| I went to Minami-Gyoutoku near Tokyo to hang out at a friend's bar...met up with another friend, Orion, and wandered to his house in the early hours of the morning. There I met Chomsky, his dissident 5 year old Russian tortoise. I was hooked! In a kind of daze, I went to VIP Pets straight away, found and fell and love with Mikey. He's still a baby by Russian tort standards (these guys can live to be 50-100) and although it's not conclusive, I was told he was around 2 years old when I bought him (March 2004). In any case, he's six centimetres in length and has an extremely placid countenance...until he spies food! He spends part of the day in an indoor enclosure: two bookcases attached together, with the inner shelves removed. He has Timothy hay and an earth/sand mix to burrow in and rocks which he likes to climb over. He also has a sun-light and a basking lamp , which he lies under with his legs splayed out, as well as a dish to bathe in. He loves to roam around the apartment freely, following folks around in the hope of snatching a bite...of both toes AND food! He eats leaves mainly - different types of Japanese greens: komatsuna, chingensai, mizuna, shungiku, moroheya ...also sometimes red/green "baby" lettuce, cabbage, and spinach, although he also loves cucumber and the occasional carrot and bit of apple. I sprinkle a supplement (Reptavite) on his food every few days too. There are some excellent websites for tortoise care - check out the links below - my only problem is the availability of some of the products mentioned, as I live in Japan. He captivates everyone who meets him and is the love of my life! |
