Pairing w a redfoot?

[JD9981]

I recently rescued a 5" redfoot. Tomorrow I will be picking up a hatchling three toed. I have not seen the hatchling yet but have been told he is about 5 months old. Is it safe to house them together? I have read much conflicting info on the subject.

 

[wellington]

No it is not. Different species should never be housed together.

 

[turtlemann2]

it is of prevailing opinnion that differant spp. should not be housed together for both disease concerns and the differance of habitat and dietary requirements although im sure the ttbt would do fine in a redfoot enclosure temperature and set up wise

 

[diaboliqueturtle]

A few forum members, myself included, do keep red foot and boxies together. Normally, mixing species is not recommended but these two species do well together as they have similar enclosure temp and humidity requirements and they seem to be more "social", for a lack of a better word.
I have a 6" red foot and a 7 month old 3 toed boxie. They are shell buddies, always near each other. Where one goes, the other follows, it's flippin' adorable!
In the second pic, my red foot heard me so she moved a bit, she had her eyes closed and her chin was resting on Crystal's shell

---

Oopsy, pics didn't show. Scene 1 take 2:

 

[JD9981]

Thank you! Adorable pictures. I was a bit worried about the size difference so I am glad to see they get along.
If I want to try it should I set up separate enclosures until my new boxie has had a few days to acclimate and introduce them slowly or just start them out together. I don't want to stress the hatchling out w too many changes but I want to make sure everything is ok between them too.

 

[jaizei]

You should quarantine them initially regardless of whether you eventually mix them. Quarantining new animals is a good idea even with a same species pair. It will give you time to evaluate them.

 

[terryo]

I raised both my Cherries with Box turtles. They were both the same age, 3 months, when I got them and stayed together for three years. Both needed lots of humidity, same temperature, and ate the same mix I made for them...veggies, greens and fruit with mazuri or turtle pellets. They did just fine, with no problems. In the summer, when outside, sometimes I have to put my smaller Cherry in with the Box turtles, as she shows some aggression to the larger Cherry H., but not the boxies.
But...I got mine when they were both hatchlings, and from known breeders. There weren't older and from someone I didn't know, so I knew that they were in good health and since they both required the same type of environment, I put them together. I don't think I would put them together if there was such a big size difference. Just MHO.

 

[JD9981]

Great!! I am getting excited! I have a new container set up for the little guy/gal. Just need to get plants before I pick up tomorrow. I have a huge outdoor enclosure set up so after a while I will start to introduce them out there. I love the idea of Houdini having a friend. He is very timid and has just started roaming his smaller indoor enclosure. He still goes straight to the closest hide when I take him outside. Hopeful a buddy will bring him out of shell a bit. Lol. ;-)

 

[diaboliqueturtle]

You should quarantine them initially regardless of whether you eventually mix them. Quarantining new animals is a good idea even with a same species pair. It will give you time to evaluate them.

Yes, a quarantine period is very wise, especially since your red foot is a rescue. By that I mean that he's new to you and his health history is unknown (I'm totally assuming here) and keeping him on his own for a while will allow you to monitor for any health issues that might come up and potentially affect/infect your hatchling. I raised my red foot from a hatchling so I knew she was perfectly healthy and my boxie hatchling came from a known and trusted breeder. As for the size difference, of course I monitored closely their first interactions and the first 2 months, they were each in "their half" of the enclosure. I've since re-done everything to allow both of them the use of the whole space.

Keep in mind, too, that your boxie hatchling will spend the majority of his first year hidden in the substrate, you'll have to physically dig him up for soaks and meals so a smaller enclosure will be best. My heart still races when it takes me too long to find mine ;-) My pictures of my girls together are taken right after i put the hatchling back after her soak and meal. She walks around Princesse for maybe 15 minutes and then its hidey time again! She doesnt come out of hiding on her own yet.
Yours won't be ready or safe to be outdoor without you, or in an enclosure without a bottom, for a couple years as they like to dig and hide and they're master camouflage artists :-D

---

I raised both my Cherries with Box turtles. They were both the same age, 3 months, when I got them and stayed together for three years. Both needed lots of humidity, same temperature, and ate the same mix I made for them...veggies, greens and fruit with mazuri or turtle pellets. They did just fine, with no problems. In the summer, when outside, sometimes I have to put my smaller Cherry in with the Box turtles, as she shows some aggression to the larger Cherry H., but not the boxies.
But...I got mine when they were both hatchlings, and from known breeders. There weren't older and from someone I didn't know, so I knew that they were in good health and since they both required the same type of environment, I put them together. I don't think I would put them together if there was such a big size difference. Just MHO.

Safety first, I agree. And, oh my goodness, your babies are flippin' adorable!

 

[JD9981]

Yes he has already given me a heart attack not being able to find him! Glad to hear that I am just gonna have to get used to it not that anything is wrong. The woman (local breeder) I got him from told my girls she named him Spot and they like it but I may try to get them to change it to Dott. She is just this little spec in her enclosure and it is the one I was using for Houdini's cold night enclosure (I cleaned it out) first but I may go even smaller for now cuz it is still a huge space to dig through. :-( Thanks for all the advice. It is going to drive me crazy waiting to introduce them though. Lol.

 

[JD9981]

Diabol... Thanks again for the advice. I just tore his habitat apart for the second time only to find him under a plant. I had a thin layer of dirt and planted small plants, he managed to get literally under it. His/her name is now Digger! Houdini and Digger they have both given me a run their first days with me. Lol. Digger is now in a temp container w no dirt just mulch until I can make a smaller enclosure. He was in a wrapping paper storage container 3' x 1.5'. Too big to find a quarter!!

 

[Millerlite]

Box turtles dog a lot my guy first day dug in 8 inches I don't worry much I usually can tell. Try not to "find him" everytime they can stress they just want to sleep, if its been a whole maybe dig him up if your worried Ive had some sleep for days weeks at a time

 

[mainey34]

I did not know that this was acceptable. Just learned something

 

[diaboliqueturtle]

Diabol... Thanks again for the advice. I just tore his habitat apart for the second time only to find him under a plant. I had a thin layer of dirt and planted small plants, he managed to get literally under it. His/her name is now Digger! Houdini and Digger they have both given me a run their first days with me. Lol. Digger is now in a temp container w no dirt just mulch until I can make a smaller enclosure. He was in a wrapping paper storage container 3' x 1.5'. Too big to find a quarter!!

Ah yes, they do like to dig under things, it does help a little in narrowing down where they are. A little. They're so small, it's so easy to miss them by an inch!
I let my daughters name my red foot and they chose...Princesse, very original ;-) My 3 toed is Crystal, as she is gonna look like a crystal ball when she grows up I like your names, super cute!

---

I was puttering around when I noticed Crystal watching me. You can barely tell her apart from the dirt, her colors blending in and her head being the size of my pinky.

 

[Tom]

I did not know that this was acceptable. Just learned something

Just like everything else, different people have different opinions. I don't find it acceptable and I would not recommend mixing species. Especially if one or both are rescues with an unknown history. Just because a few people do it and post some pics, does not mean the rest of us think it's okay. Just wanted to throw that out there. It's a risk in many ways.

 

[terryo]

I would never put a box turtle hatchling that's the size of a quarter in with a 5 in. RF, but I don't see anything wrong with putting a Cherry Head, and a Box Turtle that are the same age and almost the same size, that will eat a similar diet, and require the same environment...same temp., humidity, substrate and plants, and both coming from well known breeders with a clean bill of health, together. It's also better to have an enclosure that's big enough for them to have their own space, if they want it. I know many people who have done this, with much success. Is it acceptable? I don't know, it's just what I did with no problems. But as I said, I would never put a 5 in. RF in with a Box Turtle hatchling or even a juvenile, that is much smaller. RF's at 5 in. have been know to eat and catch live mice, some which are larger than a BT hatchling. I would never trust them together.