# Pictures of Ernie



## sammi (Oct 20, 2009)

Here is Ernie finally. Got him for my birthday about 3ish weeks ago. Hes awesome!! I never thought having a tortoise could be so much fun =]


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## Yvonne G (Oct 20, 2009)

Yes, Russian tortoises are one of the more friendly-type tortoise. They quickly become humanized and are much fun to care for.

Yvonne


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## Isa (Oct 20, 2009)

Awww Ernie is sooo cute  Congratulations!


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## terryo (Oct 20, 2009)

Have fun with Erinie...he is so cute. Your enclosure looks good too.


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## sammi (Oct 20, 2009)

terryo said:


> Have fun with Erinie...he is so cute. Your enclosure looks good too.



Thanks =] I actually just added the grapewood. I had been planning on buying some when I got some more money [they're 5-10 bucks a piece at the reptile shop] then I found a bag of 6 random pieces at Petco for 10 bucks!


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## dreadyA (Oct 20, 2009)

Good to see ernie and his new enclosure.looks happy! Do you have dark hidig spots for him or is it always bright like that?


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## sammi (Oct 20, 2009)

dreadyA said:


> Good to see ernie and his new enclosure.looks happy! Do you have dark hidig spots for him or is it always bright like that?



Oh yeah, the picture where hes under the grapewood and in his terra cotta house is dark, I just had the flash on the camera. Otherwise the pictures wouldn't come out.


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## Stazz (Oct 20, 2009)

Oh Ernie has such a sweet face ! Congrats, what a great birthday prezzie


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## sammi (Oct 21, 2009)

Stazz said:


> Oh Ernie has such a sweet face ! Congrats, what a great birthday prezzie



You're tellin me! I had a cocker spaniel named Treasure a couple years back and when he passed I thought my life was over. I grew up with that guy, and that was how everyone knew me, "the girl with the dog named Treasure"..but luckily Ernie has helped me overcome much of my loss  now I'm the girl with a tortoise named Ernie


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## Weloveourtortoise (Oct 21, 2009)

Ernie is precious! Happy belated b-day and what a great present!


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## tortoisenerd (Oct 21, 2009)

Thanks for sharing! Congrats. What kind of wood is he on? Can we see the rest of the enclosure? He's cute. Where was he acquired from? I love my little Russian. So much fun, agreed!


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## sammi (Oct 21, 2009)

tortoisenerd said:


> Thanks for sharing! Congrats. What kind of wood is he on? Can we see the rest of the enclosure? He's cute. Where was he acquired from? I love my little Russian. So much fun, agreed!



The first picture, hes standing on a flat rock that I found at the beach. The wood I got from Petco and its called grapewood. Really cool looking stuff..if you can't find any near your area, you can order it online at www.lllreptile.com. My boyfriend got him from Petco, and he found the reptile store near us _after_ he bought him already. We know now that it wasn't the best place to get him from, but now I like to think of it as kind of a "rescue" for him =] We've gone back to the store where he bought Ernie, and since I've seen where he's come from now, and how he was living, I'm really glad I can give him a better life =D

P.S. I'll take more pictures of him and his enclosure tomorrow..hes asleep right now =]


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## Candy (Oct 22, 2009)

Ernie is so cute. What a cute little face he has.


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## tortoisenerd (Oct 22, 2009)

I meant the substrate...sorry! 

Yup, 99.9% sure he's wild caught if from Petco. Please take him to a reputable vet and get a fecal test for parasites. These are more highly prevalent in WC torts, but all torts pretty much have them (my captive bred tort even has two of them). Best wishes and have fun.


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## Jacqui (Oct 23, 2009)

What a serious face he has!  Sounds like my kind of birthday present. Ummmm did anybody warn you, that you usually can't stop with just one tortoise?  Glad your getting over your loss. *hug*


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## sammi (Oct 23, 2009)

tortoisenerd said:


> I meant the substrate...sorry!
> 
> Yup, 99.9% sure he's wild caught if from Petco. Please take him to a reputable vet and get a fecal test for parasites. These are more highly prevalent in WC torts, but all torts pretty much have them (my captive bred tort even has two of them). Best wishes and have fun.



Yeah, and I read about that too..I called Petco where we got him, and the girl who answered told me they got them from "many different reputable breeders, certainly no one that was doing anything inhumane.." but I'm still skeptical. I did take him to my vet though, luckily it has an exotic animals doctor, and his fecal came back negative =]



Jacqui said:


> What a serious face he has!  Sounds like my kind of birthday present. Ummmm did anybody warn you, that you usually can't stop with just one tortoise?  Glad your getting over your loss. *hug*



Nobody warned me, but I'm figuring that out prreeeetty quickly! Seeing all these pictues of all these fun looking little guys..my and my significant other have already come up with names for our future "herd"...Starting with Ernie, next will be Bert  and then Louie


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## Jacqui (Oct 23, 2009)

sammi said:


> Jacqui said:
> 
> 
> > What a serious face he has!  Sounds like my kind of birthday present. Ummmm did anybody warn you, that you usually can't stop with just one tortoise?  Glad your getting over your loss. *hug*
> ...


 Too late your lost.  Having the names already in your mind proves it. That's okay, as far as addictions go, I think this is the healthiest and best one to have.

My first Russian came from Petco, too. I hadn't thought they were cute or interesting until I saw this old and wise looking male. I had no use for him and certainly didn't plan on adding to my tortoise family, let alone really get into them again. Thru the years I have come across several more Russians in Petco that just sorta call out to me.


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## tortoisenerd (Oct 23, 2009)

Yeah, I don't believe the answer you got either. I don't see anything wrong with it, you just should know is all. I have a feeling they get fed that line from corporate. I've been told the stores just get shipments in with no idea where they come from.

Wow that's awesome his fecal came out negative. I recommend a re-test in about 3 months due to the life cycles of parasites (a tort can have them and not have them get picked up on a test as they are in an in between stage). Also, most torts do have several parasites in small amounts, but the test only is said to come back positive if the numbers of a specific type get out of hand. Best wishes.


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## sammi (Oct 24, 2009)

Some new pictures! Yay! We redid his enclosure substrate today. I switched from Cypress Mulch to a Bed-A-Beast/Sand mixture. It looks a heck of a lot better, plus the little woodchips annoyed me. A couple pictures of what it looks like. Also a picture from this morning when I found him basking. I don't know why he was sitting like that, it looked really uncomfortable with his body all tilted and his legs every which way, but he looked happy. Before I came up with the camera, he had his head laying on the wood =]


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## tortoisenerd (Oct 24, 2009)

That looks cool! The basking position is typical. They like to expose as much as their skin as possible. It is a great sign he is that comfortable in his surroundings.  What about more hides? I only see the one pot hide. I would suggest fake plants, a half log, box, etc. It is ideal to have different types of hides in different temperatures. Also, if the tort cannot see all the way across the enclosure, it seems larger to them. You can do away with some of the rocks if you find yourself short on space. What is your temperature gradient? Is the water deep enough for the tort to soak in and drink from? As he settles into his enclosure, you'll probably want to be on the look out for how he does with it, such as if there are any spots he gets stuck, or if he may like it a different way. Best wishes.


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## ChiKat (Oct 24, 2009)

He is SO adorable, I love his little face!! I have a 5-month old Russian named Nelson and he's starting to become more friendly.
I just love those little guys 

Congrats on your new baby!


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## sammi (Oct 24, 2009)

tortoisenerd said:


> That looks cool! The basking position is typical. They like to expose as much as their skin as possible. It is a great sign he is that comfortable in his surroundings.  What about more hides? I only see the one pot hide. I would suggest fake plants, a half log, box, etc. It is ideal to have different types of hides in different temperatures. Also, if the tort cannot see all the way across the enclosure, it seems larger to them. You can do away with some of the rocks if you find yourself short on space. What is your temperature gradient? Is the water deep enough for the tort to soak in and drink from? As he settles into his enclosure, you'll probably want to be on the look out for how he does with it, such as if there are any spots he gets stuck, or if he may like it a different way. Best wishes.



Yeah, I know he needs more hides. Its on my list of things to do..I can only get a few things at a time as the money comes. This container is temporary for the next couple months, as we will be moving in January and we're going to be able to build a bigger enclosure for him. Unfortunately I don't know my temp. gradient, I've yet to get a thermometer. And yes, the water is deep enough for him to soak, it comes up to his chin about, and it seems like hes already taken a liking to the new substrate, I found him all burrowed up when I got home tonite, so cute! Thanks for the pointers =]


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## tortoisenerd (Oct 24, 2009)

Please be very careful since you do not have a thermometer. Sounds scary to me.


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## sammi (Oct 25, 2009)

tortoisenerd said:


> Please be very careful since you do not have a thermometer. Sounds scary to me.



I know, its the next thing I'm gonna get. I'm not super worried right now, as he moves in and out of his basking light as normal, and hes very active, and eats and poops right, and isn't showing any signgs of being stressed..Don't mean to scare you! =[


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## mctlong (Oct 25, 2009)

Your enclosure looks great.


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## Stephanie Logan (Oct 25, 2009)

[[/quote]

The first picture, hes standing on a flat rock that I found at the beach. The wood I got from Petco and its called grapewood. Really cool looking stuff..if you can't find any near your area, you can order it online at www.lllreptile.com. My boyfriend got him from Petco, and he found the reptile store near us _after_ he bought him already. We know now that it wasn't the best place to get him from, but now I like to think of it as kind of a "rescue" for him =] We've gone back to the store where he bought Ernie, and since I've seen where he's come from now, and how he was living, I'm really glad I can give him a better life =D

P.S. I'll take more pictures of him and his enclosure tomorrow..hes asleep right now =]
[/quote]
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Are you going to take a care sheet in for the Petco manager when you get a chance? There are good care sheets on this forum, and the experts here say that if you offer it as a goodwill gesture rather than as a angry criticism, they may just clean up their act and adopt better conditions for their other tortoises.


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## sammi (Oct 25, 2009)

Stephanie Logan said:


> Are you going to take a care sheet in for the Petco manager when you get a chance? There are good care sheets on this forum, and the experts here say that if you offer it as a goodwill gesture rather than as a angry criticism, they may just clean up their act and adopt better conditions for their other tortoises.



Well, his conditions weren't _terrible_..I mean, it was things like: He was in a glass enclosure [which was pretty big and it only housed two torts - well actually 1 after Ernie came home], he had pellets as his food, and his basking lamp was like..2 1/2 feet above him. It looked like the torts were on wood chips too, but they were pretty deep. So when I say that hes in a better home, I mean that I've significantly improved his care just from what it was. I've seen a lot worse Petco stories on here though. Would you think I still need to bring a care sheet?


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## tortoisenerd (Oct 26, 2009)

They get their instructions for corporate and I honestly think they can't do anything about it at those chain stores. They would technically be braking store policies about housing and foods.


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## Stephanie Logan (Oct 29, 2009)

Yes, that does sound as if they are at least getting the basics right. I am sure Ernie is in Tortoise heaven right now, though, being spoiled by an adoring owner!


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## Madortoise (Oct 30, 2009)

Ernie looks like one happy tort. He is adorable. Congratulations.


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## sammi (Oct 31, 2009)

Thank you so much! =]


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## DoversMama (Dec 25, 2009)

Awww. He's so cute! We love our Russian, too(which I got for my bf as a birthday present). Nice job on his enclosure! Are you liking the bed a beast and sand? That's what we use now...but were thinking of switching to cypress after reading a few threads on here.


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## sammi (Dec 26, 2009)

I used Cypress the very first thing, and I wasn't super happy with it, and Ernie wasn't either, because once I began using the bed a beast and sand, he burrowed happily into the dirt straight away! Its just whatever works for you and your little guy =]


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## K9KidsLove (Dec 26, 2009)

I use a mixture of cypress and sand for my Russians when they are inside. At night they totally bury themselves in it. I don't even see any shell. Sometimes I will see nostrils poking up thru the substrate.
Great pictures
Good luck
Patsy


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