Do they need a mate ?

[james1990]

hi guys,
i have had my russian for about two months now and he is doing great. however, i was just wondering the other day is it better to get another tortoise for company ? or does it not work like that lol??

thanks

 

[GBtortoises]

Basically, it doesn't work like that. Most tortoise species are absolutely "content" living a solitary life as long as the requirements that they do need are met (food, shelter, etc...).

Male Russians can be difficult to keep with other tortoises of it's species unless large areas are provided to them. Males can be extremely aggressive, particularly at certain times of the year, mainly during breedeing seasons. When keeping two male Russians together, one will become the dominant and claim it's living area as it's territory, defending it against any other males. This will usually cause a lot of physical aggression and stress toward the submissive male. In the case of a female with a male, one is never a good idea. Because of the same aggressive behavior. If you're going to get a female, for the sake of the female(s) you're better off getting at least two and three is even better. This will take the aggressive pressure off any one female all the time. Much of this aggression can be dealt with by simply providing very large living conditions for the tortoises with lots of hide areas and visual obstacles.

 

[Kristina]

Couldn't have said it better myself

 

[james1990]

ah right i see. does this mean that i could never get a second tortoise ?

 

[Yvonne G]

That wasn't your original question. You asked should your tortoise have a mate and you got an answer. Does that mean that you can't have multiple tortoises together? No, you can have as many as you want and can care for. The thing is, you have to be prepared that they might not get along, and you may need to remove them into separate pens. Some tortoises get along just fine and others fight to the death. You never know how yours will react until you go through the quarantine period and add another tortoise to the mix.

 

[james1990]

i know it wasnt my original question, i got a great answer and i acknowledged that in my reply. however i was just expanding on because i was curious as to if i was going to get another one would it need to be more than one. but that was just based on the previous answer. thanks for clearing it up though

james.

 

[Floof]

ah right i see. does this mean that i could never get a second tortoise ?

That all depends on you. It's possible to have multiple tortoises without ever housing them together... I have two Russians that are housed separately with separate outdoor pens and, since they turned out to be male and female, will likely never share a pen. No big deal, though, because it's plenty possible to keep them separate for the duration of their lives.. Though it certainly helps that Russians are a small species to begin with!