Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Once I finally finish Goliaths outdoor cage I was thinking of getting a new box turtle to go with him, but have heard contradictory opinions of keeping more than one male together and figured I'd ask what other peoples experiences were. This is rather off topic, but I was also wondering if anyones been having trouble with their turtles hibernating in this weather we've been having. I'd don't know about other places, but in Ohio (with windchill included)it dropped down to around -20 these last couple days and only about 2 or 3 weeks ago it was in the mid-sixties.

If I do get another one would it be alright to place a three-toed with an eastern since they have similar care requirements. I'm not sure if I want to put up with Ohio's stupid pit-tag law regarding easterns.

Two males ,1 on 1, is a tough ratio. There's a lot of potential for domination. I think I'd build another pen if I were you.

As far as the different subspecies...it depends on the individual animals. Easterns are typically larger, but my Three-toes are much more "aggressive". If I ever have a pit fight, I'll let you know who wins. I have a feeling that they'd just stare at me in confusion...or in anticipation of a snack. Most of mine are pretty indifferent towards each other, except when I add a sub-adult to the colony. "Hey, who's the new guy/gal?"

It's best to have at least two females for every male in a colony to act as "buffers". In theory, no one animal will get all of the aggression from bullies.

In your situation, you'd have to either deal with pit-tags or figure out what to do with possible Eastern/Three-toe intergrades if you set up a sexual colony.

If you mix Three-toes and Easterns, it is a good idea to have regular fecal exams, with or without deworming, performed by a Vet. (1-2X per year).

It's a tough call, and it's a judgement on your part.

Here's a tip I learned when breeding Leopard geckos. Now, I use it for my very aggressive NA Wood turtles. If you're creating a 1 on 1 situation, you want to try to provide a neutral location. You don't want one animal to feel as if it's territory is being invaded by an intruder. Overhaul your pen immediately before adding a new individual...move things, replace dirt and leaves, place new structures within. Your Eastern will act as if he's in a new environment, and he may be less protective of his new home. It's a level playing field of sorts.

Let us know what you decide. Good luck.

I believe Bill Tracy keeps his male easterns together, you could try e-mailing him.
his site is linked below.
I realise your male isn't an eastern but asking Bill could give you some insite on the matter.
http://billsboxturtles.com/

I can't really report that there have been any problems.
We've had really up and down weather here in central VA, too, but my easterns are all still 'under': they did not come up during the very warmest spell we had, either.

I've heard conflicting things about keeping males together, too, and I don't really know much about Three toeds. No input from me on that subject..

You wouldn't want your existing turtle to catch something! Just look through the last few post and you can see what awful things can happen.

I wouldn't put 2 males together in a confined space.
Years ago when I was a kid who didn't actually keep turtles.. we had some box turtles in our backyard.. this was so long ago that I think they were there when we moved into that house but I'm not sure about that.
My Dad walked outside one morning to find that one male had knocked another over & was holding him down in the hot sun.
My Dad broke it up but if he hadn't come along & done that.. there very possibly could have been a dead turtle.
Now that we have Hobo here & Chip even though he's a patient.. they certainly do have a much more aggressive 'tude than the females do.
Hobo & Chip have seen one another before they did a lot of aggressive posturing when they did see each other.
They aren't going to see one another again.
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PHRatz

I have had two males together for about three years now, and I live in Northeast Ohio. My turtles live in a garden about 7 to 8 months out of a year. Never had a problem with them actually fighting our anything to aggressive, on occasion one or the other will think the other is a female. At most it’s rather entertaining as they end up eating and sleeping together. I would suppose that all turtles will have their own little agendas and I guess it is just subjective as to how they get along.
The other 4 months out of the year they live inside in a 2 x 4 foot pen with bed of beast for bedding and heat rocks they lay on. For the most part they kind of semi hibernate sleeping for several days then waking up and eating, and soaking in tubs for a few hours before going back to sleep. I personally put vitamin E oil on there shells and body about once or twice a month to insure their humid moisture
balance. I have had this arrangement for 6 years now plus their regular visit to a
veterinarian. They seem fine and one of them will actually come to you when you pat the floor near him. Perhaps there might be some information here for your query. Best of luck.

Alan

I reiterate I will not press 1 for english

I have three males together. Two get along great. However, they like to pick on the other one. He was a new addition this year, so I'm hoping that when they come up from their cool down that they will start fresh and hopefully stop picking on him. Basically, you can have males together, but make sure that if you do you have multiple visual barrier/places to hide for the turtles.