susaniddon
New Member
Just got custody of these , please identify what species. Was good they were hermans but I think not, think they are spur thigh but can't see the spur so not sure. There is a back story to these once I identify what they are.
Please identify these
- Thread starter susaniddon
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Chubbs the tegu
Well-Known Member
Marginated. One might be a hermans
@HermanniChris
@HermanniChris
susaniddon
New Member
So they are not Tunisian spur thigh then, I suspected they were wild caught Tunisian spur thigh. Looks like I made big error of judgement then.
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- Sep 7, 2007
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Both are Tunisian tortoises (Testudo graeca nabeulensis). No question.
No error in judgement! You were spot on!! Chris is da man.
And now to the back story????
Chubbs the tegu
Well-Known Member
Oopsie.. my bad haha
Bad boy! Back to school.?
susaniddon
New Member
Ok ty, glad to know what they are. For almost 12 months I have tried to look after these, the owner was a tenant in a property my son owns, she said they were hermans and she was breeding them for petshops. Anyway I realised she knew next to nothing about them. They were being kept in all I can describe as a raised vegetable bed that was in the back spare room. She only fed them on iceberg lettuce. They had kitty litter pellets as base. They were never bathed, just had a bowl of usually dirty water in. Anyway 10 months ago her partner was arrested and she went into hiding. Asking me to look after her tortoise. I immediately set about separating them, changed the substrate to orchid back and installed heat lamps, have them a much varied diet, weeds from my garden when available, lots of different greens including kale,spinach, pea shoot tips. Bathed them daily. My son could not evict her or remove her from his property at this time, so this was all I could do. In April the tiny one I named STAN was very ill , she's crusty and closed, and swollen yellow lumps behind eyes/ears, due to lockdown had to video the vet, she prescribed baytril via syringe as well as complex solution. I took him home with me even though the court papers said nothing had to be removed, told them infact it had died. Anyway I nursed him, fed him tiny pieces of food by tweezers, and two weeks later he started to eat on his own. He now tips the scales at 100g. Just before xmas both her and her partner were jailed and my son got his flat back. I have now taken on these 4. Two boys and 2 girls I think. We were under the impression her partner was Turkish but discovered he was Tunisian and from Nabul of all places. I found paperwork that she kept plotting weight of tortoise when she got them and when sold on trust me there had been quite a few. Any way they are now in 4ft vivariums, 1 each,have t5uvb light and a spot light. Temps go from 32 to 28 cold end. Room temp is around 22. The lights are on timers, on around 9am I give them till around 10am to warm up, then bath time for half hr, I spot clean tank then feed them, feed them later afternoon, and sometimes again at tea, depends if bowls empty. They usua!oh take them selves off to bed around 6pm, lights off by 6.30pm. What should my humidity be please, and what other boboos have I made. I know they are putting weight on, the two boys Simon and garfunkel were got in Sept 2018 and now weigh 250g, one female named Mrs Robinson was got in May 2019 and now weighs 260g and little STAN even though I suspect he is a she was got sept 2019 now is 100g.
Please be gentle with the critism of what I've done wrong, these are much loved and respond as soon as they hear my voice.
Please be gentle with the critism of what I've done wrong, these are much loved and respond as soon as they hear my voice.
You'll get no criticism from me. Sounds like you're doing a very good job with them, and I love their names!
TeamZissou
Well-Known Member
Here's a great care sheet, which is also pinned to the top of the Greek sub forum. Nabeulensis are classified as a 'sensitive' subspecies by Chris. His main website, www.hermannihaven.com also has some more great info.
tortoiseforum.org
It sounds like what you're doing is pretty good. They will need larger space in the future. They may have some humped growth/pyramiding, though it is hard to tell from the photos. It would be good if you can bump the humidity up into the 70% range, just to help promote smooth shell growth in the future. The orchid bark substrate that you're using is good and will help the humidity.
Avoid using a mercury vapor bulb for a spot light. Use a simple incandescent flood bulb, either 30, 45, or 65W depending on the temperature under the light, shoot for around 35 C under the basking light.
The weeds and diet you're feeding them is mostly good; you were lucky to get them off the lettuce only diet. Avoid spinach due to high oxalates. The website www.tortoisetable.co.uk is a good quick resource for what to feed and what to avoid. There is obviously even more great info here on the forum.
You're lucky to have these tortoises.
Greek Tortoise Care Guide
The Greek Tortoise Care Guide (Testudo graeca ssp) Chris Leone HermanniHaven.com GardenStateTortoise.com theTurtleRoom.com THIS CARE-SHEET IS DETAILED FOR A REASON. READ IT THOROUGHLY BEFORE PROCEEDING WITH OBTAINING A TORTOISE. Moroccan tortoise (Testudo graeca marokkensis) Introduction...
tortoiseforum.org
It sounds like what you're doing is pretty good. They will need larger space in the future. They may have some humped growth/pyramiding, though it is hard to tell from the photos. It would be good if you can bump the humidity up into the 70% range, just to help promote smooth shell growth in the future. The orchid bark substrate that you're using is good and will help the humidity.
Avoid using a mercury vapor bulb for a spot light. Use a simple incandescent flood bulb, either 30, 45, or 65W depending on the temperature under the light, shoot for around 35 C under the basking light.
The weeds and diet you're feeding them is mostly good; you were lucky to get them off the lettuce only diet. Avoid spinach due to high oxalates. The website www.tortoisetable.co.uk is a good quick resource for what to feed and what to avoid. There is obviously even more great info here on the forum.
You're lucky to have these tortoises.
susaniddon
New Member
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