Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Ive seen lots of russain tortoises in pet shops that are in 10 gallon tanks in bad condition. then I started talking to a friend which has made a sanctuary for russian tortoises. for full info check out the website.
http://www.testudointernational.com
testudo international

I find this activity admirable, and think its wonderful that someone lives in an area to do this on such a large scale AND is willing to do it. However, you cant always blame the petshop for the condition of the animals they recieve, or for not housing them in giant pastures until sold. Unfortunately, thats the way it is. It would be great for folks to go to Tortoise organizations/farms like this to actually see the optimum way to keep these animals. I would worry if these animals can always be accounted for and not establish themselves in the wilds of Iowa undetected. Still, I like the idea of the organization and wish it much success.

thank you Kevin.. I believe there is many breeders working with russians the perfect small tortoise. enough CB animals are becoming available and the WC imports will decrease. but the imports here now have a great sanctuary to call home. I know most of us rather buy CB and save wild populations.

I agree that it is admirable to have this facility. However, I don't agree with some aspects of it. As a tortoise breeder, it seems like "taking the animals out of the cycle" does nothing to reduce collection in the wild.
Why NOT collect all the eggs, hatch them, and introduce to the market healthy, less expensive animals? That is the one thing that will pinch off the wild trade. Growing up a few hatchlings for a year or two and then selling them wholesale to pet shops would do more than any wait for international laws to ban collecting.

Hi my friend, Testudo international is a non-profit sanctuary for the tortoises mistreated in the pet trade Imports. The Sanctuary has Rules. I agree breeding the tortoises would help eliminate most of the imports of this species.