Is it a hard rule?

[thecrawlingchaos]

I really appreciate the beauty and shape of star tortoises. The more i see them, the more I'd like to own one someday. Not necessarily tommorow or even five years from now, but someday.

I some of the reading I've done regarding their care, there seems to be a running theme suggesting that it is unwise to keep stars in the same collections with other torts or even reptiles period. I'd never mix species in the same enclosure, but I'd probably keep their enclosures in close proximity.

Is it courting disaster to acquire a star if you already keep other reptiles, even if you keep them clean? I've got the "bug" and know for sure that one day I'll buy another species of tortoise. Stars are at the top of my list. Should i just forget about it and get something less complicated like a Greek or red foot?

 

[ascott]

I believe lots of folks host a variety of reptiles at the same time. You will of course need to continue to practice good hygiene and take care when handling (entering one enclosure from another) one species from another---so no cross contamination...

 

[theTurtleRoom]

Definitely not an issue. I know many keepers who successfully raise stars in close proximity to other torts and turts.

 

[TortTopper]

Many tort owners who keep more than 1 species of tortoise would usually separate them, but I think that two different species could live with each other as long as you give them a decent amount of room so that the tortoises don't have to be so close to each other all the time.