Can I breed my tortoise?

hollygaucas

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My Russian tort is 3 month old, at what age can she start to breed? Is it safe to put her in the same enclosure as a male because at the pet store she was with her brother together and they got along tremendously. Any feedback would be highly appreciated.
 

TechnoCheese

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My Russian tort is 3 month old, at what age can she start to breed? Is it safe to put her in the same enclosure as a male because at the pet store she was with her brother together and they got along tremendously. Any feedback would be highly appreciated.

No! Tortoises do not need or like friends, and only see others as mates or competitors. Tortoises do not “get along” and “cuddleing” Or “following” are signs of aggression. It is also not a good idea to breed your first tortoise, but if you are planning to, you need to do LOTS of research. I’m guessing it would have to be at least a year old, but you should get a second opinion.

Unless it was incubated at a certain temperature, you cannot really tell what sex it is, because all tortoises look female at such a young age. There may be a way for the vet to be able to tell, but I am not sure.
It is also not a great idea to take advice from pet stores.
 

Bambam1989

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My Russian tort is 3 month old, at what age can she start to breed? Is it safe to put her in the same enclosure as a male because at the pet store she was with her brother together and they got along tremendously. Any feedback would be highly appreciated.
Hello Holly
Russians torts grow slowly, I believe a female reaches sexual maturity around 6in and this can take several years.
This type of tort can get to be 8-10in
Most pet stores do not sell "babies" even though that's what they tell you. They import them from the wild when they are around 4-5in because they are cheaper to acquire.
If this is your first tort, I would wait a few years until your tort is around the 6in in straight carapace length. It can then be accurate to sex.
If you wish to keep multiple torts remember these few tips.
It's not advisable to keep two torts together, but three or more are good. This helps distribute aggression more evenly.
New torts should be quarantined away from others for about 6months.
The more torts the bigger that enclosure needs to be, plus extras if you need to separate some.
Hope this info helps. Feel free to ask more questions.
 

ZEROPILOT

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The whole not housing two together thing is especially true of Russian tortoises. They are especially territorial and prone to fighting viciously.
I have also seen multiples piled into tanks for sale at pet stores.
A lot of what goes on at pet shops is just 100% wrong.
 

hollygaucas

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No! Tortoises do not need or like friends, and only see others as mates or competitors. Tortoises do not “get along” and “cuddleing” Or “following” are signs of aggression. It is also not a good idea to breed your first tortoise, but if you are planning to, you need to do LOTS of research. I’m guessing it would have to be at least a year old, but you should get a second opinion.

Unless it was incubated at a certain temperature, you cannot really tell what sex it is, because all tortoises look female at such a young age. There may be a way for the vet to be able to tell, but I am not sure.
It is also not a great idea to take advice from pet stores.

They weren’t cuddling or following or anything like that they were just going on as they do with their life’s sharing a tank.

I’m having second thoughts that my tortoise is actually a male but I’m going to be visiting the vets soon to determine this.

Definitely, you’re right. I went back there today to switch the UVB bulb and the salesman said that tortoises don’t need humidity! I obviously know that they do considering all of the comments from everyone on all of the different threads.

Thanks for the tips.
 

TechnoCheese

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They weren’t cuddling or following or anything like that they were just going on as they do with their life’s sharing a tank.

I’m having second thoughts that my tortoise is actually a male but I’m going to be visiting the vets soon to determine this.

Definitely, you’re right. I went back there today to switch the UVB bulb and the salesman said that tortoises don’t need humidity! I obviously know that they do considering all of the comments from everyone on all of the different threads.

Thanks for the tips.

Good luck with the vet visit! And it really is sad how deceiving pet stores are :(
 

Tom

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My Russian tort is 3 month old, at what age can she start to breed? Is it safe to put her in the same enclosure as a male because at the pet store she was with her brother together and they got along tremendously. Any feedback would be highly appreciated.

There are many variables, but most russian tortoises are breeding size by around 8-10 years of age. In some circumstances it could take longer than that, and it is possible to breed them earlier than that too.

WIthout surgically going in and looking at the gonads, there is no way to tell the sex on a 3 month old tortoise. It will probably be 3-4 years before you know the sex of your baby.

They were not getting along at the pet shop. Keeping them in pairs is a very bad idea, but in the stressful, less than optimal conditions found in a pet shop, sometimes they will survive it for a while. They can sometimes be kept in groups of three or more as juveniles, but they must be observed carefully, and you'd need to be prepared to have an enclosure ready to go for each individual, should there be a problem. As adults, things can get ugly with this species. Males and females sometimes go on the attack. In a large outdoor enclosure with lots of space and sight barriers, a group with one male can sometimes coexist for a while, but its iffy even then.

Be aware that most vets, even reptile specialists, know very little about tortoises and tortoise care, and they frequently recite the old out-dated info that we are trying to over come here. They also frequently want to administer "vitamin" shots. You should politely decline if this is the case. These injections are not needed and can be harmful in some cases.

Good luck and keep us posted.
 

hollygaucas

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There are many variables, but most russian tortoises are breeding size by around 8-10 years of age. In some circumstances it could take longer than that, and it is possible to breed them earlier than that too.

WIthout surgically going in and looking at the gonads, there is no way to tell the sex on a 3 month old tortoise. It will probably be 3-4 years before you know the sex of your baby.

They were not getting along at the pet shop. Keeping them in pairs is a very bad idea, but in the stressful, less than optimal conditions found in a pet shop, sometimes they will survive it for a while. They can sometimes be kept in groups of three or more as juveniles, but they must be observed carefully, and you'd need to be prepared to have an enclosure ready to go for each individual, should there be a problem. As adults, things can get ugly with this species. Males and females sometimes go on the attack. In a large outdoor enclosure with lots of space and sight barriers, a group with one male can sometimes coexist for a while, but its iffy even then.

Be aware that most vets, even reptile specialists, know very little about tortoises and tortoise care, and they frequently recite the old out-dated info that we are trying to over come here. They also frequently want to administer "vitamin" shots. You should politely decline if this is the case. These injections are not needed and can be harmful in some cases.

Good luck and keep us posted.

Thanks for the info, I guess I’ll have to think of a name that suits both sexes.
 
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