How smart are African spurred tortoises?
In fact, they are highly intelligent and get restless. That means your massive tortoise will try to escape its area at some point. Or all the time. If you put them in a bottomless pen, they will dig under the fence and escape.
Is it legal to own an African spurred tortoise?
Before getting a new exotic pet, it is important to make sure that it is legal to own in the state that you live. You can be heavily fined for having an illegal pet. As for sulcatas, sulcata tortoises are legal as pets in California.
How big can African spurred tortoises get?
Its name comes from the overlapping scales on the front of its forelimbs and the 2-3 cone-shaped spurs on each thigh. The carapace of adults averages 18 inches in length, but can be as much as 2 or 3 feet long. These tortoises weigh an average of 70-100 pounds, but can weigh up to 200 pounds.
Do African spurred tortoises bite?
Tortoises aren’t like dogs protecting their space. In most cases, sulcata tortoises bite on accident while trying to take food from your hand. If you’re walking around without shoes or with sandals on, your tortoise may try to bite at your toes.
Do African spurred tortoises drink water?
Sulcata tortoises can have small water dishes in their outdoor enclosures. In shallow water, the tortoises usually begin drinking immediately and flush their systems at the same time. They need to be soaked outside the enclosure in shallow, warm water once or twice a week for 15 to 30 minutes to get fully hydrated.
How much does an African spurred tortoise cost?
Wherever you live in the United States, and whatever the climate, you can buy your very own sulcata in a pet store for between $50 and $200.
How big do African spurred tortoises get?
Are African spurred tortoises good pets?
They will wear grooves in the floor with their claws, dent the walls with their shells, and dig in the least convenient places. However, if one is equipped to take care of a sulcata, it will make a long-lived, interesting and rewarding reptile pet.
Before getting a new exotic pet, it is important to make sure that it is legal to own in the state that you live. You don’t want to get attached to a new pet to later find out it’s illegal to own. You can be heavily fined for having an illegal pet. As for sulcatas, sulcata tortoises are legal as pets in California.
Yes, tortoises do bite. While they are typically very docile and peaceful, they are able to use the strength of their beaks to bite each other, other pets and sometimes humans for a variety of reasons.
Geochelone sulcata is a hardy and personable species of tortoise. Native to sub-Saharan Africa, it became part of the lucrative pet trade during the 1990s. It has an engaging nature, is attractive and sells for anywhere between $50 and $1,000.
Do tortoises know their owners?
Tortoises are affectionate creatures, and they readily recognise their owners.
