Hatchlings

[t_mclellan]

Some older photo's from 08-09. These are just a few of what I produced.
http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x82/coonass1951/Tortoise Hatchling 2008-09/

Here are what I have produced from Jan. 2010.
http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x82/coonass1951/Tortoise Hatchlings 2010/

These are all Colombian.

 

[Tom]

Those are beautiful. I especially love the group eating shots.

 

[Jacqui]

I really like the newest hatchling group, the darkest one...I think in the group picture he/she was like at the top right hand side. Of course, then I once more went snooping thru all your pictures.

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Such winsome, dainty little chiclets!

How many do you hatch each year, and how many do you sell?

Here's a silly "newbie" question: how many tortoises does it take to actually make a profitable business out of breeding and selling the tykes?

 

[jblayza]

Very nice, good job!

 

[t_mclellan]

Such winsome, dainty little chiclets!

How many do you hatch each year, and how many do you sell?

Here's a silly "newbie" question: how many tortoises does it take to actually make a profitable business out of breeding and selling the tykes?

Lets see now .... I don't really know how many I hatch each year. How does a "LOT" sound? I never really counted. I track the date laid, Piped & out of the egg & never really count them up. I have better than 90% hatch rate. with my Colombians.
My Cherry Heads are all adopted, Some from a NH couple I found on another forum & 2 from Polly on here. 1 large male I bought from a friend during our last cold snap. None of the CH's are old enough to breed except the 10" male I think.
Back to the question!
At the moment I still have 71 RF eggs in the incubators. (yes I had to look to answer that)
As for how many are needed to be a profitable business?
I don't know. I have never counted the $$ ether! I just like to be at my home. & my tortoises keep me entertained & amazed! I think I might entertain them too on occasion!
The few (40 or so) I have are a considerable amount of work when you think about it. Driving around to the produce markets & finding what the tort's need. Feeding, Watering, Cleaning, Inspecting. Not to mention all the time I spend saying to myself "WOW, I wonder why he / she did that!" & "Get out of that bush! You know you can't climb! Your a TORTOISE for petes sake!"
So I doubt I make any $$ but I profit from the friends in my yard every day!
How many do I sell?
Almost all of them. Sometimes I keep 1 & sometimes I give 1 away. There are a lot of Redfoot keepers living around here now! "Hi welcome to the neighborhood! Have a tortoise!" Not really but I have given some to interested friends over the years.
No I have never produced an albino! But I must confess I have been known to do the albino dance to put the "MoJo" on the incubators! Yeah, no luck!
My wife & I have few expenses. We both (although not rich) are comfortable. We have worked hard all our lives & now we spend our $$ on our 14 year old son & the precocious kids in the yard!
& once again I have managed to ramble on incoherently far longer than was needed to answer the questions.
I gota do feed the kids!

 

[tortoise_lover]

Some older photo's from 08-09. These are just a few of what I produced.
http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x82/coonass1951/Tortoise Hatchling 2008-09/

Here are what I have produced from Jan. 2010.
http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x82/coonass1951/Tortoise Hatchlings 2010/

These are all Colombian.

awesome... very cute.. hopes someday i can do it too..

 

[t_mclellan]

The only 09 that I have left.
I would have missed this guy if he spent just a little more time on that "GILLIE" suit!

 

[Yvonne G]

Someone needs to figure out how to change the date on his camera!

 

[t_mclellan]

Its that whole "I spend a lot of time somewhere else" thing.
07/02/10 = 02/07/10

 

[Stephanie Logan]

Haha, that's the way Europeans write dates, with the day and then the month...maybe it's a European camera (do Asians write their dates that way too?)!

So is his little lettuce leaf hat a fashion statement, or is he saving it as a snack for later?

 

[DoctorCosmonaut]

Looks like a nice life Wonderful RFs!

---

Someone needs to figure out how to change the date on his camera!

Wow! How'd you figure out how to time travel?

 

[t_mclellan]

OK! OK! OK!
I give up!
Y'all are pickin on me too much!
I'm sensitive ya know!

 

[t_mclellan]

Well it would seem as though I have had a "PIPathon" in 1 of my incubators!
I can't remember the last time I had an entire clutch pip within 24 hours!
All 4 piped yesterday & 2 were actually out of their eggs by noon today.
OK, So the clutch was only 4 eggs, But still usually they are spread out from days to months.
Its not unheard of for me to get 1 hatchling a week till the entire clutch is hatched.
Some clutches take 2 to 3 months from 1st pip to last.

Here is the folder for those that wanna see.

http://s184.photobucket.com/albums/x82/coonass1951/Tortoise Hatchlings 2010/

Note;
I have changed the date on my camera for those of you that don't get out of North America much!

 

[Yvonne G]

"Pip-a-thon!" I love it!!

(Thanks for the date change. When I buy Spring Mix the sell-by date is always shown like your original camera date and it takes me too long to try to figure it out. )

 

[terryo]

Your hatchling with the strange date on the picture, is absolutely beautiful. There is so much color on him. Really beautiful.