I briefly read about this. I should be getting a new russian tortoise shortly. I was wondering if anyone could tell me more about this time period where I keep my tortoises separate. Thanks!
pdrobber said:everyone does it differently. I think it is intended for making sure the new tortoise is healthy and getting it used to your keeping conditions before introducing it to your others. Depending on where/who you are getting the tortoise from can make a difference, whether it is a reputable breeder or a petstore, etc. Some people do it for a length like 3 weeks others do it 6 months, some a year or longer...
pdrobber said:yes I keep my Russians together.
pdrobber said:I have 1 male and 3 females.
GBtortoises said:Putting mature male/male or male/female Russians together does bear close watching. Chances are that you probably aren't going to have good sucess keeping two males together. One will undoubtly become the more dominant and claim his enclosure as his territory once he becomes sexually mature. This can put the submissive male is serious stessful and physical harms way. With a male and female pair the male, again once sexually mature, will usually display constant and often very aggressive courting attempts with the female. Courting consists of initial head bobbing, biting the limbs and ramming the shell. This is followed by frequent mountings. Unless the female is receptive copulation will not take place but the the constant courting will. Usually two females of any age can be kept together without incident although one may establish a more mild dominance once mature or during breeding seasons.
If you have younger tortoises, you have some time before the above takes place but it will at some point later once a male reaches maturity.
GBtortoises said:Once summer comes back to upstate New York in about 7 months, you can always put them outdoors together in large enclosure with lots of hiding spots and barriers. In most cases even two males can co-habitat with large enough living quarters done right.
GBtortoises said:Why do we live here? Someone please remind me!
Grigor.Love. said:GBtortoises said:Why do we live here? Someone please remind me!
Me too! Someone remind me tooo!