General information

[Happy tort]

Hi everyone
As I’m new I will introduce flash my tortoise.
He is a 12yr old spur thighed tortoise according to the paperwork.
I have had him for about five years and he came from my stepson.
He was always kept in a tortoise type thing about 4ft long 2ft wide with a heat lamp.
Don’t think he was happy for the first two years of having him and was always scratching as if he wanted to get out.
Well about three years ago tried him in the garden and he was much happier then he disappeared.
Ah well thought that was it even though there was no way out of the garden.
Then a few months later was doing the flower beds and came across the little beggar buried so it must have been in hibernation which he never had chance to do before.
So that’s how it’s been for the last few years as I’ve made him a shelter under a large plastic storage bin.
Where he hibernates.
He comes out every day and sits in the sun and roams the garden and didn’t realise how fast they are.
Don’t like us messing with his garden and gets very defensive if I’m doing some weeding hem will come up to me and start head butting my legs (well she’ll butting if you know what I mean).
If he gets no joy with that he likes to. bite me.
So that’s his introduction done with do I now have a question the back part of his shell curls under inwards is this normal as it looks like it protects his bits.

Regards

Tony

 

[Maro2Bear]

Welcome to the Forum. Try to upload a few pictures of your 12 year old little garden buddy. The shell sounds “normal” but impossible to tell without seeing some pix. Share some pix of your garden too. We all like plants & trees & flowers too. 🌿🐢🐜🌱

 

[Tom]

Hi everyone
As I’m new I will introduce flash my tortoise.
He is a 12yr old spur thighed tortoise according to the paperwork.
I have had him for about five years and he came from my stepson.
He was always kept in a tortoise type thing about 4ft long 2ft wide with a heat lamp.
Don’t think he was happy for the first two years of having him and was always scratching as if he wanted to get out.
Well about three years ago tried him in the garden and he was much happier then he disappeared.
Ah well thought that was it even though there was no way out of the garden.
Then a few months later was doing the flower beds and came across the little beggar buried so it must have been in hibernation which he never had chance to do before.
So that’s how it’s been for the last few years as I’ve made him a shelter under a large plastic storage bin.
Where he hibernates.
He comes out every day and sits in the sun and roams the garden and didn’t realise how fast they are.
Don’t like us messing with his garden and gets very defensive if I’m doing some weeding hem will come up to me and start head butting my legs (well she’ll butting if you know what I mean).
If he gets no joy with that he likes to. bite me.
So that’s his introduction done with do I now have a question the back part of his shell curls under inwards is this normal as it looks like it protects his bits.

Regards

Tony

Hello and welcome.

2x4 is about a quarter of the minimum size that the enclosure should have been for this poor guy. 4x8 feet is the smallest recommended, and larger than that is better. Tortoises need very large enclosures. Much larger than most other reptiles.

The rear of the shell sounds normal. A picture would verify.

Outdoors full time in your climate is not ideal. Best to use a combination of the two so the tortoise has the best of both worlds. Outdoors in the garden in fair weather, and protected indoors during not-so-favorable weather and for its winter brumation.

Most sources of care info for tortoises are all wrong. Here is the right info:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

Questions are welcome.

 

[TammyJ]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

 

[Happy tort]

Hello and welcome.

2x4 is about a quarter of the minimum size that the enclosure should have been for this poor guy. 4x8 feet is the smallest recommended, and larger than that is better. Tortoises need very large enclosures. Much larger than most other reptiles.

The rear of the shell sounds normal. A picture would verify.

Outdoors full time in your climate is not ideal. Best to use a combination of the two so the tortoise has the best of both worlds. Outdoors in the garden in fair weather, and protected indoors during not-so-favorable weather and for its winter brumation.

Most sources of care info for tortoises are all wrong. Here is the right info:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

Questions are welcome.

 

[Happy tort]

Hi thanks for your replies guys will now try to add photos and a short video.

Welcome to the Forum. Try to upload a few pictures of your 12 year old little garden buddy. The shell sounds “normal” but impossible to tell without seeing some pix. Share some pix of your garden too. We all like plants & trees & flowers too. 🌿🐢🐜🌱

 

[Happy tort]

Welcome to the Forum. Try to upload a few pictures of your 12 year old little garden buddy. The shell sounds “normal” but impossible to tell without seeing some pix. Share some pix of your garden too. We all like plants & trees & flowers too. 🌿🐢🐜🌱

Hi thanks for your replies guys will now try to add photos and a short video.

 

[Yvonne G]

That shell configuration is normal for males. It helps keep the breeding parts where they need to be while covering the female.

 

[Happy tort]

View attachment 344831View attachment 344832View attachment 344833

Hello and welcome.

2x4 is about a quarter of the minimum size that the enclosure should have been for this poor guy. 4x8 feet is the smallest recommended, and larger than that is better. Tortoises need very large enclosures. Much larger than most other reptiles.

The rear of the shell sounds normal. A picture would verify.

Outdoors full time in your climate is not ideal. Best to use a combination of the two so the tortoise has the best of both worlds. Outdoors in the garden in fair weather, and protected indoors during not-so-favorable weather and for its winter brumation.

Most sources of care info for tortoises are all wrong. Here is the right info:

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

Questions are welcome.

That shell configuration is normal for males. It helps keep the breeding parts where they need to be while covering the female.

Thank you very much was getting worried