New Russians, estimated age/breeding ?s

[Snake]

I received a male and female russian tortoise in a trade the other day. I was told they were 5-6yrs old. I did some measurements and took their weight.. was hoping you all could help me out here. first the data:

Male - 5" Long x 4" wide; 354g
Female - 5" Long x 4" wide; 419g

Does that age seem about right for their size? I'm not sure on their previous diet, but I have them on a mix varied mix of greens, feeding once a day,and a handful of timothy hay in their enclosure to graze on if they want. As far as future breeding is concerned, about how much bigger will they need to be before I may witness mating and viable eggs? I'm not all about breeding, I want to make sure they're healthy and taken care of first, but since they're housed together, I'm assuming it is possible it'll happen in the future

Any input and/or advice is appreciated. I love these little guys!

 

[Utah Lynn]

I received a male and female russian tortoise in a trade the other day. I was told they were 5-6yrs old. I did some measurements and took their weight.. was hoping you all could help me out here. first the data:

Male - 5" Long x 4" wide; 354g
Female - 5" Long x 4" wide; 419g

Does that age seem about right for their size? I'm not sure on their previous diet, but I have them on a mix varied mix of greens, feeding once a day,and a handful of timothy hay in their enclosure to graze on if they want. As far as future breeding is concerned, about how much bigger will they need to be before I may witness mating and viable eggs? I'm not all about breeding, I want to make sure they're healthy and taken care of first, but since they're housed together, I'm assuming it is possible it'll happen in the future

Any input and/or advice is appreciated. I love these little guys!

Welcome to TFO.
The age sounds about right for their size. More than likely, wild caught. You are feeding properly. I don't know if they actually eat the hay, but I keep it with mine because they like to bury themselves in it.
I know nothing about breeding.
RT's are solitary animals. They will fight. I have to keep my male and female separated.
Good Luck.

 

[jwhite]

Size and weights seem about right. If you aren't sure about their hydration i would give them some nice long soaks in warm water, they may not like the water but it is good for them. As far as breeding the female is a little on the small size. She would normally be around 6" long before successful breeding will occur. I agree with Lynn there may be some fighting/bullying going on so I would keep an eye on the for a few days. That being said I have successfully kept a single female with a single male for five years without any fighting.

Jon

 

[pam]

I keep one male with 3 females russians together they seem to get along well. I adopted 2 males they have been together from the start I tried to introduced them to the other females it didnt go well. One of the young males is very agressive twords the females so I just keep the two adopted males together away from the others they seem to get along well.

 

[Snake]

thanks everyone! so far, no trouble with fighting or any aggression, but i'll definitely keep an eye out for anything. i'm actually going to add some more hay to their enclosure, i don't think they're eating on it, but like utah lynn said, i've noticed they like burrowing in the hay as well. might make their substrate a little deeper too. right now it's only about 2". thinking of bumping that up to about 4".

 

[lynnedit]

Yeah, just keep an eye on them as they settle in. You could mound substrate in certain areas.
Mine love to burrow in aspen or timothy hay. I separate it with a log or piece of wood.

 

[Snake]

added more timothy hay. do you think 2 inches of substrate is enough or should i do at least one more inch?

 

[Yvonne G]

I like my substrate to be around 5 or 6 inches deep. But keep an eye on the sides of the habitat. The higher the substrate, the lower the sides.

 

[Snake]

alrighty, i'll probably add at least a couple more inches then.