drink from are millions if not billions of years old river or water hole systems where sand and earth has settled. They also have a very large region to walk and hide under. You can use sand if you want to. But I recommend against it. Dirt works just fine too.
 

CyberianHusky

Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Jul 4, 2010
Messages
78
Location (City and/or State)
Portland Oregon
Definitely wild caught. Captive Egyptians are never that smooth of a shell they always pyramid some in captivity. Where it came from most likely Libya. Egypt there are no wild ones left and Israel impossible to find but Lybia still has a some pretty good size colonies. Also in Lybia you are considered to be very lucky and will receive lots of luck if a tortoise lives in your yard.
 

billskleins

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2013
Messages
89
I would guess wild caught as well and probably much older than what you've been told. But just a guess.


Again he is a very nice looking tortoise.


Very well taken care of if he is captive born.
 

-EJ

New Member
10 Year Member!
5 Year Member
Joined
Jan 10, 2008
Messages
983
Location (City and/or State)
Georgia
I'm curious as to where the OP is located? That is a very nice WC Egyptian. As far as I know there is only one species.

They are a desert animal but do benefit from a humid hide.

If you are interested... I have some notes I can send you. email me at [email protected]
 

Vickie

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2013
Messages
352
Just wanted to say welcome to the board and boy do you have a NICE looking tortoise! :)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

New Posts

Top