I Have Two Russians
- Thread starter chapdaab
- Start date
Yours need to be separated. They should never live in pairs. The aggression they are demonstrating in that pics means that they are both highly stressed right now.
That's called anthropomorphism.
More likely they are both walking around to make sure their tormentor or intruder is really finally gone. And one of them is restless from finding itself in a new and unfamiliar territory and walking around trying to figure out how to get "home", since it finds its self in a new place. Both scenarios are totally normal and they do not miss each other.
I understand you are knowledgeable but how are you to know unless you’ve met every tortoise in the world? How are you to think Russian tortoises can’t have a soul mate and mine just honesty like each others company, in my pic they were sleeping not budging they don’t bite each other or ram into each other or are weird with food and they have always been together just asking
Right. Centuries of animal study, decades of my own personal study of hundreds of tortoises kept in all sorts of ways, observation of other people's tortoises and methods, college degrees in animal behavior, and a plain understanding of animal behavior couple with pair dynamics, but your two tortoises are somehow different than all the rest.
Or... you just haven't learned this lesson the hard way yet. Take a look at these to find out what happens to tortoises when people have to learn the hard way:
Bad day for baby.
My baby was attacked by an older sibling. Just a warning to those keeping their babies together. I had 3 babies in the same pen and today at noon i found this one with his eye missing. Has anyone ever had this happen?
tortoiseforum.org
Why not to keep 2 tortoises together - a lesson learned the hard way
This is a copy/paste of an article I wrote on my blog last year. I've seen several new keepers ask the question of whether they should get a 'friend' for their tortoise, and so rather than keeping on linking to my blog (which feels kinda self-promoting, which is not my intent), I am creating a...
tortoiseforum.org
Crush da Baum
Well-Known Member
We are just trying to stop you from making a very terrible and sad mistake that many of us had made in the past. Don't take it personal, you do not have to follow what we say but be prepared for learning the hard way,
I completely understand and I watch them carefully it’s been over a year ... I do appreciate the info and I’ll think about it more thank you I’m not trying to be rude or a smart *** just asking questions just Incase there are cases of them being ok together sometimes there are exceptions
I understand. Questions are welcome. I don't take offense. I would not just listen to some guy on the internet either, so I don't blame people for being skeptical or asking for more explanation.
Tortoises don't growl, snarl or raise their hackles to show aggression. Everyone can recognize the obvious signs like biting, ramming or mounting, but few people seem to realize that cuddling is really crowding. Following is really chasing and trying to make the other leave the territory. Sleeping in the same area is another form of trying to crowd the unwanted intruder out of the territory. Sleeping face to face, or resting a head on the other is an intimidation tactic. Laying on the food is a way of starving out the competition.
Hi
I keep Russians and made the same mistake. Do yourself a favor and research this forum or check the links Tom sent you, there are numerous horror stories about keeping them together. In the wild they are 100% solitary we as responsible keepers need to mimic there natural tendencies. Please separate immediately it is not humane. Hopefully you heed the warning before it is too late.
I keep Russians and made the same mistake. Do yourself a favor and research this forum or check the links Tom sent you, there are numerous horror stories about keeping them together. In the wild they are 100% solitary we as responsible keepers need to mimic there natural tendencies. Please separate immediately it is not humane. Hopefully you heed the warning before it is too late.
I kept a colony of 2 male Russians and 4 females in a large enclosure. I must have been lucky because I didn't know any better. They all got a long and I never saw aggressive behavior. That being said, I agree with keeping tortoises separate, for the reasons stated above, but there are exceptions. I don't know why my set up, an outside pen of about 30 feet by 4 feet made of a wall of rocks. Plenty of hides and weeds to eat, plus I fed them every day. Just to add to the discussion. I also have seen large enclosures with 30 Sulcattas together and read somewhere that Aldabras like the company of each other. just thinking.
Groups can often work. We aren't talking about a group. We are talking about a pair. Pairs do not work.
