Someone Save The Poor Tortoise :(

[alben909]

Ok so I'm going to get a new Russain tortoise so I was searching on craigslist. I came across this.(link below). This poor sulcata!!!!!! Look where he lives!!!! There is pretty much no substrate and he has nothing. I hate when people take advantage of the easy going animal. Just because they are "hard core survivalists" in nature doesn't mean the captive bred sulcatas need nothing but a hide a 7 gallon tank to survive.
HEART BREAKING!!!!!!!!!

Here is the link
http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/for/3036506262.html

 

[Yvonne G]

Probably bought all that stuff because of the clerk at the pet store.

 

[dmarcus]

I agree with Yvonne, this was probably a kit that was bought with the sulcata...

 

[Tom]

That's what I was going to ask. Who told this person that these things were the right set up for a baby sulcata?

 

[wellington]

Just wrote a thread about this same kind of posting. Check it out. It's called  
TORTOISES FOR SALE ADS-MY OPINION-WHAT'S YOURS?
I emailed the ad you posted and offered them helpful info for correcting the torts housing. Hopefully it will help.

 

[NudistApple]

That's actually a 5 gallon tank from Petsmart that they are clearing right now. Not to defend big box petstores or anything, but it isn't part of a kit. It's suggested for like, frogs and anoles (which is still isn't necessarily big enough for).

I feel awful for that little guy though, and I cannot believe that they are asking 250.

 

[alben909]

Thanks Wellington hopefully they take better care of the little guy

 

[Jacqui]

It's not necessarily something a "pet store" got them convinced to buy. I do recall just a couple of months back seeing a breeder of sulcatas selling a hatchling kit himself with only a 10 gallon tank with it... just sayin'. It looks like the person who bought the little guy is perhaps realizing he/she got more then bargained for. Hopefully with some nice advise pointed his way, he can pass on better information to the new owner.

 

[kimber_lee_314]

I'm not far from there. I could offer $100 for him, but would someone on here take him? I can't take a sulcata - already have my hands full!

 

[StudentoftheReptile]

Not to defend petstores (most of you know I'm not a fan!), but I wager it was more likely a case of: the petstore staff may have suggested the typical "box kit" for a tortoise (standard 20-gal Long with $200 worth of stuff), and the customer (now-owner of said baby sulcata in that ad) probably was a cheapskate and got the smallest, least expensive reptile tank on the shelf.

This by far has been my experience when I worked as a petstore sales clerk. Whatever cage you would recommend, they would always come back with "Well, what can he get by with for now?" or "Do you have anything smaller?" LOL...I started suggested 75-gallon and 100-gallon tanks as starters so people would start buying 40-gal breeder tanks! It sometimes worked...(sigh)

But it was extremely rare that I had a customer who would pretty much buy exactly what I told them.