- Joined
- Jul 20, 2012
- Messages
- 23
Friends :)
- Thread starter new2turtles12
- Start date
- Status
Is the little one a Sulcata? It isn't recommended to house different species together. They are both very cute though.
Yeah I would separate those two ASAP! Thats a wildcaught russian which can carry loads of parasites and other diseases and transfer them to your baby sulcata. I would also change your substrate to something like orchid bark, cypress mulch, coco coir, or sphagnum peat moss.
Cute tortoises but they shouldn't be kept together esp. since your sulcata is so tiny!
Awww - so cute!
I hope Lulu is playing nice.
I hope Lulu is playing nice.
Very cute
Eweezyfosheezy said:
Big time DITTO ASAP. Please read the threads at the bottom of my post for a proper way to raise the cutie sulcata.
- Joined
- Jul 20, 2012
- Messages
- 23
Eweezyfosheezy said:
Lulu is vet certified, she came from the pet store, I wasn't aware till after I already bought my sulcata that it is not recommended to put them together and so far they have got along fine they are sleeping next to each other. And the substrate will be changed ASAP. Thank you all for the info..
In order to know for sure if its ok to put them together, you would have to have the vet do blood work on BOTH tortoises and take stool samples from BOTH tortoises. Being "vet certified" really only means the tortoise was given a visual check by a vet and maybe a fecal test for worms and the vet didn't see any outward signs of illness or ticks, etc.
Little steppe tortoises are really aggressive. You are putting that baby in danger by leaving them together in the same habitat.
Little steppe tortoises are really aggressive. You are putting that baby in danger by leaving them together in the same habitat.
im sorry but they cant be together
Your enthusiasm is awesome. Nobody wants to discourage that. We just don't want to see your happiness end in tragedy, and in this case, tragedy of one sort or another is likely. We just want to help.
You should continue to enjoy your tortoises, but in separate enclosures.
Also, there are some diseases that are very difficult to detect and diagnose. Even with fecal and blood analysis, tissue biopsy, gastric lavage, etc..., there are still some things that could escape detection. Only a necropsy on a deceased animal by an experienced vet can truly verify the presence of certain pathogens. It is safer and cheaper in most cases to just assume the worst and proceed accordingly. In other words, since it is near impossible to 100% guarantee that your Russian is carrying NO diseases, parasites or pathogens of any kind, just assume that Lulu IS likely carrying a little extra something or other and keep the baby sulcata away from her. Lulu's extra little passengers might never harm her, since she is adapted to dealing with them, but they could be devastating to another species that does not have the means to hold them at bay.
You should continue to enjoy your tortoises, but in separate enclosures.
Also, there are some diseases that are very difficult to detect and diagnose. Even with fecal and blood analysis, tissue biopsy, gastric lavage, etc..., there are still some things that could escape detection. Only a necropsy on a deceased animal by an experienced vet can truly verify the presence of certain pathogens. It is safer and cheaper in most cases to just assume the worst and proceed accordingly. In other words, since it is near impossible to 100% guarantee that your Russian is carrying NO diseases, parasites or pathogens of any kind, just assume that Lulu IS likely carrying a little extra something or other and keep the baby sulcata away from her. Lulu's extra little passengers might never harm her, since she is adapted to dealing with them, but they could be devastating to another species that does not have the means to hold them at bay.
It is probably like when you have a human baby, you don't want to take them out much, don't want to take them around a lot of people because you never know if someone has germs that can get your baby sick and you do not want to take that chance. It is possible your Russian is fine but if it isn't and it has germs that could really make your baby sulcata sick then it is best to error on the side of safety. I do think they are precious. I use to put my baby sulcatas with my box turtles to roam around for an hour every day and I was there watching them but then I found out it is not a good thing because of the germs that my sulcatas could get from my box turtles could kill them. I was sad but I adapted and now I keep them separate. Congrats on your torts. They are so cute!
- Status
