Hi all

[Rhetoricx]

I don't have any tortoises, I'm just looking for some info to figure out if a tortoise might be right for me. I have no idea what species or anything, I'm a tortoise newb.
I've already decided that the largest enclosure I would be able to provide would be an 8x5x4, roaming time and space would be available. I live in Oregon so I would not be able to keep something outside year round, during the warmer months I would be fine setting up a caged area. At this point in time I would not feel comfortable leaving anything out over night because of the wild animals we have in the area.
I have 3 argentine black and white tegus and 2 american pitbull terriers. I'm not sure if anyone is on tegutalk.com but thats how I found this forum. I think that it might be admined by the same person too... Anyway, hopefully I can get enough info to make a good decision.


This is Guru, hes about a year old. He was my first tegu. He's just shy of 4ft long and I would guess about 7-8 lbs.


This is Rango. He is 2 years old. He and Gary came to me from a high school friend who no longer had time to care for them. Rango is missing almost all of his front toes. He's about 3.5 ft long and just shy of 5 lbs.


This is Gary. He is also 2 years old. He's still a tad underweight (IMO) but hes got the largest appetite. He too is about 3.5 ft long and just over 4.5lbs. He's curiosity keeps me on my toes lol.


This is what Gary and Rango looked like in April when I first got them. They've come a long way!


This is Conan and Riley. Conan is on the left, hes a 3 year old ridgeback/apbt mix. Riley is 2 and shes an american staffordshire terrier.

 

[dmarcus]

Hello and welcome to the forum..

 

[ALDABRAMAN]

Welcome.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Rhetoricx:


Welcome to the Tortoise Forum!!

May we know your name?

Please feel free to look through our archives in all the different sub-forums to see if any particular type tortoise fits your lifestyle. If you have any questions, we're all happy to help you.

My grandson has a big tegu. If you do a search in the lizard section you will find the nice outdoor habitat that another of our members (Tom) has made for his tegu.

 

[Rhetoricx]

My names Alexi. I saw the outdoor habitat Tom made, Josh had posted it on the tegu forum and we all oo-ed and aww-ed. Tegus are great, I love them lol. I think I saw the thread where you had posted a couple pics of your grandsons tegu. Definitely a lot larger than mine are now. Mine seem to have most of their length but they've got a lot more filling out to do.
Thanks for the welcomes!

 

[dmmj]

Welcome
Enjoy your visits, are you leaning towards a particular type of tortoise?

 

[wrmitchell22]

Welsome! You have some gorgeous animals there

 

[Rhetoricx]

Welcome
Enjoy your visits, are you leaning towards a particular type of tortoise?

Eh I'm not entirely sure yet.
When I started looking I was interested in the leopards but after reading a little bit more about them I don't think one of them would be a good choice for me. I've seen that 8x4 is a minimum enclosure size and even 10x6 was a recommended size on one website. I could provide slightly larger than an 8x4 but I don't like offering minimums. There is also a temperature issue, I would not be able to have it outside year round, it gets way too cold in the NW and way too wet/humid. :-(

I've still got quite a bit of looking around to do but here is kind of what I am looking for and can provide if anyone has any suggestions for me to look into.
-Hibernation isn't an issue, my tegus hibernate during the winter
-8x5 is about the largest enclosure I can provide.
-I can provide time outside as the weather permits, I know real sun is much better than what an MVB can produce
-Something that doesn't mind some humidity would be best considering the area I live in
-Handle-ability doesn't bother me, though I would slightly prefer something that is more of a "look at" animal other than general care
-Diet isn't an issue, I don't mind one that is more of an omnivore or more of a vegetarian


A few questions:
I haven't come across it yet, but do people seal indoor enclosures with drylock? I know with my tegus the wood had to be sealed to prevent rotting since their humidity is 60-70%.
It seems like most people have open tops, is there something wrong with having it all the way enclosed?
I've seen hatchlings aren't great for beginners either, what is usually a safe age to get on? Does it depend upon the species?

 

[dmmj]

For a first tortoise I would suggest something older than a year, it is more established and more likely to survive, nut if you get a hatch ling that was raised more humid then it should not be a problem, the difficulty is that finding one that has been raised right. I would suggest you look into the smaller species right now the russians, hermanns and greeks are good startersm plus they are hardy, also a box turtle would be another good choice.

 

[coreyc]

Welcome

 

[Jacqui]

Nice to have you joining us, even more impressive is your doing your homework before buying your tortoise. Love your other animals!