About Our Tortoises
These are our wonderful torties, Bob and Sabby. They are Russian tortoises (Testudo horsfiedii)
which are native to
the deserts of Afghanistan, Northern Pakistan, Northern and Eastern Iran, North Western China and the Soviet territory Kazakhstan.
Since Bob and Sabby were both rescued we know little about their early lives. Bob
has had several homes and was once a classroom tortoise. He is very popular with children! Bob is quite the escape artist and
loves to explore his environment.
Sabby was injured in some type of accident. We heard second hand that she was hit by a car
and was never taken to the vet. Although her shell has been broken in many places, she continues to eat like a champ.
She weighed 13.6 ounces the day we got her and now she weighs over 20.1 ounces. Her shell is also beginning to heal
and grow. The sections of dead shell are coming off and her scutes are expanding. Sabby's spirit is amazing.
Russian tortoises are strict vegetarians. We try to give them a wide variety of veggies
to ensure that they are getting all of their vitamins and minerals. Some staples in their diet include red and
green leaf lettuces, dandelion, and zucchini. They are definitely picky eaters. Bob likes jicama so much that we
can't feed it to him anymore!! Sabby has a much larger appetite and can eat Bob under the table any day of the week.