Russian Roulette Roadway Rescue...

AJK Aquaria

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Hey all...

While returning to the building is was working at today after lunch, I missed my turn and ended up about a half mile off course. I'm not all that familiar with the area... or just an idiot. Anyways, on a 4 lane road going about 45 MPH, I spot a turtle from a distance. I pull to the median and start sprinting back down the street. This is a busy road, and about a dozen cars were racing towards the turtle. I thought for sure he was done for. Surprisingly, 3 cars actually swerved out of the way. I was waving my arms like a maniac as I headed towards the oncoming traffic. Somehow the little dude survived the onslaught of vehicles and I was able to get my hands on him. But it wasn't the standard Painted or Snapping turtle I usually help Cross the road. It was a Russian Tortoise....

I was actually kind of upset. Sure, it's a cool find. But a sad story. A wildcaught tortoise, sold into the pet trade, only to end up released by it's owner to a foreign land. It's possible he escaped, but I suspect the former. I set him up in a clean cardboard box with packing paper, finished what I was doing for work and raced home.

My experience with Russians is a short lived one. I 'rescued' a female from a neighborhood kid approx 15 years ago. After seeing that the tortoise was being housed in a cardboard box with shriveled iceberg lettuce everywhere, I promptly took her home. I was in my early twenties and had just moved back in with my parents. My Dad really liked her. More so than any of the snakes and aquatic turtles I had at that time. I had her for about a year and eventually left her in the care of my cousin. I was very specific on its husbandry and overall care. Sadly, I was told she passed 2 years after. I was pissed. I do not want to make that mistake again.

So here we are again... I'm not in the market for a Russian. But I didn't have a choice on the road. And what choice do I have now? My wife loves him. BTW he's a definite male. She really wants to keep him. 5" SCL. I found him on Gary Ave, so, his name is Gary. He looks good as far as I can tell. Clear eyes, healthy shell, vigor in the legs and neck, inquisitive, active, relatively short beak and a clear vent. I am certainly no expert and could benefit from the forum's opinions. Here's some photos. Please let me know if you can see any issues...

q0jqtjM.jpg


JvQzZCO.jpg


There do appear to be some older contusions on the rear right foot. Tough to see, but the discolored areas.

FEF6inv.jpg


Do these puppies need a trim? Looks normal for a Russian(to me) but not positive.
Fvbj2Bx.jpg



Unfortunately, I do not have immediate proper housing for him. He was allowed to roam the backyard after a soak while we prepared a makeshift enclosure out of a 40 breeder. This holiday weekend will be spent on building an outdoor setup. It won't be a grand enclosure. I can do 4x8' and will be grabbing lumber tomorrow after work. I just recently finished one for a group of 3 Toed Box turtles, and it was a fun project. Here's a pic-
mL4hKzD.jpg


Not sure on a winter/inside enclosure yet. Space is limited ATM. I do have some Animal Plastics caging I've yet to assemble. They're 4 x 2' footprint.

I'm sure I'll have some questions down the road. I read the care article here on TFO. Any advice would be appreciated.

Oh...
Nighttime low tolerance? 50 F? 55?

Thanks
Adam
 

wellington

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Wow, wouldn't expect a tortoise. You should however, run an ad on CL and look there yourself to see if someone is looking for him. They are the Houdini of the tortoise world. I watched mine climb straight up a tree. If you don't find the owner then keep him. As for night temps. I believe 50-55 is too low. More like 65. However, check the care sheet. I just let mine get anywheres close to their night lows.
 

Jodie

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Good find. He looks good. The nails look on to me. I keep my night box in the 60's for mine. You can hibernate in the winter. Do it inside. Learn how and it is very safe.
 

Yvonne G

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Russian tortoises' nails always look a little on the long side. This seems to be the norm for the species.
 

Rue

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Congrats on your rescue! And thanks for making the effort.

His shell looks really good! Maybe he is an escapee who is wanted. In this case I would check to see if anyone is looking for him too. Especially before you begin to build him his own enclosure.
 

AJK Aquaria

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Thanks for the replies.

I checked Craigslist- no dice. I'll make an ad when I get a chance.

I read quite a bit last night. Lots of conflicting info on night lows and other things. I realize there's misinformation out there, just as any other herp. But I find it hard to grasp that mid 60s are the nighttime lows with an animal that hibernate for up to 6 months in their natural range with temps well below freezing.
 

Rue

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It just doesn't get that cold in their native range. I was a little further north in Hungary one year over New Year's. ..it was cold and damp...and raining. No snow. The grass was green. But it was still too cold for a tortoise to be out and about...so they would have to hibernate.
 

AJK Aquaria

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It just doesn't get that cold in their native range. I was a little further north in Hungary one year over New Year's. ..it was cold and damp...and raining. No snow. The grass was green. But it was still too cold for a tortoise to be out and about...so they would have to hibernate.

Thank you Rue. Good to know.
How's the Canadian weather? I've been to NW Ontario and Flin Flon Manitoba. Both in early June. It was only a few weeks after ice out.
 

Rue

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We are having a great summer so far! *knockonwood*

Did you like Flin Flon? I think it's pretty up there. NW Ontario is beautiful too.

We lived in S. Ontario for several years. Such a different climate. I had tea roses. ..now I am lucky I can keep a shrub roses alive. Yet the wild roses are like weeds...lol.

It will be a challenge finding a housing balance for my Hermann's. ..but we're game to try! :)
 

AJK Aquaria

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I was SW of Flin Flon. A fishing resort called Grass River. The wooded areas were great. The drive from Winnipeg was long, boring and felt like we would never get there. Driving through Ontario is so much different. Gorgeous country.

Good luck with the outdoor housing. There should be a few good months for 24/7 outdoors, no?
 

Rue

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Anywhere from Winnipeg has the potential to be a long and boring drive...but at least it stuck in your mind! ;)

I hope...once mine is old enough...to have her out from May - September. Depending on what we manage to concoct for housing...
 

AJK Aquaria

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Anywhere from Winnipeg has the potential to be a long and boring drive...but at least it stuck in your mind! ;)

I hope...once mine is old enough...to have her out from May - September. Depending on what we manage to concoct for housing...

I'm essentially thinking the same for this Russian. Some of October can be great, but the nights start to cool off drastically. I'll have to keep a close eye on temps and storms, and act accordingly. Bringing him indoors for an evening or short stretch of days will not be an issue. What sucks is that this has caught me off guard, and had nothing planned out. Kind of like an impulse purchase without the choice of doing it in the first place.
 
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Pearly

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Hello from Texas! Gary is very handsome, i suspect he is an "eloper" from someone's backyard enclosure. People often don't give them (Russians) enough credit for their climbing abilities. Thank you for risking your life to save his on busy road. I would probably do what you did. Yes! We are crazy people on this forum, and you have come to the right place for both reliable info and support of the likeminded souls:) There are many experienced Russian keepers on here that can give you good advice but @Tom I know for sure offers technically detailed tips on enclosures, lighting and raising Russians. Both, he and @Yvonne G will be good resource for you to get things going and troubleshooting as well as health issues/emergencies. I keep Redfooted (tropical species) and feel as confident as I do today about my husbandry practices mainly thanks to this forum, so welcome to you and Gary and enjoy your experience
 

RosemaryDW

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We also found our Russian in the street. I'm confident she was someone's escaped pet. As you'll probably find with your tortoise, ours is a great climber and a pretty good digger. After watching her continually test the one small area in the yard where she could see light on the other side of a gate, we tightly sealed it up. No light comes through now but she still paces up and down the area several times a day. I think she can smell the freedom on the other side!

When I advertised on our neighborhood listserv I heard from three (three!) people who had "lost" a tortoise. We've also had several notices of new tortoise and turtle escapees this year, all around the time the weather started warming up. (Two of them were happily reunited with their owners.) I had no idea we had some many tortoise owners in the community.

At any rate, you've got a handsome, healthy looking tortoise there and I know he'll have a great home with you if he ends up being a permanent resident.
 

AJK Aquaria

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Hello from Texas! Gary is very handsome, i suspect he is an "eloper" from someone's backyard enclosure. People often don't give them (Russians) enough credit for their climbing abilities. Thank you for risking your life to save his on busy road. I would probably do what you did. Yes! We are crazy people on this forum, and you have come to the right place for both reliable info and support of the likeminded souls:) There are many experienced Russian keepers on here that can give you good advice but @Tom I know for sure offers technically detailed tips on enclosures, lighting and raising Russians. Both, he and @Yvonne G will be good resource for you to get things going and troubleshooting as well as health issues/emergencies. I keep Redfooted (tropical species) and feel as confident as I do today about my husbandry practices mainly thanks to this forum, so welcome to you and Gary and enjoy your experience

Thanks you Pearly. I think I'll be following Tom's care sheet and info. I don't have the space ATM for enclosures as elaborate as his though. Take care
 

AJK Aquaria

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We also found our Russian in the street. I'm confident she was someone's escaped pet. As you'll probably find with your tortoise, ours is a great climber and a pretty good digger. After watching her continually test the one small area in the yard where she could see light on the other side of a gate, we tightly sealed it up. No light comes through now but she still paces up and down the area several times a day. I think she can smell the freedom on the other side!

When I advertised on our neighborhood listserv I heard from three (three!) people who had "lost" a tortoise. We've also had several notices of new tortoise and turtle escapees this year, all around the time the weather started warming up. (Two of them were happily reunited with their owners.) I had no idea we had some many tortoise owners in the community.

At any rate, you've got a handsome, healthy looking tortoise there and I know he'll have a great home with you if he ends up being a permanent resident.

Interesting. I can appreciate their climbing abilities and how most folks wouldn't plan their outdoor habitat properly. Or how someone could give their animals some exercise in the yard, walk away for a minute, and never see their tortoise again. But I figure that most of these imports die in the hands of inexperienced/ignorant owners, or being released to the wild because it's 'too much work.' After visiting CL this weekend, it seems people are struggling to give these Russians away. Unfortunately, when any reptile is just released it gives the whole herp community a black eye. Of course a Russian Tortoise isn't a Burmese or Reticulated python, but at the rate these laws are coming into effect, I wouldn't be surprised if our children won't be able to keep most species of chelonians(let alone larger constrictors and lizards). Nevertheless, I did post a 'found' ad on Craigslist. I attached an image...

I did start on the outdoor setup, but havn't got too far. With the parties and tourney baseball games, I've only spent about 2.5 hours on it.

HZlMfAf.jpg

Still need to do an overhang. Then scape. Hoping by the end of tomorrow to be close to completion. My options were limited. Has to be in the fenced in backyard. There's an enormous sycamore that blots out the sun. Had to place it right next to the side of the deck. It will receive some mid morning sun, filtered sun throughout the day, full sun in the late afternoon and shade in the early evening. That will fluctuate throughout the seasons, of course. When we pressure wash the deck and prime next year, the enclosure will need to be tarped over. And my little enclosure is level. The deck is not!

Thanks for looking
 

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Rue

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That's pretty darned good! We worked on a little (non-tortoise) yard project today...that took almost the entire day!
 

AJK Aquaria

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That's pretty darned good! We worked on a little (non-tortoise) yard project today...that took almost the entire day!

Cool. Working with the landscaping timbers is pretty easy. Once the trench was dug and level, you just slap em down and screw em in!
 

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