Hi,

First off I would like to introduce myself. My name is Mark. I live in Foresthill California. I just moved here from Texas. My wife has family here and recently she obtained a Tortoise from her sister. Her sister didn't take care of it prior to us coming here so the Tortoise doesn't seem to be in very good shape.

We have got it to eat and drink and move around some. I researched and found that clover and some veggies are good in general for tortoise food.

Anyway it is doing better and is more active and I need to know what kind of Tortoise it is. I have never owned a tortoise and need as much info as I can get.

Right now the tortoise is in a fairly large glass cage with a warming pad thing under it. The temp inside stays between 70-85 degrees according to the thermometer.

The main thing I need to know right now is what kind of tortoise this is. At first I thought it might have been a desert tortoise, but I'm pretty sure it isn't because it was purchased from a local pet store a couple years back and in California apparently you must have a special permit to own a Desert Tortoise.

The only other type of tortoise I would guess it could be is a African spurred tortoise or a Chaco tortoise. I am not sure what kind of tortoise it is so I am glad I found this forum as I hope someone could help me out.

See attached images for the tortoise. If you need bigger images to identify it, let me know and pm or send me your email and I will email the bigger images (about 1MB a piece).

Thank you,
Mark

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Looks like a sulcata tort to me....be prepared for a couple things....first of all he needs UVB and pronto...and much warmer temps like 95 to 100 in a basking spot....be careful of the protein levels in tortoise food....timothy hays, grasses, and greens are a great diet for them....and also be prepared for the growth spurts...he will weigh upwards of 150 lbs and more....a bulldozer for your home....he will most likely take over your house and outlive you.....good luck and let us know if you have any more questions!!!oh and Welcome!

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Warmest Regards from Lyn

That looks like a sulcata.

on another note Hi and welcome to HC!

You will definately need to get a uvb light for him, and a basking spot that is higher than 85 degrees, I like to keep mine at around 95 or so .

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I have sucker tattood on my forehead

Thank you for the information. I just took and added two more images showing the bottom of the tortoise. The thing that makes me wonder is that it seems the legs of the tortoise are shorter than they are supposed to be. The bottom of the shell drag when it tries to walk. Poor thing, I'm surely going to get it strong again.

When lyn mentioned it needed warmer temps and UVB, that may be why it seems so sluggish and weak. A few minutes ago I took it outside because it's pretty warm here right now and let it bask in the sun and it seemed to enjoy it very much.

I am curious about a few things more...
1. How can I tell if it is male or female?
2. Since it will soon be winter here, and since it is still small, I want to recreate a habitat of sorts in the glass cage. Something to keep it a bit happier. What would be good bedding, good plants, what do I need to keep into consideration? I was "thinking" maybe using potting soil and plant some clover and dandelion and such in the dirt directly but I am worried it may not be good for it.
3. I'm not made of money, so is there anywhere (besides Wal-Mart) that an affordable basking setup can be obtained? There are no Wal-Marts anywhere within 100 miles or so from here.
4. How fast do sulcata's grow? I mean it was mentioned to expect them to get big. This tortoise is still very small to me. About how much growth should I expect a year?
5. I also noticed it seems that the shell is not as stiff as other tortoises I've seen. It doesn't appear to be damaged or anything, the shell looks normal. I suspect the tortoise was malnourished. I know at LEAST for the past 9 months or so the tortoise was in the care of my wifes sister who I don't think fed it well and I know it didn't get enough light and warmth. It has been in my care for about 3 days and is showing improvement. Is there anything I should keep in mind? Should I try to feed it more than normal since it may be malnourished?
6. It seems it also need exercise. It will be getting really cold here soon so I can't keep taking it outside everyday. Is there any exercises I could get it to do that will help it get it's legs stronger? It doesn't seem to have much motivation. I noticed it had a lot of motivation when I took it outside, but again, it will be getting really cold here soon.

I would like to thank everyone again for all the help so far. :-)

UV, specifically the B spectrum (UVB) aids in the absorption and metabolism of dietary calcium and phosphorus. You could be feeding the greatest diet in the world, but without adequate UVB, the turtle isn't absorbing any of the calcium and phosphorus that it is ingesting.

If you intended on actually planting anything in the enclosure, you would need to actually grow them outside of the enclosure and plant them in when ready. Otherwise, the likelihood of them not getting trampled or eaten before they actually grew is pretty low.

That depends on what you consider affordable. UV lighting for the most part is higherpriced than most other lighting. Last I knew, you couldn't even purchase any UVB lighting from Wal-mart, so I wouldn't be too worried about that. I suggest buying a Mega Ray. Their Self Ballast 100 and 160 watt lights cost $39.95. That is a great price for the quality and longevity of the light. You can check it out here: Mega-Ray SB 100 watt Self-Ballasted Flood UVB Lamp - ReptileUV

That is likely "soft shell" and is a direct result of improper UV exposure and diet. As I stated above, the diet could be the greatest now that you have him, but without a quality UVB producing light, it is doing him no good.

Hope I have helped. I couldn't answer all the questions as I don't know much about sulcatas.

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Rich has given you some excellent advice!! The mega ray is an excellent light and that is what my resident sulacta Oscar has.

Sulcatas are the third largest tortoise in the world,, my Oscar who is now 8 weighs 40 pounds. He is a rescue and should weigh a lot more,, if that gives you any idea

Good luck and keep us posted!

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I have sucker tattood on my forehead

Well, after much consideration, I am thinking of seeing if CTTC can take in and find a good home for this tortoise. I know I can take care of it now while it is small but there is no way I can provide for it what it needs once it has grown.

I can say that this encounter with this tortoise makes me want to get a (smaller) tortoise for my own. I really enjoyed and still enjoy taking care of this tortoise. However, I still feel there can be found a better home for this tortoise.

I would offer the tortoise on here, but I'm pretty sure nobody lives around this area and besides, CTTC seems like they can find a good home.

I'll keep everyone posted... I just emailed CTTC and awaiting response.

keep it. When it gets big, its sort of like having a dog. you can train it to go potty in a pan of water, like a cat litter tub, and you can set up a basking light in a corner for it.

Then it gets to ram you when you don't bring it dinner fast enough. My cats do the same thing

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My name is Liz
Do what's best for the animal, not what's best for you.

Just for that Liz I am sending you Oscar in the mail,,,teach you to make fun of me, lol

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I have sucker tattood on my forehead

awww, i would love oscar!!! I could put the frogs on his back and they could go along for the ride.

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My name is Liz
Do what's best for the animal, not what's best for you.