Recent content by Sa Ga

I've had Morla, a Russian tortoise, for 4 yrs now. I keep her very clean, washing her off if she ever pees or poops. Both are usually not with much odor. For the last week or so,they've have been rather pungent and for the last three days, she hasn't really pooped much at all. Starting...

MVB (mercury vapor bulb) can be too harsh--i made the same mistake! It can burn too hot, too bright, and dry out their shells and skin. Once I got rid of mine, Morla was much more active around her enclosure. (I use a UVB fluorescent tube light for UVB during the day, and a regular bulb...

How is he doing, two years later! (I just saw ur orig post now, the one about losing Tich, and getting a new little guy.) My heart just broke hearing about your loss and i hope this new one is thriving! Happy 2022! ❤

Yeah, I hear that worn-down tortoise heads are not recommended by 9 out of 10 tortoise vets (and the 10th vet is just bitter bc he really just wanted to be a professional softball player). Ok, ok... here's a thought too: you know those nail files that have "polishing" surfaces? (Usually they...

Lol. Well, besides the fact that anything can happen and every place is escape proof--until it's not! (Ie - things wear or break, torties are persistent, and simply things unforeseen occur), I live in MN where it is far too cold to have her outside all the time. (And honestly, I think I'd...

Oops! I meant @Yvonne G !

After 2 years of weighing options, I was going to get Morla, my Russian tort, micro chipped. I already have a little pink plastic chicken leg band on her so that if someone found her, they would have some indication she's a pet but this of course is hardly enough. (I can't put a tag on her...

...but biting is fine, esp your computer keyboard.

When my tortie gets a little plugged up, I give her just a bit of banana. Mine's a Russian and I give her about 1/4 to 1/2 of a slice about 1/2" thick. You have a redfoot? You'll probably have to give him a little more. I haven't had to do it in quite a while now, but when I first got her...

Yes yes yes! Exactly! There is a difference between anthropomorphism to justify our will over the animal's known good care, and anthropomorphism as recognizing rather "the animal" in all of us, allowing animals their emotional parallels to us. (AND being that torties have been here a hell of...

Yes! Morla LOVES a "pillow," as I first discovered when I came to find her sleeping happily supported by a small rock. I put more "pillows" in and she pushed them around to her liking. However, my gal is posh...and her fave pillow is actually the corner of my MyPillow! It's so cute--she'll...

My Russie LOVES crabgrass! I even let a little patch grow in "her" garden. She doesn't purposefully bite at my fingers--or go after toes!--though I have been caught in the crossfire occasionally when she's really excited or once, when my fingers smelled esp foody. She usually lets go the...

Ugh, I just saw this. I'm so sorry Stress can cause unbelievable harm, and if your other conditions were right (temp, humidity, diet, etc.) it could have been the moving from a group of litter mates to now just the pair which again, can cause bullying. Which causes stres. Which eventually...

Likely she is being bullied. Separate them now, the sooner, the better. When she's walking around, she may very well be looking for somewhere to hide. The stress of feeling unsafe is making her not eat.

It is perfectly normal to pee and/or poo when eating. Morla pees usually (like 95% of the time) at the end of her daily meal in the eve, and once or twice throughout the day, almost always right or soon after her AM and afternoon hydration tube-feedings. She almost always poops soon after her...