Picking the right tortoise

TortoiseTango

New Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2014
Messages
2
Hello everyone,

I finally have my fiance on board with me and the decision to get a tortoise, we are planning on purchasing one in a few months time, because we would like to create a perfect enviroment for the tort to live in and be completely ready for anything! The one thing is we don't know which breed to choose.

Space and money is not a issue, we will build the perfect enclosure and meet all the environmental and nutritional requirements the tort needs. we would like a breed that's not so shy and enjoys a head rub or two, we want something that can get big but not sulcata big.. i was thinking on a leopard tortoise but a lot of people say they are shy and less inquisitive than other species. I also have two small parrots, but I don't think they will be around each other too much.

Oh and I live in Canada, the climate in my region gets super hot in the summer and in the winter its cold, I was thinking of having a outdoor tortoise garden for the summer and a indoor garden for the winter.
 

FLINTUS

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Sep 21, 2012
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Location (City and/or State)
Watery Wiltshire in the UK
How cold is cold? With space and looking for a larger cold hardy tortoise, a manouria emys could work, but you'd need shade in the summer. Otherwise, if it is really cold, go for a hibernating tortoise, anything from the testudo genus is a good bet.
 

taza

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Feb 28, 2014
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597
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Cambridge, Ontario.Canada
I think you would be good with a Leopard lots of us Canadians have them,especially if you are going to have a indoor garden for the winter. Where in Canada are you?
 

Tom

The Dog Trainer
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Southern California
Look into finding a South African leopard. They have the personality of a sulcata, if not even more bold, but don't get quite as big or destructive.

With what you listed above, just about any species could work for you.
 

TortoiseTango

New Member
Joined
Jul 29, 2014
Messages
2
Thanks for the responses! I live in Alberta and recently its been hotter outside and winters are a little warmer ( climate change skeptic )
:D

I'll look into the south African leopard tortoise, I just really want to be prepared!:tort::<3:
 

johnsonnboswell

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Aug 27, 2012
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Welcome to the list. We would all like to create the perfect environment for our tortoises, but most of us settle for providing the proper environment.
 

Kaitlynn

Member
Joined
Jul 8, 2014
Messages
61
Location (City and/or State)
Minnesota, USA
Have you looked into a Russian yet? They are a very hardy type of tort with a very active personality and they are a reasonable size as well. They have so much personality to them and are a very friendly type of tortoise. I live in Minnesota and I too have those very harsh weathers. I also know a lot of people who live here who own Russian tortoises as well. I have yet to meet someone who dislikes the RTs. Good luck! :)
 

Jabuticaba

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Jul 12, 2013
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Winnipeg, MB
Hi. I'm in Canada, too. Winnipeg to be more precise. Where do you live? No tort can live outside, anywhere in Canada, during winter. Even the Easter and Western coasts get far too cold for tortoises; therefore, consider a species that you can keep in a 3'x4' enclosure, from approx. mid September until approx. mid to late April, depending on where you are. I have Hermann's tortoises and they do great indoors. I will not leave them outside overnight until I'm absolutely sure the temperature won't drop below 20°C. Check us out on Instagram.


May, Aussies, & THBs
IG: @AUSSOMEAUSSIES
 

Jabuticaba

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Jul 12, 2013
Messages
1,744
Location (City and/or State)
Winnipeg, MB
Thanks for the responses! I live in Alberta and recently its been hotter outside and winters are a little warmer ( climate change skeptic )
:D

I'll look into the south African leopard tortoise, I just really want to be prepared!:tort::<3:

Good on you! Research before getting any pet is very important. ;)


May, Aussies, & THBs
IG: @AUSSOMEAUSSIES
 

redfootdaddy

Member
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Joined
Aug 2, 2014
Messages
36
Location (City and/or State)
Toronto ON
Hello everyone,

I finally have my fiance on board with me and the decision to get a tortoise, we are planning on purchasing one in a few months time, because we would like to create a perfect enviroment for the tort to live in and be completely ready for anything!.

My wife and I were the same way - we researched everything to death before we bought our redfoot, from care to environment to personality to diet to eventual size . . .

And then when we actually got her we realised that there was no way to predict everything. We were great on which foods she could and couldn't eat - but then there's the list of will eat. We set up the hide in a certain way, but since she likes to practice what we call "tortoise parkour" we've had to rearrange the enclosure several times. Even her optimal temperature range needed tweaking.
 
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