I have the opportunity to rescue another tortoise same age

ausisasiab07

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I have a african spurred tortoise, 10 years old, 55lbs. He's had 2 acres to himself. The rescue is also a male but has been kept in a dog run I have heard 2 males together will fight is this a myth or with the space I have will they adapt any info greatly appreciate it before making a mistake
 

Yvonne G

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If there were four or five yes, maybe you could have males together, but with two there will be trouble no matter how big their yard is.

The yard is plenty big enough to fence it off into two yards. Why don't you just do that?
 

Tom

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Also a male but has been kept in a dog run I have heard 2 males together will fight is this a myth or with the space I have will they adapt any info greatly appreciate it before making a mistake
Hello and welcome. That was a looooooong title.

They should never be housed in pairs and a fight or bullying is almost guaranteed. I agree with Yvonne. Divide the enclosure. Here is a way to make one night house that they can safely share:
 

ausisasiab07

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If there were four or five yes, maybe you could have males together, but with two there will be trouble no matter how big their yard is.

The yard is plenty big enough to fence it off into two yards. Why don't you just do that?
Sorry for long request my first time at this any more questions will do it right thank you for your response I will see if I can have someone take him that wouldn't start any confrontations also if I was wondering if they get lonely and want other species like them I have dogs that are use to him and him the same but at certain times he appears to get restless thank you again for your help
 
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LasTortugasNinja

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Sorry for long request my first time at this any more questions will do it right thank you for your response I will see if I can have someone take him that wouldn't start any confrontations also if I was wondering if they get lonely and want other species like them I have dogs that are use to him and him the same but at certain times he appears to get restless thank you again for your help
Nope. They don't feel lonely. They actually have no social concepts at all. All they "think" when they see another life form is: "Is it competition? a threat? source of food? Source of safety? Can I breed with it?" That's about it. The social part of reptile brains are barely developed at all, compared to development found in songbirds, social mammals, etc. They are perfectly content with thinking they are the only lifeform in the universe.

As for the dogs... that's asking for trouble. Begging for trouble. I've seen far too many "oh, they were raised together" scenarios that end badly. Reptiles are sources of fun or lunch for dogs. It's best to keep them separate. A playful nip can have dire consequences.
 

Hippytort

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Nope. They don't feel lonely. They actually have no social concepts at all. All they "think" when they see another life form is: "Is it competition? a threat? source of food? Source of safety? Can I breed with it?" That's about it. The social part of reptile brains are barely developed at all, compared to development found in songbirds, social mammals, etc. They are perfectly content with thinking they are the only lifeform in the universe.

As for the dogs... that's asking for trouble. Begging for trouble. I've seen far too many "oh, they were raised together" scenarios that end badly. Reptiles are sources of fun or lunch for dogs. It's best to keep them separate. A playful nip can have dire consequences.

Agreed. But as to your comment about dogs, I think you are generalizing a bit much. It really all depends on the dog. I have a 11 year old Sal. that is totally ignored by my Chihuahua and vise versa. A pit bull may be different,... or not,.. It depends. Common sense can go along way when judging if the dog is a problem or not. Here we are talking about a 10 year old 55 lb.. I doubt there are many "friendly dogs that would be a threat to it.
 

Tom

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Agreed. But as to your comment about dogs, I think you are generalizing a bit much. It really all depends on the dog. I have a 11 year old Sal. that is totally ignored by my Chihuahua and vise versa. A pit bull may be different,... or not,.. It depends. Common sense can go along way when judging if the dog is a problem or not. Here we are talking about a 10 year old 55 lb.. I doubt there are many "friendly dogs that would be a threat to it.
I've seen a lot of dog mauling tortoise cases. Almost every single time it happens, the person thought the same kind of thing you've expressed here. They thought it right up until the day it happened.
 
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LasTortugasNinja

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Agreed. But as to your comment about dogs, I think you are generalizing a bit much. It really all depends on the dog. I have a 11 year old Sal. that is totally ignored by my Chihuahua and vise versa. A pit bull may be different,... or not,.. It depends. Common sense can go along way when judging if the dog is a problem or not. Here we are talking about a 10 year old 55 lb.. I doubt there are many "friendly dogs that would be a threat to it.

You'd be surprised. I've seen pond turtles that were chewed on by small dogs. A small dog doesn't realize it's a small dog. An adult sulcata doesn't have much to fear from a chihuahua, probably, but it's still unnecessary mingling of species. Preventing potential issues is just as much a part of responsible husbandry as cleaning cages. Just like people can unintentionally bring pathogens on their shoes and get their cat/dog sick, who knows if the dog can bring a pathogen on it's paw that could get a tort sick. I just try to limit as many variables as I can.

Also, the original post says nothing of the type of dogs.
 

wellington

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Agreed. But as to your comment about dogs, I think you are generalizing a bit much. It really all depends on the dog. I have a 11 year old Sal. that is totally ignored by my Chihuahua and vise versa. A pit bull may be different,... or not,.. It depends. Common sense can go along way when judging if the dog is a problem or not. Here we are talking about a 10 year old 55 lb.. I doubt there are many "friendly dogs that would be a threat to it.
No it absolutely does not depend on the dog. We have seen or heard it all. It does not ever work with a tortoise and a dog together. Believe me there is much more experience telling you it wont work then you could ever have on your own.listen to it before your sorry and the tortoise or even your dog gets hurt and that will be on you.
 

Yvonne G

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Agreed. But as to your comment about dogs, I think you are generalizing a bit much. It really all depends on the dog. I have a 11 year old Sal. that is totally ignored by my Chihuahua and vise versa. A pit bull may be different,... or not,.. It depends. Common sense can go along way when judging if the dog is a problem or not. Here we are talking about a 10 year old 55 lb.. I doubt there are many "friendly dogs that would be a threat to it.
Read this about Mildred and the dog she lived with for about 15 years. It's post #2 in the following thread:

 

Yorkiemomma

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I have a african spurred tortoise, 10 years old, 55lbs. He's had 2 acres to himself. The rescue is also a male but has been kept in a dog run I have heard 2 males together will fight is this a myth or with the space I have will they adapt any info greatly appreciate it before making a mistake
I have 2 about 45 lbs each and they have always been housed together and never had issues. Thay lay together etc. I also have 4 dogs who pay no attention to them. I say if you want him go for it.
 
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LasTortugasNinja

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First post even, that is pretty ballsy!
Yeah... I had a long, Tom-like post full of facts, advice, and optimism for humanity... then reality kicked in, I got a major case of the "f-- its" and deleted it all and decided the spam folder was the better option. LOL Yes, I freely admit, I'm shallow that way. I've had very bad experiences as a child with Yorkies. lol
 

Hippytort

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Read this about Mildred and the dog she lived with for about 15 years. It's post #2 in the following thread:

Ynonne. Just read the "story" of the 15 year old "pup" that chewed the leg off a desert tort, not a sulcata,. What I read is that the "older couple" went away for vacation, left a 15 year old Labrador retrieve, with a desert tort. alone in the yard with no food for a couple weeks. Depended on a son, who may or may not have come by to feed said animals and they came home to a tragedy.
I stand by my comment, Common sense when dogs are in the mix.
 

Yvonne G

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Ynonne. Just read the "story" of the 15 year old "pup" that chewed the leg off a desert tort, not a sulcata,. What I read is that the "older couple" went away for vacation, left a 15 year old Labrador retrieve, with a desert tort. alone in the yard with no food for a couple weeks. Depended on a son, who may or may not have come by to feed said animals and they came home to a tragedy.
I stand by my comment, Common sense when dogs are in the mix.
The older couple's son took care of the animals, including feeding them.
 

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