Sulcata growth rate?

[Bandit]

Hey everyone,

So my girlfriend has been wanting a tortoise for a while now, and she came across some baby Sulcatas recently. I'm all for it (who am I to turn down another reptile :D). Our main concern is their growth rate since we are in a smallish condo right now and probably will be for the next couple of years. So how fast do these guys grow with proper care? Say within two years, how big is one likely to get?

[Aaron_S]

Hey everyone,

So my girlfriend has been wanting a tortoise for a while now, and she came across some baby Sulcatas recently. I'm all for it (who am I to turn down another reptile :D). Our main concern is their growth rate since we are in a smallish condo right now and probably will be for the next couple of years. So how fast do these guys grow with proper care? Say within two years, how big is one likely to get?

If you're in a condo I would look into a smaller species. Life happens and if for any reason you end up spending more than two years (which is still probably too long) the tortoise will suffer.

[Bandit]

Thanks for the info. That's the exact reason I asked...we'd rather wait until we're out of here to get one if need be. I think we are both in agreement that there's no rush to get one, especially if we can't care for it the way we should.

But just for future reference, how fast do they grow? I'm just curious.

[chairman]

They typically double in size each year for the first 2-3 years. Then they gain 2-4 inches per year until they hit the 16" mark. After that growth seems to slow to about an inch a year.

My 7 year old sulcata is about 20" or so. He lives in a heated barn surrounded by a 30' x 50' pen. If I didn't have that space I couldn't keep him. Once, when he was around 15", I had to bring him indoors for a week. He picked a corner to get comfortable for a nap in and absolutely destroyed the drywall in it. In his barn I can hear him abusing the plywood in his favorite corner from 100' away.

[Bandit]

Good to know. I spoke with her about it and I think we will definitely wait to get one. I mentioned looking into something smaller, but I don't think she wants to settle for something that she doesn't really want.

[jarich]

Also, keep in mind who will take over its care when you die. This animal will outlive you if cared for properly.

[Bandit]

Yeah I thought about that, but in reality we didn't get that far. We decided we are going to hold off. Once my girlfriend found out how big they get and how much space they need I think it kind of deterred her. She told me she may want to look into getting something a bit smaller, but she wants to hold off on any sort of tortoise until we get a house with more space and a yard.

Thank you all for the info. These guys seem like they are quite a handful.

[Aaron_S]

Yeah I thought about that, but in reality we didn't get that far. We decided we are going to hold off. Once my girlfriend found out how big they get and how much space they need I think it kind of deterred her. She told me she may want to look into getting something a bit smaller, but she wants to hold off on any sort of tortoise until we get a house with more space and a yard.

Thank you all for the info. These guys seem like they are quite a handful.

Indeed they are.

God for you to wait on it.

[jjhill001]

Check into the Eastern or Western Hermanns Tortoises they are cute.

[Bandit]

Check into the Eastern or Western Hermanns Tortoises they are cute.Will do! Thanks!

[SnoopySnake]

I'm glad to see people taking into account the needs of one of these before actually getting one, it makes me happy to see people understand what a huge responsibility they are.