First Tortoise Help

[Ethan D]

Well, with all your guys' opinions, i have decided that i will either get, a leopard or a red foot, and i can't get it atm, because i don't have the cage ready, but will get it in the coming months when i have everything completed , thanks again for all the help, and i might post pics of the tortoise when i get him! Thanks again everyone

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

I'm obviously partial to Sulcatas but it doesn't seem like the right fit for you. I vote Golden Greek. I have them and they are making their way up to the top of my list as a favorite!

 

[Ethan D]

I'm obviously partial to Sulcatas but it doesn't seem like the right fit for you. I vote Golden Greek. I have them and they are making their way up to the top of my list as a favorite!

Do you happen to sell any tortoises?, you name sounds like a website i came across?

 

[Arizona Sulcata]

Do you happen to sell any tortoises?, you name sounds like a website i came across?

Yes I do, I currently have Sulcata Hatchlings and Red Foot Hatchlings. I am expecting my Golden Greek eggs to hatch next month. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

 

[Ethan D]

Well, i am flying all over the place, but after talking to arizona, i am probably going to get a sulcata, it turns out, i have plenty of space in my yard

 

[StudentoftheReptile]

LOL...they are definitely energetic, although mine apparently didn't get that memo. He's still young, though.

 

[Ethan D]

LOL...they are definitely energetic, although mine apparently didn't get that memo. He's still young, though.

Your Sulcata? lol i can't get m baby until spring it turns out, mostly because i want to have him when its warm and all, and i want to have time to get the biggest indoor inclosure i can. so i can have more time to build an outdoor enclosure

 

[StudentoftheReptile]

Yeah, use your time well.

 

[Ethan D]

Yeah, use your time well.

lol, i plan on it, he probably won't go outside for 2-4 years depending on how fast he grows

 

[Ethan D]

Well, i just held my first tortoise, and it was a Red Foot Tortoise at 5 inches. He was pretty cool, and i din't know they were so strong lol, i almost took him home, but i didn't have enough money :/

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

I voted for the Greek and the Leopard because (A) the Greeks (and Europeans, in general) are the most suited to your climate (although I'd suggest an Eastern Hermann's over a Greek, for the personality) and (B) Leopards are pretty cool, and if you can gain this shy species' trust, they make a nice friendly pet, too.

The Redfoot is too tropical, and it would be difficult to create a good outdoors environment for it. And an indoors environment needs to be pretty roomy (10' X 15' is not too large for it or a Leopard). OTOH, 8' X 4' is not too bad for a solitary European.

The sulcata gets considerably HUGER (is that really a word ) than 99% of tortoise keepers are REALLY able to deal with and keeping one inside your home during the winter will be a nightmare, once it starts getting big (VERY destructive!). After having owned a sulcata, and knowing many sulcata owners, I've come to realize sulcatas, like Aldabras and Galopagos tortoises, are strictly outdoor pets, so should only be kept in places where they can winter outside. Nebraska is not such a place.

Just things to consider.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Hi, Ethan. Since you live in Nebraska, I would advise against all four of those tortoises in the above poll. One reason is that they are all fairly challenging for a first-time tortoise keeper. But another, more important reason, is that they all come from warm, fairly humid environments. Nebraska has a continental climate, so although with effort you could keep anything you want, you could keep other species with less effort if you do a little environmental matching. I would suggest starting with a Russian, Eastern Hermann, or Ibera Greek tortoise.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

I woud also like to add a question, out of the 4, which would you say has the best personality?

Out of those 4, I'd say a Greek, particularily an Iberian...very much like an Eastern Hermann's...Many Leopards stay shy all their lives, so if you want a for-sure friendly, sociable Leopard, you'll probably have to find a pet that needs to be re-homed (nothing wrong w/ that, if the opportunity presents itself).

Some redfoots are pretty friendly, but as previously mentioned, you'll have to put some thought into an outside enclosure, as well as an inside one. Tropical is your guide-word.

Sulcatas are every bit as friendly as a Hermann's, but there's that GIGANTIC issue...

 

[Ethan D]

Sulcata's do get large, maybe someday, and when i have the funds, and i did hold and interact with a red foot today for about an hour, and my climate in nebraska is actually surprisingly humid, 60% through fall until winter, when it gets low, and i have heard of Ibera greeks, but i don't know too much about them, or their personality, can anyone tell me more about them by chance?

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Sulcata's do get large, maybe someday, and when i have the funds, and i did hold and interact with a red foot today for about an hour, and my climate in nebraska is actually surprisingly humid, 60% through fall until winter, when it gets low, and i have heard of Ibera greeks, but i don't know too much about them, or their personality, can anyone tell me more about them by chance?

Second only to the Hermann's, both in ease of care and friendliness. I regret selling my Iberian (at the time, I'd decided to concentrate on Eastern Hermann's torts, and I couldn't find him a harem of his own), but do plan to set up an Iberian colony in the near future.

Either species is a great starter species. Both run around the same $$$ (very reasonable). Both are fine solitary, and both become tame enough to eat from your hand quickly.

 

[NinjaTortoises]

Welcome Ethan!, Yea unless your in california or even florida dont do sulcata, thy get huge, i am in california myself and have a huge yard, so i bought 4 baby sulcatas after doing a lot of research, and well theyre all almost a year old and are lively but they need to be outside and monitored because theyre strong for 5 inches, they can escape and they can dig fast, i have friends in nebraska and its pretty cold up there lol so a russian or any smaller tortoises would be better, Tom's the pro here so follow his advice, its helped me a lot and saved me problems

 

[Ethan D]

Cool, depending on which species i get i am going to either buy from tortoise supply or arizona sulcata, but i still have a while to get all the supplies i need for whichever tortoise i choose like i said though, personality will be the sale for me lol, also i have a question, it may be stupid but.... what does their excrement look like? and is it easy to spot clean it?

 

[NinjaTortoises]

Cool, depending on which species i get i am going to either buy from tortoise supply or arizona sulcata, but i still have a while to get all the supplies i need for whichever tortoise i choose like i said though, personality will be the sale for me lol, also i have a question, it may be stupid but.... what does their excrement look like? and is it easy to spot clean it?

Well yea its pretty small but if depending on how well theyre fed or what you feed them, mine poop out thick greenish somewhat moist but its very easy to clean but they do it alot lol so i have to clean it a lot but then again, i have 4 sulcatas haha

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Sulcata's do get large, maybe someday, and when i have the funds, and i did hold and interact with a red foot today for about an hour, and my climate in nebraska is actually surprisingly humid, 60% through fall until winter, when it gets low, and i have heard of Ibera greeks, but i don't know too much about them, or their personality, can anyone tell me more about them by chance?

The eastern grasslands where you live are certainly more humid than the western ones here in Colorado. However, that is still not as humid as the South American savannas and forests where redfoots are from, or the African savannas and forests where sulcatas and leopard tortoises come from. As for the Golden Greek, although there is some ambiguity as to where they are from (as mentioned above), it's my understanding that most seem to come from the Eastern Mediterranean, which is also quite warm and humid in most parts (I'm originally from there). Golden Greeks - along with some other types of Mediterranean tortoise - have a reputation for being rather delicate. Their native habitat is more like parts of America's Southwest than Midwest.

The more robust Testudo species come from farther north, which is more similar to the rest of the US: a bit colder and drier. These are the eastern Hermann (T. hermanni boettgeri), the Ibera Greek (T. graeca ibera), and the Russian (T. horsfieldi). The eastern Hermann comes from woodlands and scrublands with high-to-moderate humidity; the Ibera Greek comes from scrublands and grasslands with moderate-to-low humidity; and the Russian comes from grasslands and deserts with low humidity.

As for personality, like the comments above say, some people think it goes more by species and subspecies, others more by individual. It seems to me that, although there are certainly individual differences, each species or subspecies does tend to be more or less outgoing. All three of the above mentioned types have a reputation for being interactive with their keeper. Among those three, I've heard the Hermann is the most curious, followed by the Ibera Greek, followed by the Russian.

The Ibera Greek comes from low- to high-altitude environments in the Middle East, like Turkey, Iran, and Pakistan. High-altitude populations appear to be darker, possibly as an adaptation for absorbing more heat from the sun.

 

[Ethan D]

Cool, depending on which species i get i am going to either buy from tortoise supply or arizona sulcata, but i still have a while to get all the supplies i need for whichever tortoise i choose like i said though, personality will be the sale for me lol, also i have a question, it may be stupid but.... what does their excrement look like? and is it easy to spot clean it?

Well yea its pretty small but if depending on how well theyre fed or what you feed them, mine poop out thick greenish somewhat moist but its very easy to clean but they do it alot lol so i have to clean it a lot but then again, i have 4 sulcatas haha

lol good to know its easy to spot, and i do remember tom from earlier in the post, he told me to look into south african leopards for personality