Can adding a second tortoise stress out the first one?

[Ericaltamez]

So I have a baby sulcata. Not sure how old she is but I have had her for 3 months now. She still fits in the palm of my hand.. i was never planning on getting a second tortoise, but the craziest thing happened to me yesterday, I was sitting in my car in my driveway and I saw movement in the corner of my eye, I look over and a pretty good size tortoise was just walking along the side of the road, no one was around and no houses were around. He is a redfoot tortoise. He tripple the size of my sulcata. He can fit in one hand but hes pretty big around. He isnt shy, so I know he was definitely owned by someone. But the poor thing looks so beat up, his shell has missing sections, the top half of his shell where he normally would tuck his head in is pretty short like a chunk is missing. Hes a mess. But I've been watching him close, he doesnt seem sick, hes eating and hes pretty active, there isnt any worms in his stool or anything. He seems pretty healthy besides the fact that he obviously was mistreated. Hes beautiful and I want to keep him... I read about mixing species, and the only thing that seemed to be an issue on threads was that they require a different diet, but i can easily seperate them for feeding. But besides that.. I want to make sure that my baby sulcata isnt going to be stressed by his presence.. Shes already pretty shy, I cant even walk past her enclosure too much or handle her because she gets too stressed and wont come out of her shell. Honestly it seems like she isnt moving around very much, she is staying in her log and in her shell. I put her infront of her food and she is just sitting there in her shell.. wont come out. Im not sure if she started acting like this before or after i put them together. I think it was a couple days before. Sometimes she goes through days like this where she wont come out very often, but then she goes back to normal. But please give me your opinions. I honestly dont know if i can support two enclosures, i dont even have space for a second one. I have a tank in my garage but its very small, it was even too small for my baby sulcata. Shes in a big plastic container now and shes been much more active ever since I made the switch.. The picture I added is right now, i put my sulcata infront of her food and shes been hiding like that ever since. I barely put my redfoot next to her just for comparison

 

[leigti]

I would have to see a better picture but that might be a three toed box turtle. Either way, separate them immediately. It is more than just diet, it is pathogen's and parasites etc. that one species may give to the other. They also require different humidity levels etc. If that is a box turtle chances are it is wild and needs to go back exactly where you found it. So more people will come along soon and give you more advice but I have a feeling it's going to be generally the same. Separate them immediately.

 

[Levi the Leopard]

I also see a box turtle.

 

[Tom]

Species should never be mixed and tortoises (Or a box turtle and tortoise…) should never be kept in pairs.

You put a wild caught animal in contact with your captive bred tortoise. You've literally gambled with your tortoises life. Hopefully nothing was transmitted and everything will be fine.

Please read these for sulcata diet and care:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

Now that you have exposed that box turtle to a captive animal, there is also a concern about releasing it back into the wild as pathogen transfer can go both ways. Depending on what state you live in, it may have been illegal to collect this turtle, but you should still contact a local wild life rehabilitation facility to turn it over. Rereleasing it yourself now that it has been in your sulcata's habitat is placing the wild box turtle population at risk and so rerelease should be done by professionals.

In the future, if you find what you suspect is someone's pet tortoise, try to find the owner by posting ads in the neighbourhood and on Craigslist. Never expose your pet to a strange animal. If you find a species native to your state, leave it be and don't risk a wild population by exposing them to nonnative germs.

Your sulcata's behaviour could easily be from intimidation but it could also be from some improper care (temperatures too cold, dehydration, etc.). Get the box turtle out of there asap and then tell us about your sulcata care.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

That's no Redfoot.
It looks like a dog chewed on him.
I'd take the advice given already.

 

[cmacusa3]

You've put a Three toed box turtle in with a Sulcata. You need to separate them immediately

 

[Souptugo]

Also are you feeding them only lettuce? No enough nutrients. Please read care sheets. Turtles and tortoises have different requirements altogether as well.

 

[TammyJ]

Hi there. The experts on this site have given you good and sound advice!

We look forward to seeing more about your little sulcata. Read all the care sheets and see how you can help him have the best possible care.

 

[Ericaltamez]

I took him out... And gave him to my sisters boyfriend to take care of.. He for sure was let go by someone, because there are no tortoises like that where I live... at all. And I live in the middle of a busy city. But hes gone. My sulcata is usually pretty happy and pretty well taken care of.. ive read alot about feeding her, and it says romain lettuce is good for her and she likes it more than anything else ive tried. So thats what I give her

 

[Yvonne G]

I took him out... And gave him to my sisters boyfriend to take care of.. He for sure was let go by someone, because there are no tortoises like that where I live... at all. And I live in the middle of a busy city. But hes gone. My sulcata is usually pretty happy and pretty well taken care of.. ive read alot about feeding her, and it says romain lettuce is good for her and she likes it more than anything else ive tried. So thats what I give her

You're going to end up with a pretty sick little tortoise if all you feed it is romaine lettuce. Yes, it's ok to feed romaine lettuce AS PART OF A VARIED DIET. Please look at the list of foods shown on this thread:

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

No where in that whole thread does it say to choose ONE THING from the list and only feed that one thing. You must give the tortoise more than one food item.