# thought i had a desert tort but now im not so sure



## high_d_bear (Aug 26, 2010)

can anyone tell me what breed of tortoise this is? i originally thought she might be a desert tortoise but in my intro someone said she could be a gopher tortoise.


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## high_d_bear (Aug 26, 2010)

can anyone tell me what breed of tortoise this is? i originally thought she might be a desert tortoise but in my intro someone said she could be a gopher tortoise.


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## Tom (Aug 26, 2010)

That's a CA desert tort. Gopher tortoise is the common name of a similar species from the same genus that is found in the Southeastern US.

Egyptian Dan is the resident expert. He'll confirm this for sure.

BTW, You know he should be eating primarily, grass, weeds, cactus and leafy greens, right? That bowl of chopped veggies won't kill him if its just once in a while, but its not the best thing for him/her.


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## egyptiandan (Aug 26, 2010)

Tom is right  that is a Desert tortoise, _Gopherus agassizi_.

Danny


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## high_d_bear (Aug 26, 2010)

Tom said:


> That's a CA desert tort. Gopher tortoise is the common name of a similar species from the same genus that is found in the Southeastern US.
> 
> Egyptian Dan is the resident expert. He'll confirm this for sure.
> 
> BTW, You know he should be eating primarily, grass, weeds, cactus and leafy greens, right? That bowl of chopped veggies won't kill him if its just once in a while, but its not the best thing for him/her.



she does eat alot of grass and green but i do only feed that maybe once a week. i havent tried cactus yet but thats because i havent found it in the stores. i also am going to try out Mazuri Tortoise Food i heard about that through this forum.


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## Tortuga_terrestre (Aug 26, 2010)

Its a California Desert Tortoise. Cactus Pads are high in Fiber (Excellent for Tortoises) Try going to a Hispanic Market..I know for sure you'll find them there. If you dont see them..Ask one of the Produce Stocker for NOPALES. And if you live anywhere near knotts berry farm (Buena Park CA)..I'll happily give you a piece cactus to plant in your backyard.


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## high_d_bear (Aug 27, 2010)

Tortuga_terrestre said:


> Its a California Desert Tortoise. Cactus Pads are high in Fiber (Excellent for Tortoises) Try going to a Hispanic Market..I know for sure you'll find them there. If you dont see them..Ask one of the Produce Stocker for NOPALES. And if you live anywhere near knotts berry farm (Buena Park CA)..I'll happily give you a piece cactus to plant in your backyard.



ok we do have a new hispanic market here i will have to give then a try. how much and how often should i feed her once a day or once a week?


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## tortoisenerd (Aug 27, 2010)

If your yard has enough to sustain her as far as quantity and variety of weeds and greens, I'd just toss her a small cactus pad every once in awhile. Some other good treat foods (which I believe to be 5% of the diet or so, but opinions vary) are pumpkin and butternut squash. Edible organic flowers like roses, pansies, hibiscus. Leaves from grape vines and fruits and veggies (except tomato). I would scatter seeds in your yard to make more weeds grow if needed, plant bushes and such, and hopefully your yard is big enough to sustain her 95% so you just toss her some treats every once in awhile. If you have a grocer like Winco or like said previously hispanic stores you should have no problem finding cactus. It grows well if you plant it (look online for instructions). I also shop organic grocery stores and farmer's market for tortoise food. The other day I scored some cactus fruit!

FYI you need a permit for desert torts. Just a paperwork thing through Fish & Game, but if you don't have one you should look into it. http://www.tortoise.org/general/permit.html


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## Madortoise (Aug 28, 2010)

I often reference CDT edible items to this easy list: http://www.turtlestuff.com/avoidthese.html


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## Candy (Aug 28, 2010)

Is Mado supposed to be banned?


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## Yvonne G (Aug 28, 2010)

The new spam program is recognizing some of our trusted members as spammers. Josh is working on it. If anyone sees that a "regular" has been banned, please send a PM to Josh about it, including the person's username.


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## high_d_bear (Aug 29, 2010)

Madortoise said:


> I often reference CDT edible items to this easy list: http://www.turtlestuff.com/avoidthese.html



wow thanks for the link i will be using it as reference from now on.


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## Madortoise (Aug 29, 2010)

Candy said:


> Is Mado supposed to be banned?


I know, huh. It was some sort of default thing because I showed a link to another website? Anyway, I checked just now and I could log in. Thank goodness. Thanks for caring, Candy and whoever lifted the ban. I'm not bad, really.


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