Savannah Osterdock
New Member
Hello everyone,
I recently adopted two Sulcatas - first red flag is that they were advertised on Craigslist as "Desert Tortoises". Took us about 5 minutes to figure out they're actually Sulcatas. Anyway, I reached out to the lady I got them from and she said that they were adopted as hatchlings in December 2015 . . . my husband and I have been under the impression that they are both under a year old based on their size. This new information is really concerning given that the smaller one, Jesse, (because as seems to happen in pairs, one is substantially bigger than the other) is not even 4 inches long and doesn't even weigh a pound. The other, Walter, is barely 5 inches long and weighs maybe a pound.
We have been doing everything we can to give them the best conditions possible and they get LOTS of outside time where they basically go ham on our Bermuda grass as much as they want. We have been doing tons of research on building an ideal outdoor enclosure for them. They both eat well, are pretty active, and there's no obvious signs of any health issues besides size. I am wondering if we should be on the lookout for long-term health problems caused by their growth being stunted?
The conditions they were in were deplorable for a Sulcata . . .DRY DRY DRY and in hamster pellets; the people were feeding them lizard pellet food . . . hardly any time outside at all. There is a little pyramiding, but it is way more obvious in Walter's shell purely because he has grown more. Please let me know if we should keep an eye out for any issues associated with stunted growth and please share your experiences with other stunted Sulcatas. I am open to everything you've got to offer.
I have attached a picture so you can get an idea of their sizes relative to each other.
** shout out, we are looking to rehome one of them as soon as possible after we read about the results of keeping them in pairs **
Thanks!!!
I recently adopted two Sulcatas - first red flag is that they were advertised on Craigslist as "Desert Tortoises". Took us about 5 minutes to figure out they're actually Sulcatas. Anyway, I reached out to the lady I got them from and she said that they were adopted as hatchlings in December 2015 . . . my husband and I have been under the impression that they are both under a year old based on their size. This new information is really concerning given that the smaller one, Jesse, (because as seems to happen in pairs, one is substantially bigger than the other) is not even 4 inches long and doesn't even weigh a pound. The other, Walter, is barely 5 inches long and weighs maybe a pound.
We have been doing everything we can to give them the best conditions possible and they get LOTS of outside time where they basically go ham on our Bermuda grass as much as they want. We have been doing tons of research on building an ideal outdoor enclosure for them. They both eat well, are pretty active, and there's no obvious signs of any health issues besides size. I am wondering if we should be on the lookout for long-term health problems caused by their growth being stunted?
The conditions they were in were deplorable for a Sulcata . . .DRY DRY DRY and in hamster pellets; the people were feeding them lizard pellet food . . . hardly any time outside at all. There is a little pyramiding, but it is way more obvious in Walter's shell purely because he has grown more. Please let me know if we should keep an eye out for any issues associated with stunted growth and please share your experiences with other stunted Sulcatas. I am open to everything you've got to offer.
I have attached a picture so you can get an idea of their sizes relative to each other.
** shout out, we are looking to rehome one of them as soon as possible after we read about the results of keeping them in pairs **
Thanks!!!