Do I have a boy here?

[Peter Williams]

Hey guys, been a while since I've posted on here. Been busy breeding ball pythons! I currently have 2 sulcatas. My big male (confirmed) Dozer, and a little one I got about a year and a half ago, who was temp-sex incubated for female. I named her Delilah. She's been growing like a weed since I got her.

Last week I was giving them a routine soak aaaaand out pops Delilah's junk. Aw crap. I mean...I'm pretty well 100% this confirms it as a male, but I just wanted to check with you guys.

So now my problem becomes...can these 2 ever live together? Will male sulcatas always fight and ram each other? To be clear, they are not and never have been together thus far, but I certainly had plans to put them together eventually.

How do you guys deal with this kind of situation, like lets say you intend on breeding sullys at some point, you buy 3-4 hatchlings one year. Do you just raise them all up, then ditch (kindly re-home) any multiple males you make have? Seems very frustrating, putting all this time and effort to raise them up to sexable size and then have to get rid of them?

Anyways, here's the pics, any insight/advice is welcome!

 

[ascott]

This is what always concerns me when I hear advice to get multiples to help level out the "pair" situation....unless you have a confirmed sex, there is simply no way to know --yes temps can be a hedge but not a confirmed....

If you end up with males then you will want to assure you have the set up to house multiple males in their own enclosure...perhaps wait until you run across a tort that is for sure a female...even then you have a male that will hound the female to death potentially....a pair still the same. Pairs are a very hard beast to maintain any harmony with....

 

[Tom]

Yes you have a male. They should not be kept in pairs regardless of sex.

 

[bouaboua]

How big is he? 10 inches??

 

[diamondbp]

He looks roughly 7 inches? As stated it's a proud male for such a young age. My suggestion is that if you have a large male already you will either have to keep them seperate forever or rehome one of them. Instead of trying to raise up a young female for your male I would recommend looking for an adult female. It's more expensive no doubt but it eliminates all the time involved raising up a young female that could potentially end up getting harrassed to death by a much larger lonely male. By the time a young female would reach breeding age your other male will pratically be a small dinosaur and destroy anything in it's path, including a young female.

It's tough finding out what you thought was a female is actually a male. I have 3 young sulcatas that I was thinking were females until seeing your post. They are a hair bigger than yours, have never flashed me of course, but have extremely similar tail size and anal scute shape. I'm really hoping they turn out female because if they end up male I know I will have to rehome at least 2 of the 3 (hopefully to a friend or family member).

Best of luck to you, but I would search for a large adult female granted you can provide space for her and the male. Even adult pairs have to be seperated most of the time. I've been fortunate to have a very passive laid back young male who gets the job done but doesn't bully my slightly bigger female.

BTW would you mind posting bottom shots of him without the "flashing" . I'm really curious to see his normal tail shape knowing he is a male at that age. I would REALLY appreciate it

 

[Peter Williams]

Thanks for the replies and advice guys. I will have to make arrangements to keep these boys separate for life, I really don't want to re-home him. I was unaware that not even a mated pair could live together. I suppose the male would constantly be harassing and mounting her.

What are these photos I see of 'herds' of sulcatas? Are they only females? Or simply siblings that have been raised together? I've always wanted a 'herd' of tortoises. I love my sullys but as you guys well know even just 1 or 2 is a huge handful to look after. Do you guys know of any other species that may cater to my dream of a 'herd'? Perhaps something smaller and capable of living in groups?

would you mind posting bottom shots of him without the "flashing" . I'm really curious to see his normal tail shape knowing he is a male at that age. I would REALLY appreciate it

Here is the photo you requested:

 

[Tom]

"Herds" usually work out okay. PAIRS are the problem. In really large groups in really large enclosures, its even possible to maintain multiple males in with a bunch of females. Usually though, one adult male and at least two or three mature females is the way to go if you want more than one. Or a herd of just females if you don't want to deal with hundreds of eggs and babies every year. Some people have been able to keep groups of males only together, with no females present, but that sometimes ends badly.

{rambling now...}

In any case, pairs seldom work well, regardless of sex.

 

[diamondbp]

Thanks a bunch for the picture

 

[T33's Torts]

"Please stop taking pictures of my private bits."

 

[diamondbp]

I forgot to post this comparison shot between your male and my 8" unknown. It's pretty darn similar. I was hoping for young females buuuttttt I might not get them lol

 

[Levi the Leopard]

Byron, which is which? The top is yours, I think?

 

[diamondbp]

The top is mine

 

[bertie28]

Any ideas of sex 2 years and 9 months. 8.7". I know it's still early.

 

[diamondbp]

Any ideas of sex 2 years and 9 months. 8.7". I know it's still early.

You're right it's still eary but yours is looking very male so far......at least to me