The College Dorm Tortoise

During my junior year of college, I was a complete mess. Fully occupied with the demands of working and being a full time student, I didn't even think of trying to own a pet. Taking care of anything, other than my mental health, was out of the question.

But to my suprise, adopting a tortoise changed all of that.

Never in my life did I think I would end up with this wrinkled scaley friend. Regardless, he came into the picture anyway. This love of reptiles was circulating around in the back of my mind, but I never considered myself an avid member of the reptile community. While I loved lizards, snakes, and tortoises from afar, I didn't imagine being the owner of one anytime soon.

In October of 2018, my partner at the time was putting up his newborn baby sulcata for sale. It was quite small for a tortoise, and very timid. My heart went out to this little guy, as I saw that he had no where to go. Naturally, I was becoming accustomed to his tiny claws and frowning face.

Should I do it? Should I? Well.... ugh fine. Bring him over!

-The dumb narrator in 2018

In the blink of an eye, I became the new owner of a baby sulcata tortoise. This baby tort was brought to me in a little Nike shoe box, munching on some flower petals when I opened the lid. He had a small rounded shell, a tiny tongue, and a curious personality. Of course, he was absolutely adorable! I loved him so much already, and became enthralled to get started with his enclosure set-up.

However...I didn't know what I was getting myself into. At all.

For this particular species, I found out that this was no ordinary house tortoise. The original owner put him up for adoption because he was going to be a very very VERY large tortoise.

My tortoise was expected to be around 80-100 lbs as an adult in the next 10 years. A TANK!

As you can see by this gif, this is what a fully grown Sulcata looks like!

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When I found this out, I became genuinely nervous. I didn't know how long it would take for him to reach this size.

What was I going to feed him?

What supplies did I even need?

How would I sneak a baby sulcata into the apartment style dorm I was living in at university?

Somehow, I had to make it work. This animal was in my care now, and I had no choice but to take on the new responsibility. Even if I didn't have a concrete plan, I would need to fit him in wherever I would go in life. So with that important job as a pet parent, I had to start by giving my son a name: Socrates!

Socrates, the college dorm tort:

My mental health in 2018 was very mixed, and I was alone for most of my days in college. What I soon discovered, was that having Socrates around was extremely therapeutic. My roommates loved him, he was doing well, and he kept me company!

I made so many mistakes as a reptile owner along the way, and had to meticulously research for the proper care he needed. Interestingly enough, his favorite foods would become part of my routine picks at La Casa Del Pueblo grocery store. Socrates loves wheat grass, nopales/cactus, romaine, endive, hays, hibiscus flowers, and so much more.

While I boiled the cactus for myself, he loved it too!

Bonding moments like these made me really expand on my love and concern for all animals that are left without a home. Adopting a tortoise was very different from a dog or cat. To show me his love, Socrates couldn't lick my face to say hello in the mornings. However, he showed his affection in a unique way!

When I was sad, he would sit close by or sniff at my hand. He paid attention to every detail about my life, and would get excited to share a meal with me after I came home from work. Within this tiny Chicago apartment, I experienced the full warmth of a pet and it was the most relieving feeling ever.

Despite the bumps in the road, me and Socrates persisted. He became my favorite therapist, a listening ear, and a loveable pal. From his first day home in my apartment, his presence encouraged me to learn outside of my school's curriculum. Socrates had particular needs, and this was work that I grew to fulfill.

Once I got the hang of a general care routine for him, I even started to attend multiple reptile conventions!

At these conventions, I learned about so many other tortoise species out there. For starters, I can't even remember how many hours I spent at those conventions total just wandering around and taking it all in. Everywhere I turned, I was in complete reptile heaven with all of the vendors available. While I was there, I made it an effort to pick up extra supplies, ask for advice from breeders, and stock up on infographics that detailed how to provide your tortoise with a good life.

With all of the help from my mom and YouTube's reptile community, I now run a pretty tight ship with him at my side! Socrates was my very first tortoise, my very first pet, and my ticket into a lifelong journey of reptile love.

Now that I am a super senior and graduating college, his role in my life has become even more influential. He is a treasured member of the family, and he even got his own instagram account (@socratesandmigi_).

With Socrates around, I have celebrated his accomplishments in every way I could think of. Even if I got a little crazy, I made sure I threw him a few birthday parties, special events, and acknowledged other milestones of his growth. All of these memories have made me incredibly happy, even though he isn't everyone's image of a typical pet.

Socrates has doubled in size since I first adopted him, and is on the right track to live for many years ahead. Luckily, he has even put up with me obtaining a couple more species of tortoises since I got him. Unfortunately, my love for torts has grown so much so that I purchased a baby russian and a redfoot quite recently. Their names are Migi and Tusk, and they happily live in their own homes right next to Soc!

All of the torts are very excited for summer to come, by the way, so they can resume chewing away at the weeds in my yard. Safe to say, we are all doing well here.

In conclusion: I love all of my torts. I am most thankful for my first, Mr. Socrates, for showing me unconditional love and what it means to care for another life ♥️