# Our male desert tortoise is showing female behavior???



## tortluvr8 (Feb 11, 2014)

Our 25 year old male Sonoran Desert tortoise is showing obvious female behavior. We are sure he is a male due to having him to the Phoenix Herpetological's reptile veterinarian, and he confirming Tortellina is a boy It's also very OBVIOUS he is definitely a he. (His name is a long story... Tortellina was given to us by a friend who assumed he was a she, hence the name Tortellina) Anyway.... for the past week, he has been digging holes WITH HIS BACK FEET, just like our female Russian does prior to laying eggs. Tortellina has dug several of these "test" holes... does anybody know if males sometimes dig the holes for the females in the Desert species? Tortellina lives alone, no mate.
Thanks


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## kimber_lee_314 (Feb 11, 2014)

I've never seen a male do that. When you say it's "obvious" he is a male, what do you mean?


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## tortluvr8 (Feb 11, 2014)

kimber_lee_314 said:


> I've never seen a male do that. When you say it's "obvious" he is a male, what do you mean?



Ha Ha! His tail is very long, AND a well known tortoise veterinarian gave him a full examination confirming what I was thinking when told he was a she when we first got him  It really is strange behavior as he doesn't dig and push dirt away with his front legs as if he was burrowing, he uses his back legs and digs a hole just like he is going to lay eggs???


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## kimber_lee_314 (Feb 11, 2014)

tortluvr8 said:


> kimber_lee_314 said:
> 
> 
> > I've never seen a male do that. When you say it's "obvious" he is a male, what do you mean?
> ...



Can you post a picture of him? I'm not disagreeing with your vet, I've just never seen a male tortoise do that. Do you have pictures of him digging?


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## tortluvr8 (Feb 11, 2014)

kimber_lee_314 said:


> tortluvr8 said:
> 
> 
> > kimber_lee_314 said:
> ...



I don't have a picture of him digging, but will get one tomorrow... if he digs  We planted the desert tortoise weed/grass mix and he dug a great big hole right in the middle of his garden. I should have taken a picture then, but didn't... he was practically vertical while digging in the hole. Thanks for wanting to get to the bottom of this with me


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## Tom (Feb 11, 2014)

I'd love to see a pic of the plastron showing the tail, anal scutes and gular scutes. Is the plastron concave?

It just seems more likely that the sex is mis-identified than for a male to be digging nest holes.


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## sibi (Feb 11, 2014)

If you have never seen his "junk," he's probably a she


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## mike taylor (Feb 11, 2014)

I with Tom post sime pictures and we can help make sure you have a boy with a gender crisis .


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## ascott (Feb 11, 2014)

In the pic you have attached in this thread, I would say you have a male...glands and gular are male....what does he do when he has dug the hole? I mean, perhaps he was raised around sisters and his mother....lol (just being silly, apologies )


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## Watsonpartyof4 (Feb 12, 2014)

My very male Redfoot digs holes all the time ...and do you know what he does with these holes? 
He "loves" them...the horny little ****! He makes "jolly time" all day and night with holes, rocks, his water dish, and just about anything that stays still long enough for him to mount! 

Maybe that is what your Tort is doing?


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## tortluvr8 (Feb 12, 2014)

Watsonpartyof4 said:


> My very male Redfoot digs holes all the time ...and do you know what he does with these holes?
> He "loves" them...the horny little stuff! He makes "jolly time" all day and night with holes, rocks, his water dish, and just about anything that stays still long enough for him to mount!
> 
> Maybe that is what your Tort is doing?



Interesting, and thank you all for the suggestions  I will try to get a video of Tortellina digging tomorrow as suggested in an earlier post. Once he digs a hole, he moves on. He doesn't do any female or male behavior in or to the hole, he simply digs then walks away. However he does dig at times, for long periods of times.


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## reticguy76 (Feb 13, 2014)

I am assuming you took him to Todd Driggers ?


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## littleginsu (Feb 13, 2014)

sibi said:


> If you have never seen his "junk," he's probably a she





Watsonpartyof4 said:


> My very male Redfoot digs holes all the time ...and do you know what he does with these holes?
> He "loves" them...the horny little stuff! He makes "jolly time" all day and night with holes, rocks, his water dish, and just about anything that stays still long enough for him to mount!
> 
> Maybe that is what your Tort is doing?



You two are killing me!! I think I love you!


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## tortluvr8 (Feb 14, 2014)

reticguy76 said:


> I am assuming you took him to Todd Driggers ?



No, Dr. Kiedrowski at Dove Valley Animal Hospital


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## reticguy76 (Feb 14, 2014)

Ahhh, Dr. K is the man !!


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