I have 2 tortoises and they're around 9 years old. They really hate each other, lots of fighting and we've had to put a wall to separate them! Which sadly means we're rehoming one of them, and the person who is interested would rather a girl... but we're not sure what they are! Ones tail is long and wrapped around so we think it's a boy... The other's tail is shorter but also curls under and they're smaller... The place we got them from said they are the same age!
Any help would be gratefully recieved!
What gender are my Horsefields?
Re: What gender are my Horsefields?
Hi Jenny and thanks for contacting us.
What a shame that you have to rehome one of your tortoises, but I know that sometimes it's necessary. As far as I can see, you are right in your guess as to the sexes of the two tortoises. The one with the long tail is definitely male. The one with the shorter tail is probably female (they do curl their tails to the side sometimes), but could you send me a photo of the underside of the tortoise with the shorter tail, clearly showing the cloaca (the hole that they wee and poo from)? In males this is in the form of a slit or dash and is closer to the end of the tail, and in females it's more in the shape of an asterisk and in the middle of the underside of the tail.
Regarding size, tortoises are often like people -- the same age but different sizes. I have two female Horsfields. One is just over 20 years old and she weighs about 670g, and the other is larger and is 13 years old and she weighs about 970g. So size isn't necessarily relevant, but in general female tortoises tend to be larger than the males.
Here's an interesting fact that you might not know -- the reason that Horsfield tortoises don't have an 'e' in the middle of their name is that they are named after Dr Thomas Horsfield, a 19th century physician, explorer and naturalist who discovered the species.
Nina
What a shame that you have to rehome one of your tortoises, but I know that sometimes it's necessary. As far as I can see, you are right in your guess as to the sexes of the two tortoises. The one with the long tail is definitely male. The one with the shorter tail is probably female (they do curl their tails to the side sometimes), but could you send me a photo of the underside of the tortoise with the shorter tail, clearly showing the cloaca (the hole that they wee and poo from)? In males this is in the form of a slit or dash and is closer to the end of the tail, and in females it's more in the shape of an asterisk and in the middle of the underside of the tail.
Regarding size, tortoises are often like people -- the same age but different sizes. I have two female Horsfields. One is just over 20 years old and she weighs about 670g, and the other is larger and is 13 years old and she weighs about 970g. So size isn't necessarily relevant, but in general female tortoises tend to be larger than the males.
Here's an interesting fact that you might not know -- the reason that Horsfield tortoises don't have an 'e' in the middle of their name is that they are named after Dr Thomas Horsfield, a 19th century physician, explorer and naturalist who discovered the species.
Nina
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