Ramming

[Tracy Gould]

I have noticed Shelby Rams me away when i offer her food by hand sometimes I have been told she looks female although she carries her tail to the side, but i thought ramming was a male thing,is it or do females do this too, she only does it now and again and it as if she is telling me to move lol

 

[GBtortoises]

How big (scl) is your tortoise? While it is true that male Hermann's carry their tail to the side, females often do too, as well as extended fully back. Males usually ram other objects for two reasons. Number one because they think the item in front of them is a female. Ramming, along with biting at the limbs is a very common male Hermann's courtship behavior. Number two because the male percieves the item in front of him as another male that has entered his territory. Male Hermann's will often defend their territory against other males especially if females are present. I have also seen my larger, dominant females take on the actions of a male if a male is not present within the group. This will usually continue until a mature male is introduced. The females act exactly like a male would: ramming, biting and mounting any other submissive females present. This normally only takes place with females that are at a mature age and ready to be bred. I've never seen an inmature female act this way although inmature males do often when in either same sex or mixed sex groups.

 

[Yvonne G]

When Dudley was turned into the Rescue here, he came with a female who was one year older than he. He weighed around 35lbs and she was just slightly smaller. They were a breeding pair and had several clutches of eggs in their history. She was much more aggressive than he. He has never rammed me, but she caught me unawares many times while I was cleaning water or picking up poop. OUCH!!

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OOPS! Sorry...just saw that this was a Hermann's thread.

 

[Tracy Gould]

Shelby is 2 year old and measures 7.8cm, and will take food out of my fingers but if not interested she rams me if i push it and keep it there too long. she always swings her tail to the side when walking too i have a feeling she is going to turn out to be a he lol

 

[GBtortoises]

At 7.8cm (about 3") it would not be unusual for a young male Hermann's to act like a young male Hermann's does. They often begin to display territorial dominance at that size. At around 7.6cm (3") to 10cm (4") they are in their "teen years" and often act like it!
It would be very unusual for a female that young and that small to act like that. They're not typically noted for showing any type of dominance until they reach maturity.

 

[Tracy Gould]

At 7.8cm (about 3") it would not be unusual for a young male Hermann's to act like a young male Hermann's does. They often begin to display territorial dominance at that size. At around 7.6cm (3") to 10cm (4") they are in their "teen years" and often act like it!
It would be very unusual for a female that young and that small to act like that. They're not typically noted for showing any type of dominance until they reach maturity.

Ok thanks. I suspected Shelby was male when he/she arrived after watching how the tail was held but after looking at pictures people thought Shelby was female, I have been reading about ramming and thought it was a male thing so it looks like Shelby is a he but i will wait and see if i was right when He/she gets older. Shelby does not do this a lot its only if i push it with the food that gets Shelby mad and i get told to get out lol