Reptile & Amphibian Forums

did you see the chaco in the kingsnake classifieds? do you still have your group?

matt

I did see that one. If it was a male I might be interestd. I'm having the damnest time with my group. They did great for a year and then crashed. The problem has been restricted to the males for the most part and it's ripping me apart. I've taken a few to the vet... nothing. I've taken a few for necropsy... nothing. They basically starved to death despite eating like pigs.

Very frustrating and expensive. I do have some new ideas that I'm going to look into.

Ed

>>did you see the chaco in the kingsnake classifieds? do you still have your group?
>>
>>matt
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

"They basically starved to death despite eating like pigs."

very strange. it sounds like a form of diabetes. i wonder if your vet could run something similar to a glucose tolerace test. it would seem possible to look at fasting levels of blood glucose (clip a nail for the blood), then watch glucose rise and fall in 1 hr increments following a big meal. or simply test the urine for glucose.

sorry to hear of the troubles. i've always wanted to get into chacos. maybe i'll wait until you work out the kinks.

matt

What doesn't make me feel too bad about the deal outside of the actual death is that they've been imported in large numbers over the years past and there are very few if any offered for sale. That has to make you wonder.

Ed
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

WHO IS IMPORTING CHACOS? Where are they? HELP HELP HELP please guys!It is supposedly illegal in Argentina to export Chaco tortoises, being a species native of the Chaco, NE Argentina. How in the world did somebody sneak them here?

Matt, I read your first message but Ed's response Chacos did not display in my computer. What was that stuff about eating like pigs and dying?

My 3 Chacos, who i raised since babies in my home country, were in excellent health for as long as I was there, sturdy as tanks and as adorable as they could be. They lived outdoors in the patio and balcony during spring and summer, stayed in the house in fall, hibernate in winter and did not use heating pads or lamps.

I had to leave my beloved Chaco tortoises behind when i moved to the US. Argentina did not let me under any circumstances to take them with me. Even though the species was allowed in the US with no quarantine. After a 7 year fight with the stupid government agencies as my friends and family trying to get them from Buenos Aires to CA, I gave up and I had to give them away. This was so sad!!! Back home people "tortugas" were as popular and available as dogs or cats, but people didn't know anything about how to take care of them. They just fed them lettuce and keep them around the house. There wasn't much information available either. I bought the only turtle book I found at the pet shop and when they were sick I took them to the zoo's chief herpetologist, who had office hours for the public. This species was not endangered as far as I know.

I hope that now there's more information and Argentines traet them as well as their warm blooded pets. Instead of being jerks banning everything the Argentine government should promote serious outreach. Breeders and responsible owners can save so many species and restore populations -bless their hearts.

Please, if you know anything about how to obtain Chacos here in the US let me know. I would love to have a pair.

Muchas gracias in advance...

TT

FYI: Chaco tortoises also occur in Bolivia and Paraguay...not just in Argentina!

Hey CB chacos will be available gradually. I'm currently having success with my 6 males and females. It's breeding season after all. I should have some available within this year or so.

Ed, I have not experienced the same problems, but I of course only have the 3.3. I'd like to talk to you.

If anyone has questions, email: platynota@yahoo.com

Good luck!!!

Aaron

Aaron,

Thanks for responding. I am surprised Ed did not respond to my message! I am neither a breeder nor I want to be competition for the breeders. I just miss my pets and was curious about how to bring them to the US. I'd like to have a couple of Geochelone Chilensis some day, and think it would be much easier and less expensive to get them there some day when I visit my family. Especially saving them from a petshop -Argentine version of Petco ! I also consider to buy cb in the U.S. as it is the right thing to do.

I am also an educator who works with international children in public schools. I do "bilingual turtle outreach" to educate kids about getting cb and not wc animals, and responsible ownership.

What kind of tortoises do you have? Could you post a picture please?

Mine were Geochelone Chilensis Chilensis, common name Argentine Chaco Tortoise, also called Common Tortoise -translated from Spanish. They are the smallest ones and exclusively an Argentine species. Their shells look a little like the Sulcatas' with light colored scutes bordered in dark brown.

There's also Geochelone Chilensis Petersi (Chaco Tortoise). It's slightly larger and the shell is of a smooth yellowish color.

Finally, Geochelone Chilensis Donosobarrosi (Patagonian tortoise) who is NOT a Chaco. A friend of mine had one; he (the tort -hehe) had a smooth black shell and was about 11" long. This is the largest one of the three Chilensis.

TT
1 Greek (Toto)
1 Hermanns (Tina)

Sorry, I haven't had much time to go down the list.

I know of one person who managed to export some chacos from Argentina about 10 to 15 years ago.

As an educator you might be able to use that as a reason to export some. All you have to do is give the Government a good excuse to let you do it. You propably can do it if you have the persistance and find the right set of ears to listen.

As to the different species... I believe in different populations and forms but until someone can tell me the time that is required for a population to be seperated to become a species I'll go with G. chilensis for now. I don't think size or shell smoothness are good character states for consideration, but that's my point of view.
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

Thanks, I'll give it a try... And the subespecies is just a theory too...It explains the differences why some tortoises looked so different from others. All tortus are adorable anyway!

Good luck with your Chaco torts!

TT
1 Greek (Toto)
1 Hermanns (Tina)