The Tortoise Table

Hi, and welcome to The Tortoise Table. And many congratulations on rescuing this little Horsfield and giving him a good home! Normally we wouldn't recommend brumating in the first year, because it's important to get to know your tortoise, so that you can spot if he is off colour in any way, but as y...

Hi Yossarian, Many thanks for your response, and I'm grateful for the information you've provided. Lin and I have also seen the photo you attached (is it from the Tortoise Forum?). Anyway, we did discuss this at the time, as it was slightly puzzling that the tail on this tortoise isn't a bit longer,...

Mel and Zach weren't able to upload their photos, as they needed to be reduced in size first, so we've done that, and here are some photos of the delightful Tiny (who is less tiny now than when we first met him!). The photos show how adventurous he is (getting stranded on top of a flower pot and try...

Hi Mel and Zach, I just realised that I never got notified about your last post (from 12th October), so really sorry that I never responded to it and I have only just seen it! That's amazing about your cousins also having tortoises. I have to say that I am firmly on Zach's side about Tiny being his ...

My goodness --there'll be no stopping him now, and he's got your good care to thank for this! You should be really proud of how he's progressed.

Nina

Hi Kimberley, It's great to hear from you and I hope that everything is safe and well in The Netherlands! I remember very well the lovely enclosure that you built for Timmie, with many plants and 'furniture' to interest him, and it's so good to hear that he is growing up to be strong and well. My tw...

Sounds perfect!! Happy foraging!

Nina

Hi Claire,
Oops, I just added something to my post about collecting a bit of seed from that plant --- have a look I'm well and hope that you are too!!

N x

Yes, that definitely looks like one of the Mallows (probably Musk Mallow) to me. Some of those seed heads look ready to collect. Why not take a couple of the brown individual pods off and sow them in a little space in your garden and mark it with a stick or something. They do germinate and self seed...

Oh wow, that is brilliant news -- and thanks so much for the update! It sounds like he has turned a corner and I hope he decides to behave himself and grow properly for you.

Cheers,
Nina

Hi Marsha, Great to hear from you and thanks so much for the photos! Your set-up looks really good -- lots of interest for him. At the risk of causing a domestic dispute in your household, my opinion is that it is good to keep moving the 'furniture' in his tortarium (love that name) around. I think ...

That's great to hear -- and thanks for updating us!

Nina

Hi Claire, I'm really sorry, but I can't remember if you were thinking of hibernating him this year (I could look back through old threads but don't have time at the moment). I'm assuming that you aren't hibernating him, which is fine, because if you were then you would need to wait a couple of mont...

Hi Claire, As far as I can see, both Marbocyl and Baytril are fluoroquinolone antibiotics used to treat various bacterial infections. I've had a little look and I think Marbocyl is a good choice as there are some instances (not many though) of tortoises having an allergic reaction to Baytril http://...

And I've done some further checking and females do sometimes flash their clitoris, so Lin was right about females sometimes flashing. Has it gone back in yet?

Nina

Hi Suzanne, It was good that Lin could ID these, because it is really, really difficult to ID a plant from individuals leaves that have been removed from the plant and laid on a table, and I couldn't have ID'd them. Loads of different plants have leaves that look really similar in isolation, so we n...

I couldn't see clearly enough from your photo if this is a male tortoise's penis, which is perfectly normal, and they do 'flash', or whether this is a female tortoise with an intestinal or cloacal prolapse, and that is not normal. As far as I know female tortoises don't 'flash' but can have prolapse...

Yes, that looks excellent to me, and it comes with a reflector too, which is great. Yes, you can get UVB meters, but I think they are pretty expensive. I've always wanted one, but I have a really good reptile shop near me and I take mine in and he tests it for me, so I haven't bothered to buy one. L...

Thanks from me too, Lin. That looks great! I've printed off the .pdf you sent me and am going to use yours instead of my hand-drawn ones this year. Thanks, Debbie!

Nina

I think adults are usually between 15cm - 25 cm, but most don't grow much larger than 20cm and they do differ -- just like people do. My Dolly (who is 11 years old) is 17cm, but Doris (who is 17 or 18 years old) is only 15cm, and they are both probably close to their maximum size now. So that is the...

Lol, feel free!

Nina

Hi Suzanne, Let's see what others say, but I think your design looks really good, and a good size for him too. Your upper level at 30cm deep looks fine. Mine is 45cm and it is way more than they need, and I would reduce the size if I could. And of course the area underneath mine is much too big for ...

So glad you decided to keep him -- it was the right decision for you and for Turbo, as you have made him such a nice home!

Cheers,
Nina

So glad it's been useful! I'm struggling to keep mine awake too, so will start winding them down as soon as I make the chart for this year (project for today!).

Nina

Aww, such a lovely photo -- and I agree with Lin that he will probably educate you in the ways of winding down and hibernating. How long are you winding him down for, and are you keeping a record of the diminishing hours of light and heat during wind down? I agree with Lin that the most important re...