hi,

i currently have two leopard tortoises and a hermanns all of which have been kept together until the hermanns hibernates but i have just inherrited two i believe to be greek thigh spurred , although i dont intend to house them together i am worried of cross infection as is raised as a concern on a lot of websites as different breeds carry diferent types of parasites ?, as i have two pens 1 very large and one smaller which i plan on swapping them inbetween so as they all have more freedom etc,  is it right to be concerned or is it more of them being in close contact ?

any info would be gratefully appreciaited

thanks Carl

Hi there Carl.Yes I feel you are risking ALL your torts by mixing species. Each could be carrying pathogens which they themselves can tolerate but which might be fatal to another species. You must separate them, and hope that no damage has been caused so far. Even when housing same species, a newcomer could cause harm, and that is why keepers quarantine newcomers for many months to ensure they are not ill. Tortoises can take ages (years) to manifest symptoms of illness. I do recommend that you read up on each species, and on general care, to ensure risking your whole collection. I would avoid all contact between different species, some keepers do take the risk, most regret it sooner or later. Hope that helps Carl. Sorry to seem negative, but do want to be realistic and frank with you.

Regards, David nr York.

hi Frank

the good news is they havent been in the same room and im not intending on putting them together at any point , i was just worried about them sharing a pen at seperate intervals ? i will have to put the 3 in the large and the 2 new in the small , it is still 8 x 6 but i would have liked them to have more freedom , my only concern now is the pens are next to each other , they are seperated and also the fact that my original torts have already spent some time in the smaller pen ? do you think ther could still be pathogens in the pen ?

thanks Carl

appologies , David got youre name wrong as ive been talking to my mate

Hi Carl
I would clean the pens out if you are going to put another species in the same area. As David said you really don't want to risk your collection, as they are totally different species. I would also suggest that you wash yours hand or put disposable gloves on when you handle each one, your shoes should be changed too if you are walking in the pens, sounds OTT but it really isn't, and a small price to pay to keep them all healthy.
Jane

hi Jane

thanks for the info , is there a safe disinfectant to use with torts ? i currrently use antibacterial fairy liquid but this wont be much use on the grass in the pens ?

beginning to wish i hadnt said yes to rehoming these now but unfortunately the owner has just died and they were looking for someone with a bit of experience with keeping torts !

thanks again Carl

Hello Carl, I would reckon that the cold winter will significantly clean up the outdoor pens and if it turns out like last year, that will help. I use Dettox on food containers, water bowls, my hands... and the rear ends of my torts, if they get fouled up. I always rinse well afterwards. I am just wondering if there are any safe gardeners/greenhouse products you might use which will kill pests and then biodegrade afterwards. Anyone help us on that one?

Long term you will have to consider difficult options...more pens, less species? I am sure you will come up with a solution...as so many discover, tortoise keeping is not that simple, but hugely rewarding and compulsive. Keep in touch Carl, plenty of help is available.

Regards David nr York

Hi Carl
I use F10, it is what the vets use, you can buy it on line, or from a reptile shop, good stuff

Jane  

thanks to you both again !

i dont mind making another pen up in a different area as the 2 new ones which i think are iberas are hibernating so ive got time to do it , do you think they will be ok if there over ten foot away and we use common sense on hands and cleanliness ? i use the alchohol gel from the chemists as i have bearded dragons , snakes and koi carp aswell as other less exotic pets

if i know there going to be safe in the same garden with care then il keep them if not i will rehome before hand

youre right about the joys of them tho ive only had mine 5 years and im addicted and my daughter now says she wants to open a sanctuary when she gets her own home , shes only 12

thanks again Carl

Hello again Carl. If you have the garden space, then you will be a good position to keep them all happy, and with good hygeine should be OK. When possible you might put photos on here for positive identification, if in any doubt.

Regards,  David nr York

Hi David

ive literally had a quick nose as i had to get them thursday due to the owners death and ive not been wanting to disturb them anymore then getting them to my loft to continue there hibernation , but from what ive seen i think they are greeks due to there colour and shape of there faces and feet ! correct me if im wrong but from what ive seen they have quite distinct features ?

im not even sure of there ages but theres one approx 18- 20" long and the others maybe 12" and a neighbour believes there approx 40 - 50 years old

quite excited now i can keep them in the same garden as im sure i can make it work on my behalf just hope they are in a good shape

1 last thing when would it be safe to wake them given the fact i have no idea of weight and body condition , mine go to the vets twice a year and i weigh them every month to monitor them

again thanks for everyones info , greatly appreciated

Hello Carl, I can sense your excitement and relief now. I would have no worries about getting them out to  weigh and measure, in fact you must! Most of us do weigh during hibernation just to be sure there is no drastic weight loss. I keep ibera tortoises, they are my favourites. Their fairly dark shells absorb sunlight quicky and they soon warm up even on fairly dull days. I would also hibernate in boxes of soil too, this is a great way of keeping them from drying out, and lessens temperature fluctuation too.

If you google "tortoises and Jacksons Ratio",it will allow you to see if weight of each new tortoise is within a healthy range. Report back if you have any worries, I am always pleased to help if I can.

Regards, David nr York.

Hi David

yes i feel better now , it was a rush decision but i was sure i wasnt that soft about caring about them but hence the questions i wasnt sure of just how bad or easily cross infection could be , feel a whole lot bettere now tho , ive got details on the jacksons graph as i use it for buddy , the hermanns when she goes down but will look it up for the new ones , i will try to weigh and take pics tommorrow and see if i can post them to see if someone can confirm for me

thanks again Carl

right ! well ive just taken them out to weigh them and got a few pics but got a bit scared as they really got active in just a minute or so !!! ,

 the temp inside the box is 8.1 c outside the box is 6.8 c they are in a lot of hey and my earlier comments ( fishermans perspective ) may be off all will become apparent when i figure out how to post pics but ! i would say the large one is 16" and weighs 2747g and the smalle one was 12" 1548g the smaller of the two is lighter and has a fair amount of yellow like a hermanns but she is too big to be a hermanns isnt she ? hopefully all will become apparent with pics tommorrow

thanks again Carl

ive added pics , hope they come up ? i couldnt actualy use the jacksons ratio as im not sure exactly of variety yet , but im sure someone out there will know ! , ive moved them in the loft so as to keep the temp down and ive bought a security camers to fit in the box so i can check them without disturbing them, is it too risky trying to swap them into a tray of soil now ! or just leave them as they are for now ?

thanks again for the support Carl

can someone let me know of the pics work thanks