Starting over

[tkoehle]

Hey I did not have a good experience with a leopard tortoise last year. So I decided to hike up my skirt and start over. I am new to the tortoise keeping hobby. But I have kept reptile all my life. I would just like to know what tortoise is great for beginners.

 

[wellington]

Sorry about your leopard experience. The most recommend for beginners is the Russian, Hermanns and Greek. Read all you can on here about the one you pick. Get your set up correct and buy from a reputable breeder that raises them right and you should have a better time at it. Good luck

 

[Tom]

Hey. I'm all for skirt hiking...

I suspect your problem was not your species choice, but instead either the origin or your tortoise, or your set up. Your avatar shows one of those "red" bulbs. Those are a no go for me. They can cause all sorts of problems. Also, most people buy their leopard tortoise babies from breeders who start them much too dry. The result of this is often death, but not until weeks or months later when everything "seemed" fine.

Leopards are a great species to start with, but there are a few pitfalls to avoid.

I think the first step is to determine what went wrong the first time, and correct that mistake. Read these and see if you see your problem.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-23493.html
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-79895.html

 

[tkoehle]

Thanks for the advice

 

[ascott]

Pancake Tortoise.

 

[Moozillion]

As a newbie I started with a 4 inch long Hermann's. So she would have been about 3 years old. She was well past that fragile hatchling stage that can be so heartbreaking sometimes, but still plenty young. I've had her a year and a half- she still has lots of growing yet to do and comes to me whenever I'm near. I HIGHLY recommend both the Hermann's tort AND one that's past the hatchling stage. Best of luck, whatever you decide!