Reptile & Amphibian Forums

So for those of you that don't remember (probably everybody), I have a russian tort that I got in november, that is now about a year old (and 3.8" carapace length), and recently I wrote about a female russian that I 'rescued' (she is in perfect shape though, and 5.75" carapace). Just today I bought the final piece to the breeding trio...assuming the little guy does in fact turn out to be a guy...otherwise I'll have a good group of females.

This russian I couldn't pass up. She is large...probably the largest russian I've seen. She's supposedly 8 years old, but I'm assuming probably more like 10, but in terrific shape, aside from her beak being a little long. I got an accurate measurement on her, and her carapace is just shy of 9". Looking at her, you'd swear she was at least 12".

So the plan is to keep them altogether eventually. How large should the male be before I put him with the two larger females? I want the little guy to be able to get his fair share of food and basking, and I think at his size right now they would just push him around, so I'm planning on keeping him seperated for a while and introducing the females.

any useful input is welcome

I've got a very aggressive 5 year old male & a yearling together in an outdoor pen & they get along just fine. After discovering a bleeding leg on the hatchling after eating together, I now make sure they're separated come meal time. There are plenty of places the little one can get that the big one can't so I don't worry about them at all. I plan on adding a hatchling to the mix in a few weeks.