I have a different type of tortoise than I thought!

Melissa101

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Hi everyone,


I’m hoping for some advice, as i feel like such an idiot! I’ll try to keep this as short as i can.

When i was a teenager my parents bought me a pair of tortoises because i was obsessed with the creatures! Cut to 15 years later, i have a male and female, and have since read a lot about tortoises, and have come to the decision to rehome the female. I made this very hard decision because i just don’t have the money or space for two tortoise tables, two outdoor enclosures etc, but obviously i don’t want her to be constantly pestered by the male, or to become pregnant. I found a lovely new home for her with a man who breeds tortoises. He said he would keep her in with his girls, and if i ever wanted her back, she would always be there for me.

So here’s the problem. I dropped her off today (it was a beautiful set up, the tortoises all looked happy and healthy, with loads of space and what i would describe as ‘ideal’ conditions. No species were mixed and girls were separate from any males.

The man running the place is, sadly, in hospital, but his wife came to show me around (social distancing, of course). When i put Georgie in the enclosure, i couldn’t help but notice that the colour of her shell was very different to the others, and also that she was much smaller, despite being a similar age. But i knew she was a spur thighed tortoise, as that’s what the breeder had told my dad, and she has the spurs etc.

Since coming home, I haven’t been able to shake this feeling that something wasn’t right. I looked up pictures of spur thighed tortoises, and realised (like an idiot), that there are different subspecies within that species. While this man was keeping the ones from Greece, mine seems to be from Africa (see pic from the website, mine looks like the one on the right). I checked this guys website, and he says he doesn’t breed those, but i wonder if that means he can’t house her either? Is it like mixing species? For example, i know you wouldn’t mix a horsefield with a spur thighed...can you mix types of spur thighed?

This new home seems so perfect, but obviously i don’t want to risk any of the tortoises becoming unwell from having different bacteria etc. I also have no idea if he’ll even still keep her once he gets back home and sees that she’s different to his ones. I feel so stupid for not knowing where she was from. I’m sure the breeder said she was a Greek Spur Thighed, as that’s what i’ve always said when people asked, but i just assumed that was the whole name, and not that there were other types ?‍♀️

Also, I still have my male tortoise, and i’m wondering now if i’ve been looking after him wrong this whole time? I just read ‘Spur Thighed’ fact sheets, which sounded as though there was only one type. But are there other things i should be doing for him now?

Sorry for the long post. I suffer with anxiety, and so of course something like this makes me flare up hugely! I just want to do the best for my pets, and rehoming her was so hard, but thinking i’d found the ideal place made me feel just a little bit better.
 

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Melissa101

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This is the Male & female. I can get closer ones if needed, I’ll just need to wake the boy up!

0186D06E-DAFA-42B7-9A15-E4F9588A6439.jpeg889595D0-EA71-41E3-BCB0-1AEF89EFC9AC.jpeg
 

Melissa101

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Oh wow, really? That’s great! Can I ask if you know why she would be smaller than the others? Is it something to do with the light not being strong enough? Also they were all coloured like the one on the left of my original pic, whereas she’s got much bolder colours. Is it common to have variance like that?
Thanks so much!
 

TechnoCheese

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Oh wow, really? That’s great! Can I ask if you know why she would be smaller than the others? Is it something to do with the light not being strong enough? Also they were all coloured like the one on the left of my original pic, whereas she’s got much bolder colours. Is it common to have variance like that?
Thanks so much!
It might be a different subspecies, but I don’t know enough about greeks. They do have color variation.

If your tortoises were kept as a pair, it is very common for one to end up smaller from being bullied. Tortoises should not be kept in pairs for this reason.
 

Melissa101

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It might be a different subspecies, but I don’t know enough about greeks. They do have color variation.

If your tortoises were kept as a pair, it is very common for one to end up smaller from being bullied. Tortoises should not be kept in pairs for this reason.
Thank you. So even if she’s a different subspecies, she should be safe to be kept with the other ones he had?

Yes, that’s one of the reasons I knew I had to separate them. I think the boy was getting more food.
 

TechnoCheese

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Thank you. So even if she’s a different subspecies, she should be safe to be kept with the other ones he had?

Yes, that’s one of the reasons I knew I had to separate them. I think the boy was getting more food.
I don’t believe they should be kept together, in case they breed and hybridize. Did you get pictures of the other tortoises there?
 

Melissa101

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Oh no, what a nightmare! Yes here are some pics

AC53FC1A-4328-418E-9C1E-981FC7683EEF.jpeg710CD382-E5C0-4E80-A448-F009C683B683.jpeg
 

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