Adding 2 new RedFoots to our family.

[TortieMom157]

Hello!

We have two 2yr old Redfoots and just picked up 2 more. (One is about 1.5 yrs old and the other is around 2yo.

Question is, do we need to quarantine them? If so, what is the best practice in doing so.

Our tortoises are kept outside in SWFL.

Thanks for your help!!

 

[wellington]

Yes, you should. Because tortoises should not be housed in pairs as it's very stressful and one can bully the other, I would set them up in seperate enclosures for at least 3 months.
Then when adding to the other two, which also should not be housed together, be sure you have one male to a group of females. Two or more males should not be housed together.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

As wellington says, please make sure you have the right male to female ratio and lots of land for a small group, but tortoise of any species should NEVER be housed in pairs under any circumstances, they’re incredibly territorial, behaviours that look cute to us really aren’t, following one another and sleeping huddled up is all bullying the the tortoise world, you’ll eventually see more extreme signs of aggression. Anyone who tells you pairs are fine, have no idea what they’re talking about.

I’d have them in separate enclosures for a while, feel free to read this thread🐢💚

Young red foot/ cherryhead set up

Hello there! In this thread I’m going to include some information on an effective example of a starter enclosure for a red foot/cherry head😊 Care advice for these guys is painfully behind, fb pages, YouTube, pet stores, they’re all repeating the same outdated advice, this forum is made of...

tortoiseforum.org

 

[TortieMom157]

Thank you both. We just got back from NRBE in Daytona Florida with our two new little ones.

We are fully aware that they shouldn't be kept in pairs...hence the additional pair. The pair we have had for 1.5 years and have kept them independent since we found that information out.

Seeing as they are not old enough to be sexed.... What is the rule here? We likely won't be able to tell for another 2-3 years, right? Where we have plenty of land (over an acre) we were hoping to house them together like we have seen others do. (like Kamp Kenan)

I was told by the breeder of the new torts that one to two weeks was enough time to wait to introduce them to the others. Is 3 months really necessary? What are the schools of thought? Can you point me to the data that supports the advice you both shared?

Truly appreciate the help.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Thank you both. We are fully aware that they shouldn't be kept in pairs...hence the additional pair. The pair we have had for 1.5 years and have kept them independent since we found that information out.

Seeing as they are not old enough to be sexed.... What is the rule here? We likely won't be able to tell for another 2-3 years, right? Where we have plenty of land (over an acre) we were hoping to house them together like we have seen others do. (like Kamp Kenan)

I was told by the breeder of the new torts that one to two weeks was enough time to wait to introduce them to the others. Is 3 months really necessary? What are the schools of thought? Can you point me to the data that supports the advice you both shared?

Truly appreciate the help.

I believe juveniles are less likely to be aggressive with one another in a group of similar aged/sized juveniles, but once they’re adults/reached sexual maturity, that’s where problems could arise, meaning at that stage you’ll need to confirm all their sex’s and separate as needed into their own appropriate groups. I will warn, Kamp Kenan isn’t a good source of information, I’ve heard they practice/advise some risky care information. I’ve never watched them personally but heard that from many of the long standing members here.

I think the quarantine period will be more about potential disease transmission, I don’t think 1-2weeks is enough to guarantee they’re clear, but let me tag these guys, they should be able to answer in further detail/hopefully provide some examples as to the whys n such🙂 @Tom @ZEROPILOT

 

[TortieMom157]

Yes, you should. Because tortoises should not be housed in pairs as it's very stressful and one can bully the other, I would set them up in seperate enclosures for at least 3 months.
Then when adding to the other two, which also should not be housed together, be sure you have one male to a group of females. Two or more males should not be housed together.

Can you tell me why the quarantine is needed? Everyone I have spoken to says to, but I don't get any data on why....

Appreciate your help.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

I found this helpful on the topic

Quarantine

Quarantine

www.thetortoisetable.org.uk

 

[wellington]

Can you tell me why the quarantine is needed? Everyone I have spoken to says to, but I don't get any data on why....

Appreciate your help.

To be sure your knew group doesn't have something/disease that would spread to your other two and now they all would be sick and possibly die depending on what disease it would be. Same with your two not transferring anything to the other two, but that's less likely seeing you have had them for a while.
There are always diseases that are going around and seems to have spread to most species. The stress of a move can bring these things out. When people don't quarantine a whole group can be wiped out. The 3 months is the shortest recommended.

 

[Tom]

Can you tell me why the quarantine is needed? Everyone I have spoken to says to, but I don't get any data on why....

Appreciate your help.

What data are you looking for? No one is keeping track of what happens in the pet tortoise enclosures of individual keepers. There is no website or organization that I know of that people would enter dates, times, and circumstances of tortoises deaths. Many of the current diseases are very difficult to diagnose, and some are very difficult or impossible to treat.

You don't have to quarantine at all. If the new guys are carrying something that your current ones don't have, they could all die. The fact that they came from an expo, a building filled with all sorts of reptiles from all manner of situations, makes this even more risky.

Due to the seriousness of what is going around right now, a couple of the tortoise vets that I work with recommend 12 months quarantine for any new tortoise. This is to prevent the spread of a disease that could infect and wipe out an entire collection. You have two RFs and you are in FL. RFs are a dome a dozen there. If you put them together and they all die for some reason, it would not be that difficult or expensive to replace them all. People give them away for free there on a regular basis.

The quarantine period is intended to help protect your existing animals from any new pathogen that could be brought in with new animals. In your case the number of new animals is the same as the number of previously established animals, so you aren't risking as much as someone with a huge collection of rare and expensive animals. Its all a question of how careful you want to be.