should i get a mate??

[MaggiL]

I have a male RT currently, he used to live with a few other RT's before I had him (in below par housing - it was a disgrace to them... just venting!) and I want to get a female companion for him. My husband is too worried they will hurt each other, which I read about, but mostly I heard it is with two males.

What do you think??

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome, they do just fine without another, unless you want to breed them.

 

[MaggiL]

I do know that they do fine on their own. I personally, want two of them, but my husband is against it. He's too worried (Niko is our baby!!) =)

And thanks for the welcome, I'm actually not new here, but for some reason I can't log into my other account. I've messaged Josh about it. =)

 

[Jacqui]

Are you actually wanting to breed and hatch a few youngsters? Then I would say yes. If your just wanting to have a "companion" then really think about it.

Overall tortoises are in nature more solitary and only come together for mating. So they don't "need" friends. Anytime you have more then one together, there are chances for conflicts and even the eventual need for separate enclosures. Could you manage that if they don't get along? Two be it a male/female combo or two males can usually be housed together okay, IF they have enough room, have enough site barriers, are compatible in size, and such.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Maggie:

Welcome to the forum!!

May we know where you are?

What is your other username?

 

[dmarcus]

I say it's up to you if you want a second one, but of course you have to convience your husband. If you do get a second one, you have to consider the fact that they might fight and you would have to seperate them or have a big enough enclosure that they can have there own space. But, who knows they could get along fine, just never know...Good luck either way you go..

 

[MaggiL]

Hi Maggie:

Welcome to the forum!!

May we know where you are?

What is your other username?

I'm in Wisconsin. My other username is MaggieL. I just have been having problems with it...

 

[GBtortoises]

Your tortoise doesn't really need a "companion". Tortoises are generally solitary animals by nature and Russians are one of the best examples of solitary tortoises. He's not lonely. If the plan is to get a female be prepared to either keep them apart most of the time except to breed them. A single male with a single female can, most of the time, be relentless in his pursuit to court and breed her with shell ramming and biting her limbs. If this takes place in an enclosure that is not large enough for her to be able to run from and hide from him she can become physically injured. She will also likely become very stressed to the point of constantly hiding. You'll either have to a very large enclosure with lots of hiding spots or keep them seperate. It usually recommended to get at least two females or more for each individual male when they're kept together. This keeps the constant attention off any one female. Male Russian tortoises are among the most territorial of all tortoise species. Any females that come into their "turf" are theirs to breed. Males will also fight to the point of serious injury to each other for territorial dominance. All of this can be much more serious in the confines of an enclosure where there is no escape for them.

 

[Squirtle Time]

I think that if you really want two, just make sure that you have a back up plan if they don't seem to get along. For example see if you have enough room to have two separate enclosures. There is a good chance that there will be no problems. Many people have several healthy tortoises. Good luck in your decision!

 

[Tom]

I don't know anyone more knowledgeable than GB on this subject and my limited Russian experience has been exactly as he says. Two will seldom work out. Russian males can be very aggressive with other males OR females. My best friend keeps a group of two females and one male in a very large, elaborate outdoor enclosure. The male was so relentless that he had to partition him off by himself to prevent him from injuring the two females. You are much better off leaving him alone unless you want to build a room size enclosure and have several females, but even that doesn't always work.

 

[MaggiL]

Thank you all!