CaseyAR
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Please help. Greek or Russian or Hermann?
- Thread starter CaseyAR
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CaseyAR
New Member
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- Feb 4, 2015
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Yes! Thank you so much. I just took this little guy (or girl) home today and when I asked what kind of tortoise and how to care for it I got an "I'm not sure" as a response. I'm hoping to give him a loving and comfortable home but I'm completely new at this and I have no clue what I'm doing.
Welcome & congrats on your new tort.
Hi Casey, and welcome to the forum!
We have two very nice care sheets pinned at the top of our Russian section, but don't read the one for baby tortoises because yours is full grown.
We have two very nice care sheets pinned at the top of our Russian section, but don't read the one for baby tortoises because yours is full grown.
CaseyAR
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Thank you! Are you sure? He seems so small compared to the 8 inches I've read that they're supposed to grow into.
Yup, quite sure. The average size for males is around 4 to 6 inches, with most of them on the smaller side.
CaseyAR
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Thank yall so much for the help and kind words. My heart is hurting for this poor guy. I was told he was a baby when I took him. He could be twenty years old for all I know, and I have no idea what the poor guy has been through. This is his set up so far. I'm trying to learn as I go. He's in a 40 gallon aquarium for now with a few hiding spaces.
Heather H
Well-Known Member
Please say you saved your receipt . The water dish is a flip hazard. Wal-Mart sell terra cotta plant saucers just need one big enough that he can get in. Food dish either a piece of stone, slate or another terra cotta . The enclosure is too small 
what light did they have you get?
what light did they have you get?
welcome to the forum! the red light is no good, it messes with the torts eyes and he may eat the substrate thinking its some type of red food. the enclosure should be around 4ft by 8ft. please read this entire care sheet. http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
CaseyAR
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Here's the whole story yall. I'm so overwhelmed.
I went into Petsmart today with my mom because she needed to get a bed for her dog. Typically I avoid Petsmart or Petco because I can't stand to see the animals cooped up in those tiny tanks and it breaks my heart. I should have just stayed in the car. But that's beside the point.
Anyhow, I saw this poor miserable tortoise in something like a 24 by 12 INCH tank and I thought I was going to cry. He looked so miserable and sad. So I started talking to the "animal care associate" and got what I thought was accurate information. The tortoise was a baby who would grow to be around 8 inches. The tortoise only looked miserable because he was sleepy and because "he's just a chill guy". All lies apparently. I asked her what kind of tortoise he was and she didn't have an answer. Long story short, $500 dollars later I got the little guy out of there and that's the setup I have him in. Oh, and I forgot to factor in the 3 different trips I made to Petsmart because the associate first told me that he only needed a 20 gallon tank with the lights and bedding you see in the picture. I drove the hour drive home, set him up in the tank and realized it was entirely too small. So I went back and got him a 40 gallon. He's not moving much, he's hiding in his shell and hes not eating. My heart was in the right place but I'm lost and have not a dollar more to put out on his habitat. Aside from that, I haven't the space for a 4 by 8 foot enclosure in my 2 bedroom house. I know I seem ignorant but when I saw him I felt like I just had to get him out of there. A 40 gallon tank has to be at least a little better than that tiny one, right? I'm exhausted and stressed beyond reckoning.
I went into Petsmart today with my mom because she needed to get a bed for her dog. Typically I avoid Petsmart or Petco because I can't stand to see the animals cooped up in those tiny tanks and it breaks my heart. I should have just stayed in the car. But that's beside the point.
Anyhow, I saw this poor miserable tortoise in something like a 24 by 12 INCH tank and I thought I was going to cry. He looked so miserable and sad. So I started talking to the "animal care associate" and got what I thought was accurate information. The tortoise was a baby who would grow to be around 8 inches. The tortoise only looked miserable because he was sleepy and because "he's just a chill guy". All lies apparently. I asked her what kind of tortoise he was and she didn't have an answer. Long story short, $500 dollars later I got the little guy out of there and that's the setup I have him in. Oh, and I forgot to factor in the 3 different trips I made to Petsmart because the associate first told me that he only needed a 20 gallon tank with the lights and bedding you see in the picture. I drove the hour drive home, set him up in the tank and realized it was entirely too small. So I went back and got him a 40 gallon. He's not moving much, he's hiding in his shell and hes not eating. My heart was in the right place but I'm lost and have not a dollar more to put out on his habitat. Aside from that, I haven't the space for a 4 by 8 foot enclosure in my 2 bedroom house. I know I seem ignorant but when I saw him I felt like I just had to get him out of there. A 40 gallon tank has to be at least a little better than that tiny one, right? I'm exhausted and stressed beyond reckoning.
CaseyAR
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Oh, and the lamps and bedding I was told that I absolutely had to have by the associate. More money wasted.
