desert tortoise

[halfwaynowhere]

I just brought home a little desert tortoise. His shell length is about three inches, and he's just about the cutest thing ever.
We do have an enclosed area of our yard that with a few modifications, will make the perfect outdoor tortoise enclosure when he's big enough to live outside. For now, he lives in a tank in my room.
I'm very excited to have him, but he needs a name, preferably something gender-neutral since we won't know if its a boy or girl until it grows up some. I'm thinking Charlie, but would prefer something a bit more original than that...
I'll post pictures in the morning, I'm too tired to drag out my camera tonight.

 

[JohnEDove]

Have you gotten your permit to keep one?

 

[myrmecophile]

I hope not wild caught..

 

[Shrike]

Now I'm curious too...was the tortoise wild caught?

 

[halfwaynowhere]

its not wild caught, its captive bred, and I obtained it legitimately and legally.

 

[Shrike]

Sorry...had to ask! Watching your new tortoise in an outdoor enclosure (eventually) will be a lot of fun.

 

[halfwaynowhere]

yeah, everywhere else I've been posting about this guy, I've been starting out by saying he's legitimate and everything, I guess I forgot to mention it here...

A friend had been given a few hatchlings, and i heard about it. So i started researching tortoises, including any species I could find for sale locally (sulcatas, red foot, russians, etc) just to make sure I was getting the best possible species for me. But with the sizes, diet, and climate requirements, the desert tortoise seemed like the best candidate for me. I wanted something that would get to be a nice size, without being overwhelmingly huge.
okay, so now that I'm awake, I've got to go get my camera and get some pics. I'll try to post those soon.

 

[halfwaynowhere]

okay, here are a few pics:

 

[Galapoheros]

Ha, he looks awesome. So is it a Texas tort or Gopher tort?

 

[halfwaynowhere]

he's a california desert tortoise, Gopherus agassizii.

 

[JohnEDove]

And your friend and you have the proper permits for each specimen?
You are aware that the authorities like the USDA watch sites like this one for major legal violations.

 

[Galapoheros]

As far as legal violations go, I was in hurricane Dolly and left soon after. I saw a few Texas torts on the road. I had time to stop and look at one before I was forced to move along by traffic. It was still alive but had a crushed shell. I didn't have time to save it from the next cars coming. What do you do in a situation like that. The legal stuff can be so "cut-and-dry" that it hinders people trying to help these animals, it's kind of frustrating. What I think they should have done is create a hwy that is slightly raised with tunnels underneath here and there that keeps these animals off the road, I know it would cost more money, they've done it in other countries. If they REALLY cared, that's what they would've done in the area with the major roads. Reason tells me that most get killed than collected. But protection from collecting is better than nothing I guess.

 

[dtknow]

Their are adoption agencies etc. for this species. So I'm pretty sure OP is 100% legal.

 

[T-kid's mom]

As far as legal violations go, I was in hurricane Dolly and left soon after. I saw a few Texas torts on the road. I had time to stop and look at one before I was forced to move along by traffic. It was still alive but had a crushed shell. I didn't have time to save it from the next cars coming. What do you do in a situation like that. .

I'm sorry you couldn't save it. However, if you could have scooped it up, you could have taken it to the nearest Wildlife Shelter or permitted rehabber. I volunteer for one in Houston but there are others around the country. In Texas you can go to the Texas Parks and Wildlife website and find a list of permitted rehabbers and shelters. I imagine that other States have similar listings.

Susan