Siobhan Demers
New Member
Hi! I've been given 2 tortoises. I'm hoping to get help with identifying for sure what kind they may be...
Greetings from Arizona!
- Thread starter Siobhan Demers
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Hello 
they look like AZ desert torts but were is their grass ? They love grass .
they look like AZ desert torts but were is their grass ? They love grass .
Hello, Siobhan, and a very warm welcome to Tortoise Forum.
Look like Desert Tortoises to me also, though I don't have any
Someone else will confirm in a bit I expect.
Look like Desert Tortoises to me also, though I don't have any
Someone else will confirm in a bit I expect.
I think they are Desert Tortoises, Put some plants and grass in there 
Have a look on this section for lots more information on these tortoises.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/forums/north-american-tortoises-genus-gopherus.72/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/forums/north-american-tortoises-genus-gopherus.72/
Hi, and welcome to the Forum!
Those two desert tortoises are in dire need of some water. Soak them for about a half hour daily for at least two weeks, then after that you can go to once a day for about 15 minutes. After a month or so if you see that they are getting into their waterer or drinking on their own, you can cut back on the soaking.
Whoever gave you those tortoises kept them way too dry. Baby tortoises hatch out and stay underground most of the time...underground where the earth is slightly moist. I'd be willing to bet the people you got those beautiful babies from kept them in an aquarium on alfalfa pellets. That's the old school way. We've come a long way since then, and the babies are very lucky to have been given to you, a person who is interested in knowing the best way to care for them.
Keep a close eye on them. Being raised dry like they were means it's quite possible they may have developed bladder stones (very common in dry-raised desert tortoises).
Here's a link to a good care sheet on desert tortoises (He's in Bakersfield, CA, but the care is the same for Arizona tortoises):
http://www.donsdeserttortoises.com/2.html
Those two desert tortoises are in dire need of some water. Soak them for about a half hour daily for at least two weeks, then after that you can go to once a day for about 15 minutes. After a month or so if you see that they are getting into their waterer or drinking on their own, you can cut back on the soaking.
Whoever gave you those tortoises kept them way too dry. Baby tortoises hatch out and stay underground most of the time...underground where the earth is slightly moist. I'd be willing to bet the people you got those beautiful babies from kept them in an aquarium on alfalfa pellets. That's the old school way. We've come a long way since then, and the babies are very lucky to have been given to you, a person who is interested in knowing the best way to care for them.
Keep a close eye on them. Being raised dry like they were means it's quite possible they may have developed bladder stones (very common in dry-raised desert tortoises).
Here's a link to a good care sheet on desert tortoises (He's in Bakersfield, CA, but the care is the same for Arizona tortoises):
http://www.donsdeserttortoises.com/2.html
Siobhan Demers
New Member
You are right! The person that gave them to me gave me a big aquarium on pellets. She gave them to me right before they went into hibernation. I had already changed the pellets in the aquarium to dirt. I've moved recently and now have this wonderful spot on the side of my place that I can put them outside! I didn't realize that they needed to be soaked so much! I have them soaking right now!
Alaskamike
Well-Known Member
AZ is a very dry place - as opposed to Florda where we have the same tortoises - but call them Gopher Torts here. It is true of all the so-called desert tortoises that access to a humid hide (underground for some in the wild) as well as clean water keeps them healthy. It is unfortunate for the animals that even pet stores often still will give out the dry advice. Here is a healthy wild (and big!) one I helped across the road last week. Notice how smooth his shell is - The other reason they get smooth like this has to do with the digging and crawling in and out of dirt and sand burrows that "polishes" their shells off. I would suppose in AZ the wild ones get sand blasted once in a while
Its great you've made the move to an outside enclosure. IMO this is absolutely the best for these guys. They need space to roam, the right foods, water and a place to hide. They will self regulate from the heat- as well as the cold, if you provide a place to do it. Long lived too.
This one was an unusually light color, most here are brown to almost black.
Good fortune with your new charges.
Its great you've made the move to an outside enclosure. IMO this is absolutely the best for these guys. They need space to roam, the right foods, water and a place to hide. They will self regulate from the heat- as well as the cold, if you provide a place to do it. Long lived too.
This one was an unusually light color, most here are brown to almost black.
Good fortune with your new charges.
Hello and welcome.
I will link some care sheets for you that are written for russians, but the care is the same. Our climates are similar so these should work well for you too.
These guys need separate enclosures. Tortoises are solitary creatures and they don't want or need company. They will both be much happier as the sole king of their own castle and territory.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/0/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.4518
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/semi-underground-russian-box.98590/
In hot climates like ours, they need to be able to get underground to beat the heat. There are many ways to do this.
Here is a feeding sheet with all sorts of good suggestions. I wrote this for sulcatas, so just use a lot less emphasis on grass for a DT.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
I will link some care sheets for you that are written for russians, but the care is the same. Our climates are similar so these should work well for you too.
These guys need separate enclosures. Tortoises are solitary creatures and they don't want or need company. They will both be much happier as the sole king of their own castle and territory.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/0/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.4518
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/semi-underground-russian-box.98590/
In hot climates like ours, they need to be able to get underground to beat the heat. There are many ways to do this.
Here is a feeding sheet with all sorts of good suggestions. I wrote this for sulcatas, so just use a lot less emphasis on grass for a DT.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
