Russian Tortoises For Sale

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In our research, we came across some tortoise owners who were confident to leave their tort alone for four days, given it had enough food to last it till they’re back and that the temperature in the habitat didn’t require any manual adjustment.

Tortoise expert and breeder Ed Piroj on the other hand said he himself leaves his tortoises alone when he goes away for less than ten days: “They are reptiles. If they are well fed and well hydrated they can go months without food or water. Dropping the temperature will help.”
Visit that boarding facility, speak to that professional sitter at length about their past experiences, seek referees and testimonials of their services. Brief your friend or relative who’s agreed to look after your tort while you’re away, and ensure they’ve understood how to perform the care tasks you’ve entrusted them with.

This problem can be overcome by taking photograph’s of your tortoise’s unique markings, so that you know exactly what makes your tortoise different. You could also have it microchipped. You would of course need to ensure the pet shop knows exactly what markings differentiate your tortoise.
One upside of this option is that housing your tort in a pet shop is likely to cost a lot less than a specialist boarding facility. And compared to having a tortoise-illiterate friend or relative look after your tortoise, in a pet shop, it will get experienced pet carers.

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Some sitters charge per visit and based on what care they’ve provided your pet with. For example, pawsgalorepetsitters.com charges £13 for a 20-minute visit and £17 for a 45-minute visit that includes cleaning an enclosure. Prices were correct in May 2018.The greatest benefit of hiring a professional sitter is competence. There is little doubt that an experienced professional sitter will be able to give your tortoise the most competent care.

How cold is too cold for Russian tortoise?
If the temperature drops too low for too long, whether or not the tortoise is in hibernation, she can freeze to death. Approximately 45 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit / 7 to 12 degrees Celsius can be considered cold for tortoises. Anything below is very cold and can become dangerous.
Even though a pet shop might be able to house your tortoise while you’re away, it will most likely refuse to take responsibility if anything goes wrong.

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Another aspect to be aware of, a concern expressed by many tortoise owners, is that tortoises often look alike so much it’s quite difficult to tell them apart; especially if they are the same breed and size.

Do Russian tortoises need a water bowl?
Russian Tortoises are a desert species and should never have a water bowl. Constant access to greens and short, shallow soakings (3 times a week for hatchlings, twice a week for yearlings and two year olds, and once each week for adults) is their source of hydration. In the wild, Russian Tortoises eat grasses and leaves, flowers and some fruit.
When going away on holiday, as a tortoise pet owner, you have four choices in regards to tortoise care: boarding, friend or family pet sitting, a professional pet sitter, or leaving your tort alone for a few days. We look into the pros and cons of each one to help you decide what will work best for you.

If there is a particular aspect of tortoise care that you are worried could go easily wrong and is not essential for their well-being, that is, it is something your tort can go without for a few days, perhaps tell your friend to forgo it in your absence.
Many pet tortoise owners are weary of having an inexperienced friend or family member look after their tort while they’re away, however it is one of the cheaper options.

Specialist tortoise boarding facilities are also available, usually run by one or two tortoise experts who are passionate about tortoises, but there aren’t as many around.
A lot of small pet boarding services take tortoises, but it is important that you check they do before you make your way there with your tort. A simple internet search could show you all the pet boarding facilities in your area.A good way to ensure nothing goes wrong is to give your volunteer sitter comprehensive guidance about tortoise care, everything from food to heating and even bathing.

All pet shops are different, however, and if you’re considering this option, it’s best to personally check your candidate shops and speak to the keepers.
If there isn’t a specialist tortoise boarding facility near you, boarding services which focus on exotic animals or just reptiles might be easier to find. Always check to make sure that they do take tortoises. The RSPCA offers boarding for reptiles.

Can a Russian tortoise live 100 years?
Russian tortoises live to be over 40-50 years old on average. They can live as long as 100 years! As pets, they’re certainly a lifetime commitment—you might even consider who will adopt your tortoise when you pass away, as they’re likely to outlive you!
The one real upside to this option is that it’s free and that your tortoise is unlikely to be injured by a well-meaning but inexperienced friend or relative.Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.

In this article: Should you board your tortoise while on holiday? | Getting a friend or a relative to look after your tortoise alone | Hiring a professional sitter | Leaving your tortoise home alone | What about leaving your tortoise at a pet shop or your vets?
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Necessary cookies are required to enable the basic features of this site, such as providing secure log-in or adjusting your consent preferences. These cookies do not store any personally identifiable data. Tortoises require a lot of care and an experienced hand to deliver it. If you’re trying to decide who you’ll entrust with caring for your tortoise in your absence, for your own peace of mind, explore your options in-depth before you commit. A lot of tort owners feel the same as Suzi, but there are also those who seem to leave their torts alone for four to five days without any issues occurring. Some even say they feel calmer about doing this over having a tortoise-illiterate friend or relative look after their tort, too afraid bad care could often be worse than no care.

Can Russian tortoise survive winter?
These tortoises can handle nighttime temperatures into the low 50s without a problem. Russian tortoises do not need to hibernate to be healthy, so tortoises kept indoors and maintained at stable temperatures will never skip a beat while winter winds below outside.
Is your tortoise insured? Get a quote for £2,500 of vet fees, death and theft cover. Vet fee cover only is also available | We’ve been insuring exotic pets since 1996 | Check out our customer reviews on Feefo. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze how you use this website, store your preferences, and provide the content and advertisements that are relevant to you. These cookies will only be stored in your browser with your prior consent. Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics such as the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.You could also prepare your tort’s daily doses of food in advance; so all your amateur sitter will need to do is take them out and put them in your tort’s feeder. If you went for this option, you’d have to prepare properly. Owners describe various ways in which they prepare before going away, leaving the tort to its own devices. Some overfeed for two days before departing, others over-soak to help prevent dehydration in the days to come. “I would never leave a tortoise on its own for four to five days. I would be petrified that it would somehow flip over and there’d be no-one there to turn it over – in four or five days time you would come home to a very dead tortoise!We found prices from around £2.50 to £7 a day. Some places will require you to bring in your own food, others will simply give you the option to do so. Prices were correct in May 2018.

This is because housing pet owners’ pets is not part of a traditional pet shop’s business activities, and they are unlikely to have insurance to cover any issues that arise with your pet or to pay for legal expenses if a pet owner sues.Sadly, professional reptile sitters can be pricey. We found prices between £13 per visit up to £80 a day. Some sitters will be available to sit your house and your pet.

Installing a camera or two around your tort’s enclosure to allow you to monitor it 24/7 might make this experience a little bit less stressful and a lot more bearable. At least that way you can alert someone you know to go over to your place and take care of your tortoise if something goes wrong.
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Secondly, the next size down would be the more common Pardalis Babcocki leopard tortoise. If you’re looking for a medium tortoise, we would recommend considering the Red Foot Tortoise, Cherry Head Red Foot Tortoise, or Yellow Footed Tortoises. Looking for a very small pet tortoise? Lastly, consider the beautiful captive bred baby Russian tortoise as well as our eastern and western Hermann’s tortoise. Most importantly, tortoise town has a full selection of 100% captive bred, hand raised tortoise babies for sale as well as juvenile, and adult tortoises.
We have a spectacular selection of captive bred baby Russian tortoise for sale. If you are looking to buy captive bred, hand raised adults, juvenile or baby Russain tortoises for sale you have come to the right place! We also have the nicest baby albino Sulcata tortoise for sale anywhere. We also offer some of the nicest Russain tortoises anywhere of all Egyptian tortoise breeders.We also offer greek tortoises as small to medium options, however, Hermann’s tortoises by nature are much friendlier than greeks from our years of experience. When considering purchasing any tortoise or turtles for sale, please make sure they are captive bred! All of our tortoise and turtles for sale ship via FedEx or UPS overnight. Lastly, our turtles for sale and tortoises for sale arrive the following morning by 10 AM. Remember, when searching for any tortoises for sale, including a new baby tortoise for sale, tortoise town is your source for the best tortoise for sale , baby tortoises for sale , baby turtles for sale, and adult turtles for sale of any turtle store anywhere including a huge aquatic turtles for sale section. If you are interested in tortoise care, please visit our care section. Tortoise Town is a family owned and operated turtle and tortoise farm that is proud to sell ONLY healthy captive bred tortoises, box turtles, and aquatic turtles, chameleons, geckos, and iguanas for sale.Buy with confidence that your tortoise or box turtle will arrive overnight via UPS or FedEx, well packaged and insulated with heat or cold packs added as needed to provide a safe reliable trip from our tortoise farm to your home or business. We ship year-round to all states in all temperatures!With a Biologist ON SITE, we are able to ship our Russian tortoise for sale year round in all conditions. Because we use heated or cooled insulated shipping containers. Also with our enhanced shipping methods, we are able to provide a full live arrival and 7-day health guarantee. Lastly, our guarantee applies to ALL live animals including all Russain tortoise for sale purchased from tortoise town!Offering baby Russian tortoises for sale as baby Russian tortoise breeders, we are proud to have the largest selection of healthy, active and ready to ship captively bred Russain baby tortoise for sale online. Secondly, we offer well-started baby tortoises for sale and yearling baby Russian tortoise for sale. When considering a baby Russian tortoises for sale, or a pair of Russian tortoise for sale, be sure to buy from TT!

What is a Russian tortoise for sale?
Like all tortoises for sale at CB Reptile, our Russian tortoise for sale are all 100% captive bred baby tortoises for sale and come with our live arrival and FULL 7-day health guarantee. With a biologist on-site, our Russian tortoises for sale as well as all of our reptiles for sale online are the best available in the USA!
First of all, some of our most popular captive bred baby Russian tortoises for sale online plus many others, which include: Sulcata tortoise for sale, captive bred Russian tortoise, red foot tortoise, Hermann’s tortoise, leopard tortoises, and Indian star tortoises. Most noteworthy, if you’re looking for an extremely large tortoise, choose the Sulcata (African spur-thighed tortoise). Alternatively, look at the baby giant leopard tortoise, known as the Giant South African Leopard tortoise.Other species of tortoise for sale offered here include giant tortoises like the Aldabra tortoise, Sulcata tortoise, Burmese mountain tortoise and more. Medium size species include the leopard tortoise, red-footed tortoise, yellow foot tortoise, mountain tortoise, Burmese star tortoise and the giant leopard tortoise. Small tortoise for sale includes Hermann’s tortoise, Greek Tortoise, Indian Star tortoise, Pancake Tortoise, Russian tortoise and the Egyptian tortoise. Above all, we’ve got the widest selection of leopard tortoise for sale in the USA, including baby tortoise, juveniles and adult leopard tortoises for sale.

Because when you are in need of care tips, or tortoise care sheets please visit our tortoise care section. Also, our baby Sulcata tortoise care section has a ton of great free information regarding the proper care of your new tortoise or turtle for sale. If you are looking for aquatic turtles for sale, consider our slider turtles for sale, mud turtles, map turtles, river cooters or pink bellied side-necked turtles for sale. Our sister website offers a wide selection of other reptiles for sale including geckos for sale, panther chameleon, veiled chameleon, various species of turtles for sale and much more.
Most importantly, we strive to be the best baby Russain tortoise farm and tortoise breeders in the USA. In addition, we have a real biologist on site 7 days a week to provide top-notch care and nutrition as well as to answer any questions our customers may have about any of our 24+ species of captive-bred Egyptian tortoise hatchlings for sale. Trust us as your new baby Russain tortoise breeder.Reptile and amphibian food should be varied, which is why we offer an array of feeder insects for sale. It’s always far more cost effective to buy feeder insects in bulk, which often saves up to 70% off pet store prices. Plus, the feeders are delivered right to your doorstep. We offer live crickets for sale, as well as mealworms, wax worms, nightcrawlers, and now even lizards, all at the lowest possible prices. Our reptile and amphibian feeder insects and lizards include a guarantee of live arrival. Amphibians are generally slower-moving than reptiles, and have uniquely moist skin which means they are never far from a source of water. Their life cycle is nothing short of incredible: they hatch in water, spend weeks or months in metamorphosis, then become either terrestrial or remain primarily water bound. Some salamanders even breathe through their skin! Our live amphibians for sale online include frogs, toads, salamanders, and newts. Some are huge, some are small, and virtually all are amazing to observe in captivity. When you buy amphibians from us, you can rest assured they are fully guaranteed to arrive alive and in great condition. Why not start an amphibian breeding project today? Reptile and amphibian food should be varied, which is why we offer an array of feeder insects for sale. It’s always far more cost effective to buy feeder insects in bulk, which often saves up to 70% off pet store prices. Plus, the feeders are delivered right to your doorstep. We offer live crickets for sale, as well as dubia roaches, mealworms, wax worms, nightcrawlers, and now even lizards, all at the lowest possible prices. Our reptile and amphibian feeder insects and lizards include a guarantee of live arrival.

Amphibians are generally slower-moving, and have uniquely moist skin which means they are never far from a source of water. Their life cycle is nothing short of incredible: they hatch in water, spend weeks or months in metamorphosis, then become either terrestrial or remain primarily water bound. Some salamanders even breathe through their skin! Our live amphibians for sale online include frogs, toads, salamanders, and newts. Some are huge, some are small, and virtually all are amazing to observe in captivity. When you buy amphibians from us, you can rest assured they are fully guaranteed to arrive alive and in great condition. Why not start an amphibian breeding project today?We offer exotic reptiles for sale online at absolute rock-bottom prices, which means we make these fascinating animals available to you affordably as pets, or even to start your own reptile breeding project. We are reptile enthusiasts who believe captive breeding is integral to the future of the market, as it not only helps protect wild herp populations, but is an incredibly rewarding experience that tends to intensify one’s passion for these amazing prehistoric creatures. Whether you buy a snake, lizard, turtle, tortoise, or alligator, we are driven to provide the highest quality live reptiles for sale.

How much space do 2 Russian tortoises need?
An outdoor enclosure of at least 4 ft by 4 ft will comfortably house a single adult Russian tortoise while an 8 ft by 4 ft enclosure can house a male and a female, a male and two females, or two or three adult female tortoises. A larger enclosure provides more variety in terrain for the tortoises to explore.
As pets, they’re certainly a lifetime commitment—you might even consider who will adopt your tortoise when you pass away, as they’re likely to outlive you!Wild Russian Tortoises are more likely to die in natural disasters than captive tortoises. This includes storms, wild fires, flooding, and severe cold.

Can you leave a tortoise alone for 2 days?
“I would never leave a tortoise on its own for four to five days. I would be petrified that it would somehow flip over and there’d be no-one there to turn it over – in four or five days time you would come home to a very dead tortoise! There is also a potential fire hazard here as with anything electrical.
It’s thought that tortoises live longer than many other species due to their slow metabolisms. Animals who are less active with slower metabolisms tend to live longer than those who are very active with fast metabolisms. One example is the Greenland shark which is a slow metabolism shark that can live for perhaps 500 years. In the wild, Russian tortoises can hibernate for up to 9 months a year during winters. In captivity, they’ll generally hibernate for much shorter periods (between 2 and 5 months).The Russian tortoise lifespan is over 40-50 years when they are well-cared for. They can surpass this age by a lot, sometimes living to be up to 100 years old.

Handling your tortoise too roughly or exposing them to dangers such as predators can cause injuries such as shell damage, which can be deadly if not treated.Baby tortoises are most likely to be killed, but any tortoise is vulnerable if they are left outdoors without a secure enclosure. If a domestic tortoise is released into the wild, it will mostly likely die too. They are creatures of habit who have difficulty adapting to new environments. Some tortoises are known to live over 150 or even 200 years. While the Russian Tortoise isn’t one of the longest-living tortoises, they do live a long time—potentially past their 100 birthday! Russian tortoises are about one inch long when they first hatch from eggs. They continue to grow until they are 8-10 inches long. It takes a Russian tortoise anywhere from 15 to 20 years to reach their full adult size.We don’t know the average age of wild Russian tortoises, though they’re likely to live less time than pet tortoises due to their increased risk from predators, poor outdoor conditions, and other disasters. The oldest known living tortoise is Jonathan, a Seychelles giant tortoise that is 189 years old as of 2021. He was born in 1832 and lives on the island of Saint Helena. It’s estimated that the longest-living tortoise in the world was over 250 years old. However, this tortoise was not a Russian Tortoise, but an Aldabra giant tortoise. Other reports of tortoises have them reaching up to 344 years of age, but these reports are disputed.

Feeding your tortoise a bad diet, keeping them outdoors in cold weather, or failing to clean their enclosure for long periods can all lead to illness or death.
Tortoises are one of the longest-living animals on land, sometimes living more than 200 years. These magnificent animals frequently outlive their human caretakers and are known for their slow and steady approach to life.Of course, the leading cause of death in wild Russian Tortoises is predators. These animals might also get ahold of a pet tortoise who isn’t enclosed properly.In this article, you’ll learn all about the Russian tortoise lifespan—from how long they live to their top causes of death and how they compare to other tortoise species. Two horse field tortoises 4 years old. Really well handled and happy to be bathed and washed. They enjoy been petted and eat a variety of kibble and fresh greens. I agree Our site saves small pieces of text information (cookies) on your device in order to deliver better content and for statistical purposes. You can disable the usage of cookies by changing the settings of your browser. By browsing our website without changing the browser settings you grant us permission to store that information on your device. It is a very round tortoise when viewed from above, certainly compared to most tortoise species, generally with a flattened top to the shell rather than being high-domed. Its color is usually a mixture of tans and browns, occasionally with a green cast. The plastron is mostly black, and the skin color, including the entire head, is usually tan, dark gray or brown. Adult male Russian tortoises usually attain 5 to 6 inches in length, with females reaching 6 to 9 inches. Within our breeding colonies, most males are right around 5½ inches and most females range from 6 to 7 inches. Our largest Russian tortoise is a female about 8 inches long. It’s not unheard of for them to reach 9-10 inches, but this is not common at all. Like all tortoises for sale at CB Reptile, our Russian tortoise for sale are all 100% captive bred baby tortoises for sale and come with our live arrival and FULL 7-day health guarantee. With a biologist on-site, our Russian tortoises for sale as well as all of our reptiles for sale online are the best available in the USA!Baby Russian tortoises, as well as full grown adult Russians, basically eat the same things. A high-quality tortoise diet, that includes a good sized variation of healthy greens and some veggies is recommended. Most importantly, do not feed the same thing daily. Above all focus on quality and variation. Here at CB, we feed a mixture of Romaine, Endive, various lettuces, Collard, Mustard, and beet greens. Also, we include shredded carrots, squash, an occasional tomato, and a few other healthy veggies. As a supplement for vitamin D and to make up for indoor tortoise setups that do not have the best UVB when compared to outdoors, feeding Mazuri tortoise food twice a week is best.

CBReptile.com is a family owned and operated reptile for sale business that is proud to sell ONLY healthy captive bred reptiles for sale online. With a real biologist on-site, you can buy with confidence that your new pet reptile for sale will arrive overnight the following morning via UPS or FedEx. Our shipments are well packaged and insulated with heat or cold packs added as needed to provide a safe reliable trip from our captive breeding facility to your home or business. We ship safely Overnight year round.
Before selecting which size baby Russian tortoise to purchase, please explore our full Russian tortoise care section. Below we have a quick “Russian tortoise care cheat sheet” for your convenience. Caring for a baby Russian is quite simple, so long as you pay attention to all the important Russian tortoise habitat parameters.

Here at CB, we’ve got some beautiful captive bred baby Russian tortoises for sale. A baby Russian tortoise for sale is probably the most common small tortoise for sale in the world. Remember, Russian tortoises for sale online are usually WILD CAUGHT adults and NOT Recommended for purchase. Please rest assured that CB Reptile sells 100% CAPTIVE BRED baby Russian tortoises for sale online. The Russian tortoises sold at pet stores are almost ALWAYS wild caught, and are normally over 20-30 years of age and do not make good additions to your reptile family.

Where can I buy a baby tortoise?
The turtle store is your source for the largest selection of captive bred baby tortoise for sale and adult tortoise for sale . All of our captive bred baby tortoises come with our full live arrival and health guarantee.
Most important besides the food is the supplements you are adding to your Russians diet. We use a mixture of reptile multivitamin mixed 50:50 with Reptocal with Vitamin D3. We dust every other meal for our baby and Adult Russian tortoises.

Can you have a Russian tortoise as a pet?
With a relatively small size but big personality, the Russian Tortoise is one of the most popular tortoises kept as a pet. They are very active and responsive to their owners, and they make great first reptiles when cared for properly.
Any guarantees are void if you do not house the reptile, amphibian, tarantula or scorpion in a proper environment (ie. Keeping a Bearded Dragon in a Tupperware container is not acceptable). This includes housing the animal or amphibian with proper heating, lighting, bedding and accessories. We will ask for a photo of your complete setup if a live animal guarantee claim is made.If you ever have a question about a pet you purchased from us with regards to heating, lighting, enclosures, diet, etc. we are more than happy to provide you with our expert advice. However, we are not veterinarians and cannot prescribe or provide you with a consultation on medications. If your pet is ill you should visit your local veterinarian who specializes in reptiles and exotic creatures.

If a shipment is refused and sent back to us then we reserve the right to withhold the original shipping fee, the return shipping fee, any additional handling fees and a 35% restocking fee for any animals which are received back to us in sellable condition.
We are not responsible for any veterinary expenses or costs assumed by the buyer. If you choose to take any animal to a veterinarian or other animal specialist, you do so at your own expense.Big Apple Pet Supply uses the best standard of packaging to ensure that your reptile, amphibian, tarantula or scorpion will make it to you in top condition. However, should the rare event of a DOA occur Big Apple will replace the reptile, frog, tarantula or scorpion but shipping costs will be the responsibility of the customer. Under no circumstances are any animals or insects returnable or refundable… in the event of a live animal claim, replacement or store credit are the only options. Any incorrect address or shipment routing changes on the part of the customer will result in voiding our live arrival guarantee.IMPORTANT! Failure to read the terms and conditions of purchase from Big Apple Herp, whether intentional or accidental, will in no way be a reason that they are altered or void.

We are NOT responsible in any way for carrier delays of Fedex, USPS or UPS and under no circumstances do we offer refunds or credits on shipping fees due to late deliveries. At Our Discretion if your local temperatures are too cold or too warm we will ship your order to the nearest Fedex Ship Center for your pickup as long as that location is within a 15 mile drive from you. SEE WEATHER CONDITION REQUIREMENTS BELOW.
Reptiles come with a 3 day health guarantee after arrival and Amphibians, Tarantulas & Scorpions are a live arrival only guarantee. Guarantees on Live Reptiles & Amphibians are void when night time temperatures are listed to fall below 40 or daytime temperatures above 80 degrees. FROGS, TOADS & SALAMANDERS do not have any live arrival or health guarantees June thru August or November thru February.

When you order a reptile, amphibian, tarantula or scorpion from Big Apple Pet Supply you are going to get a healthy top quality pet. However, it is up to you to educate yourself on how to care for your new pet. Often, small changes in the reptile, frog or insect’s environment will correct or prevent health issues. When an issue appears do not wait to attempt to correct it as even a single day could make a major difference.
It is your responsibility to be aware of your own local wildlife laws and regulations. We will not knowingly send an animal in violation of any state or federal laws but the final responsibility falls to you, the buyer.

Big Apple Pet Supply makes every attempt to sell reptiles, frogs, tarantulas & scorpions that are captive bred. When they are not captive bred we make best efforts to notate in the option selectoin that they are farm raised (FR) and/or field collected (FC) species but are not responsible for any error in notation.
Depending on where you are in the world, you may need to treat your tortoise’s “winter” as anything from 3-6 months long in these circumstances. Readers in the UK will want to aim for the 6 month mark, while those in the mid-West of the USA, for example, can probably reduce this to 3-4 months.

To achieve this, you need to keep measuring the temperature within their vivarium or other enclosure. You cannot rely on measuring the temperature in the larger room as they will vary.

However, they can’t stand extreme heat and when things get too hot, they have to move into shade because not only can they not generate any heat in their bodies, they have no power to cool themselves down.

They may also enter a state known as “torpor” when they are cold and it is very clear that the animal isn’t at its peak performance, they move sluggishly and they lower their breathing, heart and metabolic rate to enable them to conserve energy and prevent themselves from coming to harm.
You must return to the fridge daily and open the door to allow some fresh air in. If you can’t do this, the alternative is to snip away some of the seal on the fridge door and run an air pump through the gap.You must, as we said, earlier ensure that the room with the fridge in never falls below 5 degrees too. A refrigerator can only cool things down, it can’t warm them up – so if the background temperature drops below the internal temperature of the fridge, the internal temperature will match the background. Your tortoise can and will freeze to death if the temperature drops too low. You also need to ensure that during the day that tropical tortoises have access to UVA and UVB light. Without this, they will struggle to properly metabolize the nutrients in their diet and will become quite sick. However, when the temperature drops (either at night, with a change in weather or change in season) the tortoise cannot sustain this temperature and its blood temperature begins to fall.However, a tortoise cannot enter torpor forever, if the environment does not warm up or the temperature falls too low (it appears that 2-5 degrees Centigrade is about the minimum a tortoise can take for very long) then the tortoise will eventually freeze to death as even in the torpor-state it is still using some energy.

Can a tortoise freeze to death? Tortoises can freeze to death but there is no reason for pet tortoises to suffer such a fate. Pet tortoise shouldn’t freeze to death as long as proper care is given. Hibernating outdoors in temperate regions is a risky proposition and even if your tortoises don’t hibernate, they should spend the winter indoors if it’s particularly cold outside.

Do not choose this method unless you live in a sub-tropical zone where winters are very mild. In this case, you prepare a tortoise for hibernating (starve them prior to the hibernation and bathe them) and then let them do what comes naturally.You won’t be able to monitor them once they are in the burrow, so, you will just have to cross your fingers that everything will be OK. Make sure to secure the area against predators though as this can drastically improve their survival chances. This is our favorite way to do it. Place your tortoise in a box (with air vents – it needs to breathe) in a temperature controlled refrigerator set to 5 degrees Centigrade. Put a digital thermometer inside the fridge to check the temperature and adjust as required. Well, it depends on how far the temperature falls and for how long. It is worth noting that tortoises are burrowing animals and if they are in their natural environment, they will simply retreat to their burrows and wait for the change to pass.Fortunately, a hibernating tortoise requires very little effort to keep safe and the best way to do this is to keep him, her or them in the refrigerator in a safe and sensible fashion.You should always refer the tortoise to a vet if it does not meet these criteria. It is very important to note that an underweight tortoise should not hibernate under any circumstances, they may not freeze to death while indoors, but they can still starve to death.A tortoise maintains thermoregulation (that is it keeps a healthy balanced temperature) in the wild, by moving in and out of sunlight all day long. Pet tortoises do the same thing if they are free to roam outside and if they are kept indoors they need to have heat and UVB (ultraviolet-B light) to simulate the outdoor weather.

What is the Russian tortoise live arrival guarantee?
When you buy a Russian Tortoise from us, you receive our 100% ironclad live arrival guarantee. Please read the details of our guarantee before ordering.
Approximately 45 to 55 degrees Fahrenheit / 7 to 12 degrees Celsius can be considered cold for tortoises. Anything below is very cold and can become dangerous. Let’s see what tortoise owners like us can do to ensure our beautiful pets do not freeze to death. The good news is that for a pet tortoise, at least, you can hugely reduce the risks with some very basic precautions. Then you need to determine whether your tortoise is a hibernating breed or not. You see not all tortoises hibernate for the winter, in fact, tropical tortoises generally don’t because in the wild, their habitats are never cold enough to require hibernation. A tortoise is an ectothermic or poikilothermic (depending on whether you like Latin or Greek more) animal as are all reptiles. That means that your tortoise is cold-blooded and as such it is unable to produce any form of heating within its own body.

The temperature during daylight hours for these tortoises needs to be above 84 degrees Fahrenheit (that’s 28.8 degrees Celsius) but the nighttime temperature should be reduced to no less than 54 degrees Fahrenheit (that’s 12.2 degrees Celsius).As a general rule, it’s a good idea to move your tortoise inside for the winter, if you live in a area with a cold winter. This would apply to most people outside of tropical or equatorial zones and may still apply in places within those zones.

Moving your tortoise into your home for the winter removes the likelihood of it freezing to death. However, there’s still some work to be done to ensure that the tortoises remain healthy while they are removed from their usual home.
Torpor is a survival technique and it comes at a cost. While it is used to protect the tortoise from extremes of cold, the price for it is that when the tortoise warms up again, they must expend quite a lot of energy to “come back online” fully.

In order to work this out, you should know the exact species and the sub-species of your tortoises. You don’t want to assume that a tortoise will hibernate if it doesn’t or vice-versa as your decision to help or prevent hibernation might have serious health implications.
That means if you do decide to let tortoises hibernate outside, you should make sure there is no chance of a frost, of heavy rain storms and that there is some security around the area to prevent predators (particularly rodents) from getting to the hibernating tortoise(s).So, whether it be a brief storm, the arrival of night, or the beginning of winter, the tortoise will head down in their burrow to escape. By moving underground, the tortoise benefits from the radiated heat of the earth whilst being protected from the extremes of the weather such as frost and wind chill.

You will see a tortoise arousing itself from torpor with shaking and muscle contractions that can last up to an hour. This is quite normal and it’s part of the process. While this demands quite a bit of a tortoise’s energy, the expectation is that it won’t cost as much as they saved while in torpor.Well, it depends on the condition of your tortoise. While hibernation brings many benefits to your tortoise there are some warning signs that you should involve a vet prior to hibernation.Caring for a tortoise is not an easy job and you may be wondering if your reptile companion can withstand every aspect of the weather where you live or whether they might be in danger of freezing to death if things get too cold? Here’s what you need to know.

This is why, for the most part, reptiles tend to be found in countries with warm climates. As you will know from watching your tortoises, they like to bask out in the sun during the day and this helps them to stay warm.Unfortunately, hibernating your tortoises is not a risk-free prospect. In fact, you have to be very careful, indeed, or you may do even more damage to the tortoise than you had intended to prevent.

Then you monitor the temperature of your tortoise daily using a digital thermometer (probe should be in the Tupperware box from the start) and ensure it stays safe. You can then put the box in an outbuilding or the garage or even in a cool spare room.
Can a tortoise freeze to death? Tortoises can freeze to death. A tortoise is a cold-blooded animal and in the wild, they tend to hibernate through winter to avoid extreme cold. If the temperature drops too low for too long, whether or not the tortoise is in hibernation, she can freeze to death.The box method requires that you buy a Tupperware box, make some holes in the lid for air, and place the tortoise inside Then you place some insulating material around the box (like dry soil or compost) then you place this box inside a bigger (it’s best if this is wooden) box filled with either newspaper (which should be tightly packed) or polystyrene chips.

You should perform a check-up on your tortoise when you purchase your tortoise. Checkups should be done so any issues can be determined early on, thus ensuring it’s health. The standard cost for a check-up of a Russian tortoise typically costs $30, though this varies amongst difference locations. Annual check-ups are recommended, to prevent any health complications.
When observing the pricing, it is also important to consider how the tortoise was cared for before you purchased it. The difference in care is the pivotal factor as this has had an impact on your pet’s happiness. The difference between the large chain retailers and local business, in regards to this aspect, is incredibly polarizing. As is common with most chains, their main focal point solely relies on profit and not much else. So with this in mind, it always pays to go for small and localized businesses as they’re almost guaranteed to be much more attentive with your tortoise.

When looking to buy a Russian tortoise, you can expect to find yourself to be a pretty happy camper when looking at the initial starting prices. Prices tend to hover around the 80-200 mark for a Russian tortoise. When comparing local reptile breeders to other nationwide franchises the pricing of a Russian tortoise can vary, though, so it’s wise to look around before committing.
The widespread fluctuations in price have a lot to do with the kind of tortoise that you choose to invest in, the location it stems from, and the way the tortoise has been bred can result in huge differences in price. When shopping around, a big leap in price is attributed to the way it is raised when in captivity. When considering your purchase, it is important to know whether you want a captive bred tortoise or not as this can have an astronomical impact on pricing. Purchasing a captive bred tortoise is a good choice for anyone who already owns a turtle or tortoise and is thinking of getting another.With Russian tortoises, it’s always beneficial to allow them to roam outside throughout summer, however, if that’s not possible than options for outdoor enclosures are always available. Ensuring that the minimum size for the tortoise’s enclosure is 48” x 48”, your tortoise will be able to roam around happily when outdoors.