# sexing my torts...



## desertsss (May 29, 2009)

How old do DT's have to be before you van sex them?

sorry, I meant "can sex them"


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## Yvonne G (May 29, 2009)

Its not age, its size. Desert tortoises are harder than most because they look female for a very long time, and the males don't always "show" like the sulcatas do. I would say that by the time they are about 7 or 8 inches, front to back you should be able to see a difference in the tail. Females have a pretty small, stubby tail. The concave plastron doesn't always start to develop until they are pretty much mature. Also, the males grow a longer gular (the part of the plastron under the chin). Males also have two glands, one on either side of the underside of their chin, but some females get this too. And if you place a male and female side-by-side, they are a slightly different shape, the female being rounder. But you really won't be able to tell until they're almost mature.

Yvonne

I'll take some male/female pictures tomorrow.


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