I came across this article featuring Redfoot Tortoise intelligence the other day and it plays in to my preaching to everyone about having a large, well planted pen – but for reasons that may not be obvious – until now.
Redfoot’s are a very intelligent animal and the researchers discovered this quickly when setting up the touch screen testing.
A large, well planted pen affords you the opportunity to see Redfoot tortoise intelligence in action while enriching their life in captivity. And if you have a dog, as we do- three in fact, I can tell you our Redfoot’s demonstrate a far greater ability to locate various items than our dogs.
It partially explains why they come to associate various colored items as food, things like strawberries, hibiscus flowers, etc.
Lastly, the articles final comment is one I can’t stress enough. Tortoises are not dumb animals who are happy to sit and do nothing in a 20 gallon fish tank. You have to provide them a large “enriched” enclosure so they can use their native Redfoot tortoise intelligence and capabilities in order to live a long, healthy life.
Read the whole article.
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