# Adult Male Ca. Desert Tortoise for adoption



## Tortuga_terrestre

Hi my name is Walter and I am new to tortoiseforum.org. I have a Adult (20-50 years old according to the vet) Male California Desert Tortoise I am putting up for adoption. He is a very healthy male. He has some shell damage due to being abused by skaters using him a ramp. But years have past and has made a full recovery. I am very attached to this tortoise, and want him to go to a very knowledable person. I am located in Southern California. Thank You


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## Yvonne G

Hi Tortuga_Terrestre (Walter):







to the forum.

We have many SoCalifornians here on the forum. I hope you are able to find a loving home for your tortoise.


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## spikethebest

I will PM you. I also live in SoCali


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Thank You! I hope to find a knowledgable home for Fernando; he is truly an awesome tortoise. I see you have Texas DT Hatchlings. Most people collect radiated, leopards ect. I love Native DT's.


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## spikethebest

I am in Valencia, and work in Northridge. Please email me at [email protected]


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## Shelly

Man, I would love to have another, but have 2 males already. You'll have no trouble finding a good home.


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## Candy

Where do you live in California?


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## spikethebest

here is a pic of the tort..


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## Candy

Ohhhh he is very nice looking and he looks pretty big don't you think? How big is he really?


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## Candy

Can you give a size (inches) and weight of him?


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Fernando is roughly 12in maybe even bigger? And weighs about 10 pounds (He got weight 2/2/10 at Dr. Greeks office in Yorba Linda) He had a bit of a runny nose when he got out of hibernation. He was on Baytril for 2 weeks and kept at 80 degrees. He is healthier than ever! He is an aggressive grazer...this boy can eat! Like I mentioned in my previous notes...I will only give him to a very knowledable person or family..I am very attached to this guy. I live in Santa Fe Springs CA.

I am pretty bummed out that I have to give up Fernando. I would like to adopt a California or Texas DT Hatchling. The whole reason I have to give up fernando is because of his size and he cannot be kept in a indoor enclosure. Thank You


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## spikethebest

the owner (tortuaga_terrestre) sent me these pics to post for him...


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## Candy

Any experts on DT's want to take a guess at how old this guy is? I know that it said he was between the ages of 20 and 50 years old, but can anyone round it up a bit?

Tortuga do you plan on getting a place for yourself with a big yard in the near future or no?


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## Tortuga_terrestre

As of right now... I can only afford an apartment. Thats why I could only keep a hatchling right now. Fernando is an awesome tortoise! But too big to keep an a apartment. He is currently staying with a friend.


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## galvinkaos

Tortuga_terrestre said:


> Fernando is roughly 12in maybe even bigger? And weighs about 10 pounds (He got weight 2/2/10 at Dr. Greeks office in Yorba Linda) He had a bit of a runny nose when he got out of hibernation. He was on Baytril for 2 weeks and kept at 80 degrees. He is healthier than ever! He is an aggressive grazer...this boy can eat! Like I mentioned in my previous notes...I will only give him to a very knowledable person or family..I am very attached to this guy. I live in Santa Fe Springs CA.
> 
> I am pretty bummed out that I have to give up Fernando. I would like to adopt a California or Texas DT Hatchling. The whole reason I have to give up fernando is because of his size and he cannot be kept in a indoor enclosure. Thank You





I am interested in adopting him. I have 2 DT (too small to sex) that are 4-5 inches. They are indoors until the weather gets better consistently. Although they have enjoyed a few warm days recently and looks like they will have a few more in the next week. This is the outdoor tort pen.






The trailer and extension cord have been removed since this pic was taken.











Since this pic was taken the plants grew so tall (from our recent rains) that I actually had to mow them because it took me 20-30 minutes to find the DT's hiding in them. I have also tightened up the bird netting. Still planning on putting in pro bird netting that I can walk under without ducking.






The tort table is back indoors where the DT are. You can guesstimate that is is a good sized area by the size of the torts in it. 

I am in Temple City and offer visitation. We are not very far from each other. I can take new pics in the daylight of the area or you can come see it.

Dawna


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Thank You for your response. The pen might be ok for the little guys but fernando is a big boy.. He needs more space and sunlight. He was staying with my parents and roughly roamed 1/4 of an acre all to himself. He is very territorial and might take out your little guys if left alone with them.

Email me so we can trade info. My email is [email protected]; Like I have mentioned in my previous notes I want to adopt a Hatchling to a small Texas or California DT. Maybe we can come to an agreement. Thank You


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Good Evening, Well its been over a week since I have received any type of comment regarding fernando and Im going to call it quits. Im going to find a home for him within family and friends. Maybe the comment I made about wanting to adopt a hatchling was misunderstood. I was not trading him for a hatchling, but asking the forum if they knew anyone adopting out a hatchling.Sorry If I offended anyone.Thank You


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## Yvonne G

I'm sure there was no offense taken. We understand your situation completely and give you a lot of credit for trying to make your tortoise more comfortable in a home with a yard instead of in an apartment. Good luck. We wish you the best!


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## Shelly

I can't believe nobody has taken him. DT's are the best torts to have as pets if you live in the correct climate.


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Good Evening! This is my last and final attempt to find an awesome home for fernando. You have to be very knowledgable...have a big safe backyard for him to roam...live in so cal. If this is not successful, Im going to ask my parents to take him back. email me:[email protected]


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## Shelly

Come on you people! For crying out loud, this is a great looking animal, one that literally cannot be bought for any price. I can't believe nobody wants him.


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## spikethebest

i have strongly suggested many times to take him to your local CTTC chapter. why is that not an option?


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Thank you for the quick response. I want fernando to go directly to a permanent home. A chapter is a middle man. I want to visit, where he is going to be homed, I want to meet the person or family. I have met many tortoise and turtle lovers that have countless animals, but do not care for them properly. There is many individuals that "rescue" animals and place them to anyone who is willing to take them in. Call me picky, but I am more interested in the welfare of the animal than anything else.


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## spikethebest

i completely agree with your point of view and i have had a similar experience with animal owners. i hope you can find a home soon. i know Candy showed interest, you should PM her.


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## Candy

How big is your parents yard? Was he happy there? Did they take good care of him for you? Is your vet in Yorba Linda good? I wanted to ask you that because I'm looking for one that just deals with tortoises.

I just noticed one of the posts that said that your parents have a lot of property. I am very curious though why you don't want him to stay with them anymore?  I myself have a pretty big back yard, but it's not 1/4 acre, but there is a lot of room to roam.


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## Tortuga_terrestre

The question is: Why isnt Fernando with my parents? My parents and I are not on the best of terms. When I came back from 7 months of training (Im in the Army) I was forced to place my pets to differents homes. I refused to give up my beloved tortoise. He is being kept in a indoor enclosure and I take him out atleast 2 hours a day to get natural sunlight. He is super healthy;an aggressive grazer and very heavy. I feel that I am doing everything possible to keep him but he deserves more. I want him to go a very knowledable person.


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## Candy

I understand that you want him to go to a very knowledgeable person, but think about this. When I got Dale (our Cherryhead) I didn't know much about how to keep him, but I researched and found this site. I found a lot of people who helped me take the best care I could of Dale. If I wouldn't have gotten him I would know nothing about tortoises so maybe I did it backwards, but I've surely put in the time to learn what is best for him and I am very dedicated to him and Ruby now. So maybe instead of insisting that someone be that knowledgeable maybe you should consider whether or not they would be caring and loving of your animal. I mean you could be knowledgeable and not pay any attention to him or you could be willing to learn what would be best for him and pay all kinds of attention to him. I know you want the best for him, but I should think what you're really saying is that you want someone who will love and take care of him as you would. Isn't that really what you're saying?  Why I asked you that question about your parents is because I didn't understand why you didn't leave him there with them did they not want him? Where they abusing him? Their property you said was perfect for him. I'm slightly confused.


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Your absoulutely right! Maybe my wording is wrong. I put knowledable instead of loving, because their is alot of "Animal Lovers" that dont really have a clue;what an exotic animal needs really are?. I read through countless threads and all they speak of is "How cute they are" and how they want to collect tortoises like baseball cards. My parents dont want anything related to me in their home (it sounds like i have a big chip on shoulder huh? I really dont =) )


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## Candy

Wow I have boys that are grown and can't think of too much that they could do that I wouldn't want them around me or there stuff around me. I'm sorry to hear this. I think if you want Fernando to go to a good home you're going to have to take a chance on making the best decision that you can and let it go. There are a lot of people on here that are very good keepers of DT's with Dawna being one of them and too bad Shelly can't take him. It's really too bad that you don't live closer to Yvonne she is one of them. I really wish you would reconsider one of the people on here there's a lot of people in which you could pm to see if someone was really reputable to take Fernando. I think he would just be happy to be outside where he could roam and have people friends.


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## Candy

Walter I see that you had another thread on German Shepard's, did you keep your dog with Fernando at any time?


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## Tortuga_terrestre

My shepherd Rex was kept seperately from fernando. Rex is a level 3 personal protection dog, he would rip fernando to pieces with a smile on his face. They both lived on different sides of the property.


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## egyptiandan

He is probably between 30 and 40 Candy 

Danny


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## Candy

Today Fernando found himself a new loving home and he seems very content here. Yes Walter asked if he could come over to see my yard and he's decided that it's a good place for Fernando to live. So Fernando ate grass most of the time, but there was another time that he found a yellow ball and he started pushing it around and that was so funny. I took lots of pictures of him and will be posting them soon. Then I decided to call Walter and ask him what time Fernando went to bed so now he is sleeping in his box in the same room with Dale and Ruby and the new little Cherryhead. I tell you it's very easy to fall in love with these guys.  Thank you Walter it was very nice meeting you and your expectant wife Betty, you guys seem like a very nice couple.


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## Tortuga_terrestre

Hey guys and gals, well I finally found a wonderful home for fernando. Yes, it was diffucult to let him go, but I'm glad he will be well taken care of. As for me, I am hoping to get a DT hatchling! I really love these guys. Thanks again Candy. Sorry for the late response;my internet was down since friday. I am really looking forward in seeing those pictures.


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## spikethebest

CONGRATS!!!!!!!!


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## lrainb

Shelly said:


> Man, I would love to have another, but have 2 males already. You'll have no trouble finding a good home.



Hi Shelly,
we recently adopted an 18 year old male...he was used to being with his family but started fighting Dad for Mom... Do your 2 males get along???


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## Yvonne G

Hi Irainb:






to the forum!!

"Getting along" is all a matter of each individual tortoise. I've seen brothers living together well into old age and getting along famously, and I've seen brothers trying to kill each other when they reached sexual maturity.


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## Shelly

lrainb said:


> Shelly said:
> 
> 
> 
> Man, I would love to have another, but have 2 males already. You'll have no trouble finding a good home.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Hi Shelly,
> we recently adopted an 18 year old male...he was used to being with his family but started fighting Dad for Mom... Do your 2 males get along???
Click to expand...


They do get along, but the youngest is only 11, and not really fully mature. I think he has only just begun "puberty" and will likely become more aggressive in the coming years.


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## MadLoca

yay i love happy endings!!! cant wait 2 see the pix of his new home!


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## Candy

I am totally loving this tortoise. You guys should have told me how easy they are to take care of. He is just so adorable.


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## Shelly

Candy said:


> You guys should have told me how easy they are to take care of.



I did!


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## ChiKat

Candy said:


> I am totally loving this tortoise. You guys should have told me how easy they are to take care of. He is just so adorable.



I want more stories! More pictures! Tell us all about Fernando!


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## David Ingram

Tortuga_terrestre said:


> Hi my name is Walter and I am new to tortoiseforum.org. I have a Adult (20-50 years old according to the vet) Male California Desert Tortoise I am putting up for adoption. He is a very healthy male. He has some shell damage due to being abused by skaters using him a ramp. But years have past and has made a full recovery. I am very attached to this tortoise, and want him to go to a very knowledable person. I am located in Southern California. Thank You


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## spikethebest

this thread should be closed.


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