# Russian Tortoise



## agility joe (Jul 22, 2014)

I am an animal trainer and my wife is a vet. We would love to give any unwanted Russian tortoise a great home. We have a male Russian. Who loves exploring our 3 acre property. We guarantee a great home. We would pay for the best shipping to make sure they are safe.


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## Yvonne G (Jul 24, 2014)

Hi Joe:

We are mainly a conversation Forum and the majority of our members are not in the buy/sell turtle and tortoise business. When we have to give up a treasured animal, we want to be sure the animal is going to a good home. It would be in your best interest to join in our conversations, let us get to know you. Maybe even post some pictures of your tortoise habitats.


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## agility joe (Jul 24, 2014)

Well my wife and I have been animal lovers are whole lives. That's why we both ended up in the jobs we are in. My wife been a vet and myself been an animal trainer ( mainly dogs and horses). We got Russian Tortoise as a wedding presents to each other. We have always loved Tortoises. I have been designing a new habitat to build. We have a 3 acre property which are tortoise gets to wander around with us. We would love to give any unwanted tortoise a loving home where they will be cared for greatly. If anyone has any questions about me and my wife please feel free to ask.


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## johnsonnboswell (Jul 25, 2014)

Your indoor habitat is pretty, but it's too small and too dry. Your outdoor playpen has no real grazing, water, shade, or burrowing capability. And it's small. A good start, but a ways to go.

You and your wife are specialists in your fields. Kudos to you both. Still, that inspires less confidence than you suppose. Being open to learning a new specialty is what is needed, the willingness to do the research and the importance of observation.

Yvonne was more subtle than I on the topic. Believe it or not, this negative critical post is designed to help you.


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## agility joe (Jul 25, 2014)

I appreciate the constructive criticism. The indoor habitat we got from the tortoise source it said it was big enough to hold 2-3 Russians. 

What size do you recommend?

I was going to build a new one for them. Ideas would be appreciated.

My wife and I are always willing to learn new things.

Any advice is always appreciated.

We soak the Russians everyday and we spray the habitat bedding everyday as well.


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## agility joe (Jul 25, 2014)

As you can see my the photo it's not a bad size outdoor pen for them to eat in and they have some hiding places. We do let them explore more with our supervision


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## agility joe (Jul 25, 2014)

Any advice is always appreciated. Maybe pictures of your own indoor and outdoor habitats would help


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## Yellow Turtle01 (Jul 25, 2014)

I do have a russian, but I don;t think I'll ever to be looking for a home for him  Cinder blocks work great for outdoor enclosure, try the Habitat section of the forum, a lot of good ides! THey should always have plants for shde/eating, burring areas, (softer dirt, open) and a water source.


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## KatieandKyle (Aug 2, 2014)

agility joe said:


> Well my wife and I have been animal lovers are whole lives. That's why we both ended up in the jobs we are in. My wife been a vet and myself been an animal trainer ( mainly dogs and horses). We got Russian Tortoise as a wedding presents to each other. We have always loved Tortoises. I have been designing a new habitat to build. We have a 3 acre property which are tortoise gets to wander around with us. We would love to give any unwanted tortoise a loving home where they will be cared for greatly. If anyone has any questions about me and my wife please feel free to ask.



Tortoises as wedding gifts is just about the coolest present I have ever heard! Love it!

Hop on some of the enclosure threads to see many amazing ideas that the members here post. You willingness to be open minded and take the criticism shows your love for your animals. You have great tortoise space, lots to work with! It will be great fun to watch it morph into tortoise land! Read and ask questions! It's a good feeling to know you are creating a positive environment for your animals! 

Please post your progression! Good luck!


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## Jabuticaba (Aug 2, 2014)

Hi, Joe. Nice Russians! Looks like you have beautiful property. I keep my 2 Hermann's tortoises in separate 4'x4' enclosures. Just like dogs and horses, they also require mental stimulation. You could build an agility course for them. Check YouTube for "tortoise agility." Good luck and keep us posted. 


May, Aussies, & THBs
IG: @AUSSOMEAUSSIES


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## Tom (Aug 2, 2014)

Hi Joe. I'm a trainer too. I train just about all animals.

Glad to see you are sticking around.

I noticed a couple of things in your pics too. Russians seldom get along well in pairs. One or both almost always suffer for it. Adding 2 or 3 more MIGHT help the situation, but you will need to insure that there is only one male and that they have a lot of space. Then you will need to be prepared to separate them all, because they still might not get along. They tend to be a very aggressive and territorial species. Don't forget you will need a lengthy quarantine period, especially for russians and they are known criers of all sorts of stuff. My tortoise vet recommends a minimum of one year quarantine before introducing them, even for captive bred babies.

Next thing: Tortoises need visual barriers. The fencing you are using is not a good idea. Many torts injure themselves trying to get through fencing like that, and eventually, many will simply climb up it and out. There are many ways to go about building outdoor enclosure, but the main things are slick, opaque walls that are tall enough to not be climbed. Then either a top to close them in or an inward facing over hang to keep them where they belong. Here is a thread with many ideas: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread...table-but-safe-outdoor-baby-enclosures.30683/

I agree with Mr. Boswell that you indoor enclosure is much too small. I recommend a minimum of 4x8' for russians. In the wild they often walk for miles a day so large enclosures are a must.

Letting them roam free is a recipe for disaster. I hope you don't feel like I'm picking on you, because I am speaking from experience. Losing your tortoise SUCKS! It always happens the same way. People do it and watch them very closely. Nothing bad happens for a period of time and they feel like they know their tortoise and its habits. One day, eventually, you will take your attention off of the tortoise for one second to answer the phone, talk to a neighbor, tend to some issue, whatever... and in that second your little camouflaged rock with legs will disappear. Heck russians frequently disappear while they are still IN their enclosures. I just want to encourage you to build a large, escape proof enclosure with lots of shady areas, hiding spots and obstacles like logs and boulders, BEFORE you have to experience the panic and eventual heartache of losing such a special tortoise as the ones you guys have.

Here are some threads that might give you some ideas:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/


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## Wanda (Aug 2, 2014)

I agree. My Russians love climbing and because I have more than one I have designed my enclosures so there are numerous nooks and crannies that they can get out of each other's way. Mounds, stones, logs, buried flower pots, and soil rather than grass. I also have a number of different surfaces in different areas ... For example, pebbles, slate, topsoil, raised areas with plants etc 

If they can go the easy way or the difficult way to get somewhere they always choose the difficult way .. They seem to really enjoy it and I think keeps them stimulated and active


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## agility joe (Aug 16, 2014)

Thanks for all the great advice. I have started to build new enclosures with all the great advice


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## leigti (Aug 16, 2014)

It looks like you have a lot of land so you could build a great enclosure. It could be very large with lots of barriers, terrain etc. and could be divided with cinderblocks if need to be. There are some magnificent enclosure ideas were people have turned half their yard even more into a great enclosure. That is about the only way to have many tortoises, especially Russians. I laughed when I read Tom's comment about how you can often lose them in their enclosure, that's the truth! It is amazing how they can hide and just about the time you start to panic you finally find them. You could build different enclosures for different types of tortoises but it's easy to get carried away, if I had the land, money, and time I would have a regular tortoise wonderland at my house. For indoors you can only use a large bookcase laying on its back with the shells removed, or a large stock tank. One for each Russian


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