In need of advice

[dozertort]

Hi, I have two beautiful Sulcata tortoises (Turq and Dozer) ages 6&7. I recently realized I have a male (Turq) and a female (Dozer) (I thought for a long time that I had two females). I do not wish to breed tortoises but I don't really want to rehome one of them either. I need some expert advice as to what my options are. I have spoken to my vet and understand that I can have the male neutered but the best surgeon is about an 8 hour drive for me (not ideal for the tortoise either not to mention the cost of travel + surgery). I don't really want to freeze or destroy eggs if they do happen to mate. And I have considered rehoming one or placing at a sanctuary but that is heartbreaking to think about. My torts are currently disagreeing over their burrow. I live in FL and they do seem to need to get under ground to regulate their temperatures. They were cohabitating fine until recently and now they can't seem to agree. I have one tort stuck outside of the burrow looking sad and homeless and the other blocking the entrance. How do other people keep males and females together without breeding?

 

[Yvonne G]

Start another burrow and hopefully one of them will work on it. You can also provide a dog house in the shade and put the one stuck outside in it until he gets used to going in on his own.

You can't keep them together and expect the male to not breed the female. Male sulcatas are breeding machines. If you divide the yard and separate them, he'll be pretty upset pacing the fence, but he'll eventually get used to it, and she'll be a much happier animal.

 

[dozertort]

I'll try starting a second burrow. We have a dog house in the yard and neither one uses it after they discovered life in the burrow. Thanks

 

[Turningstar]

Its recommended by many that you do NOT house tortoises together, no matter what sex.
Is it possible for you to make 2 enclosures? Possibly cut the one you have in half?

 

[dozertort]

They are in our fenced in back yard but it's not feasible for me to divide the space (one would be cut off from the grazing area due to the shape of our lot).

 

[Yvonne G]

They are in our fenced in back yard but it's not feasible for me to divide the space (one would be cut off from the grazing area due to the shape of our lot).

You're going to have to figure it out because the male is hounding the female and she's eventually going to start to fail. You don't want to allow it to go that far. You've asked for out advice - the advice is: separate the tortoises or find a new home for one of them.