Meet the Animals: Russian Tortoises!!

Tortoises are such sweet, adorable animals! :) We have 3 Russian tortoises who live in a large, custom tortoise table in my daughter's room. They share their habitat with some neat beetles who love to eat grasses and dandelions almost as much as the tortoises do!

This beautiful girl is Era. She is our newest Russian tortoise. We provided a new home for her when her previous owner could no longer care for her. She is the most outgoing of the group. When we take the trio outdoors for a bit of Colorado sun and fresh grass, she is always the first to start chomp'n away and exploring. She is also the largest of our Russian tortoises. Her hobbies include eating grass, wandering around in the yard (supervised, of course) and digging in her substrate.

This cute little girl is Ages. She is also a rescue tortoise who needed a new home. Ages is our most "reserved" Russian tortoise; she's a little on the shy side. When we take the tortoises out, she is usually the last to venture out of her "shell" and explore. Once she gets moving, though, she really gets moving! One sunny, Sunday afternoon when we brought the tortoise trio out in the yard, one of my daughters followed her around for about an hour as she "speedily" crawled from one end of the yard to the other and back again. Ages is our smallest Russian tortoise and likes to be held, hide under things and bask in the spot light, when the other two tortoises aren't hogging it up.

This is Eon, our very first Russian tortoise. Sebastian got him for his 8th birthday from a pet store...something we don't really recommend. It's much better to rescue an animal in need than purchase one from a pet store, but, way back then, we did not realize how many animals like Eon were in need of new homes. Eon is a very confident tortoise who, in spite of Era's boisterous personality, is the leader of our Russian tortoise trio. He has enjoyed a wide variety of habitats since we brought him home, including a large storage tub, a small train table turned tortoise table, a huge fish stand turned tortoise table and now, the trio's permanent home, a custom built tortoise table with a viewing window and second-level watering hole. Eon has a few scars on his carapace (shell) from an old Golden Retriever who thought he might be a fun rock to chew on. Eon was a little bewildered at this encounter, but seems emotionally fine now. :) Eon's favorite food is romaine lettuce (an occasional treat for the tortoises during the winter) and he has learned to "beg" for food when he sees us come into the room. He enjoys the great outdoors (after an initial warm up period) and nice long soaks in a bowl.

Tortoise make great, long-lived pets. In our opinion, they are the best pet reptile to have! They are relatively easy to care for (proper lighting, moisture and diet are very important) and fun to watch. They do live for a long time, so be prepared to care for them for decades. Some people have even needed to leave their beloved pet tortoise in their will to someone who can care for it!