Hermanns tortoise restless

[baggycp]

ive owned clive my 5 year old hermanns since a hatchling. I recently moved two more hermanns of the same size in with clive and built them all a new bigger table to see them through till spring when they will be outside.

Recently clive seems to be really restless though. clive is now spending most of the day out of his hide, chasing and trying to mount the other two when they are out (just morning and evening) and constantly trying to escape.

I let clive out in the living room and he justs paces up and down again looking for ways to escape, or trying to mount the other two if they are out at the same time.

Ive even cought him a few times sleeping at night outside his hide, just in the middle of the table which to me seems really odd as it seems unprotected.

I know i keep refering to clive as a he, but im pretty sure all three of my tortoises are female, (you can check my other posting for pics of them).

Their table is really roomy, they have two hides for the three of them(you can easilly fit 2 in each hide), a water bowl always available to them, and somes stones/rocks to climb on. So i dont think its anything to do with enclosure unless clive wants his own room as that is what he is used to.

Any ideas?

 

[Kymiie]

Not sure what the cause it but I would definitly say serperate them!

xx

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Baggycp:

to the forum!!

 

[dreadyA]

How much older or younger are the new additions? You can always split the enclosure with a bbarrier and see if Clive continues

 

[baggycp]

clives about a year older but their all the same size

 

[GBtortoises]

A wild guess without seeing photos or more information on each tortoise but it sounds like "Clive" may be a male. Do you know the gender? Mounting other tortoises that are in his territory is absolutely normal for a male. It is how they establish dominance. Continuous pacing is exhibited by both males and females, but for different reasons. Males pace because in general they are more nomadic than females. A male's area in the wild would encompass the area that includes several females, along with overlapping with other males territories. In simple terms, it's how they ensure genetic diversity and survival of the species. If a male has "discovered" a new female it may search a general area looking for it. Keep in mind that they search for food and mates by sight and scent. The second of which we humans cannot detect at their level of accutness. A male may also become aggitated and search frantically if he has detected another male in his territory.
Females will usually pace when getting ready to nest as they search for an ideal nesting spot. This is usually accompanied with sniffing the ground in various areas that they are considering. A gravid female or a female that becomes the dominant in the abscence of a male will often act like a male, mounting, ramming and biting any other females in the area.

Photos would definitely help identify the gender of all three tortoises.

 

[Yvonne G]

Well, Danny has responded to your first post showing the pictures of your three Hermanns tortoises.

He says they are all female, and that they look to be Dalmation (T.h.hercegovinensis.)

She might settle down once she has either established dominance or has accepted the other dominant female. But if she doesn't, you may have to set up another habitat.

It sometimes helps to alleviate the fighting to have them in a very large habitat with quite a few visual barriers.

 

[egyptiandan]

Clive is telling the other 2 females that she is in charge and basicly to go away as this is her territory. Like Yvonne said, you will have to either add visual barriers or keep the 2 new ones seperately until they go outside.
Did you have a quarantine period for the 2 new females?

Danny

 

[GBtortoises]

clives about a year older but their all the same size

Which one is Clive in the photos that you posted?

 

[baggycp]

clives about a year older but their all the same size

Which one is Clive in the photos that you posted?

Clive is the first two pics (top two)