Newbie from So. Cal

f4tlsly

New Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2014
Messages
3
Hi, my name is Greta and about a month ago we acquired what we thought was a box turtle from a friends backyard. They found it while putting in some plants. A few days later we were at the local pet store looking for some turtle necessities we saw some Russian Tortoises in a tank... They looked just like our new friend Jasper. I showed a picture of him to one of the caretakers and he confirmed the identity. We have a pretty good backyard for a tortoise, it has grassy areas and one nice area along side of the house mostly without grass, this area gets morning sun and has grassy clumps and some dandelions, and it has some little hills and holes for him to climb over and around. I put a small pool back there for him but he doesn't willingly go into water. There were some escapable areas along the fence in the back so we reinforced it, have plans to erect a block wall along the fence. There are plenty of clumpy plants he crawls into to sleep, and we have a nice tree that has shed plenty of leaves for him to crawl under. He has full range of the yard and sides of the house and makes good use of the space. We take him out front so he can crawl through the grass and get some additional sun. He is a good eater, and i have gotten some good info on this forum on what to avoid.

I am giving him repti-calcium without D3 twice a week, along with a variety of leafy green and red leafy bp vegetable, no spinach, and a few bits of treats occasionally, (cucumber and strawberry tops are his favorite) but he also likes rose petals and dandelions seem to be his favorite green. He does not like kale at all. Baby spring mix is always eaten well. He had some white urine at first but now is mostly clear when he pees on the sidewalk. I hope this means he is better hydrated.

It is my plan to put a variety of edible plants along side the sidewalk so he can munch to his hearts content. He is a valued member of our family ;-)

I am in SE San Diego, not sure if Jasper needs to hibernate or not, and am wondering if he were indeed hibernating when my friend found him.

Thanks for allowing me to join your forum, i look forward to learning how to be a great tortoise mama :)
 

Yvonne G

Old Timer
TFO Admin
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
93,390
Location (City and/or State)
Clovis, CA
Welcome to the Forum, Greta!

Your new little 'box turtle' is lucky that you are the one who found him. Sound like you're going to be a very good tort mama.

Some tortoises prefer to drink from running water. Turn on the hose and lay it on the grass then put him by the water. See if that peaks his interest.
 

Dizisdalife

Well-Known Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Dec 24, 2010
Messages
1,754
Location (City and/or State)
California
Hi Greta. Welcome to the forum. I don't know much about keeping Russians, but I do know that San Diego is a great place to raise a tortoise. Pretty good place for people too.
 

f4tlsly

New Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2014
Messages
3
Thank you all :) thanks for the suggestion abt running water, will try that

I agree, San Diego is a wonderful place
 

lismar79

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Oct 29, 2013
Messages
2,995
Location (City and/or State)
Ohio USA
  1. Have fun with you russian. They have great personalities!
 

Jelly

Administrator
TFO Admin
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 12, 2014
Messages
10
Should have given him some vodka, and read him some Russian Poetry...he'd feel right as rain.
 
Top