As the title suggest i'm looking at getting one or two more horsfields..

the bigger deemo grows n the more n more i'm thinkin she is actually a he.
Put it this way, she was mounting a rock in a suggestive manner earlier.

Now i don't want to have to seperate Deemo n Kiara as up until now they've got along fantastically n lean their heads on one another when they sleep..tis rather cute. But i will do if necessary.

Now my main question is..do any of you know of any breeders or private owners who are wantin to sell on some grown on female horsfield torts.. 2-6 years old ideally.. Tho i understand sexing at this time can be hard work. They won't be used for breeding, but solely to spread Deemo's harrassment (if she is indeed a he) out so that kiara doesn't become ill.

I'd rather they be captive uk bred.but rehomes highly considered.

They'll be quarantined for six months after arriving so as neither the new additions nor the old additions can pass any pathogens. And if the owners would want to inspect the accomodation I can provide that would be fine. (just gimme a few weeks to get unpacked here first :P still boxes everywhere *sigh*)


Posted it here rather than classifieds as i dont want the 'i've got some available in my shop' n what not. plus atm it's just a consideration.

Would love some hatchlings however..even after six months they wouldn't be big enough to put in with deemo n kiara n it'd be unfair to expect them to not have the run of the outside


any suggestions greatly appreciated. I'm already a member of the tortoise protection group on yahoo..n as far as i can see it's only hatchlings that are available.
(ps sorry for essay just wanted to cover everything)
Katie

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LOL - I hate to tell you this, but female horsfields looking for new homes are about as rare as hens teeth

There are several russian breeders so perhaps a hatchling would be more readily available. You could also put yourself down on the TT adoption list and keep you eyes peeled for any that come up........they do, just not as often as other species and are usually in demand.

Hope I haven't burst your bubble and good luck, one tort is NEVER enough

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Phoebe

Keeping: Hermanns and Whitei's

no i didn't expect it to be easy. Figured more mature females would be in demand due to breeding reasons. I'd love hatchlings..but like i say..they wouldn't be able to go in with my current two for quite some time..n it'd defeat the point of me gettin them. As much as i'd love some for my own personal greed! lol


Katie

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Thats a bit of an understatement

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Well it was worth asking, as i dont want to go to a shop n get one from there theres a few around her who have grown on torts in but i refuse to buy from a shop again..so i guess i'm stuck.

And deemo tried mounting Kiara before bed..so looks like i'd better find an alternative solution quickly.n i aint rehoming either of them..they're my kids

Katie

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It could be just a dominance issue too Katie, perhaps once a pecking order has been established it will stop...........or it's a randy male <g>.

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Phoebe

Keeping: Hermanns and Whitei's

well we had this issue when I first got kiara..head jerking n bobbing. n then they settled down.

But deemo is becoming a lot more..well i dunno how to explain it...balshy? Plant pot to hide under or walk around..nope just charges through it..

n befriending the rock in that way was..intriguing to say the least n surely that cant be a dominance thing.

Poor Kiara tho she just looked bewildered n as soon as Deemo came off her she legged it into a hide


Katie

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If it is a male, then he isnt old enough to be sexually mature is he?

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Deemo approx age is 4. When we got her/him/it/shim we were told 2 years old. But theres no way in hell (s)he was 2 imho..much to big..either that or powerfed.she was from a pet shop after all. So at a rough guess i'd say between 4 (had her two years so if they're right then she would be this age) and 6 though i can't be hundred per cent sure.

And the moral of this story ladies n gents..avoid pet shops for torts like the plague! (back then i thought importation was illegal n that all torts in uk were ukcb...ahh how naive i was)

Katie

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Okay sorry for the double post but got this piccy (hated taking it as she/he really wasn't comfortable)

But as u can see from the pics..(tho not clearly sorry about crappy quality n poor photography skills..taken off camera phone)..there is an indent to her plastron.
Her tail is also very large. I dunno that combined with the mating behaviour is making me think male..please feel free to tell me i'm imagining it n thats the plastron of a female if ever u saw one!lol




btw i dunno if its of relevence but the indent in her plastron (concaved bit to left of pic) has becomin gradually more pronounced over the last several months. before it wasn't that obvious. N she has daily limestone flour n several doses of nutrobal a week..so i can't see it being something to do with deficiency..could it?

Katie

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