Turtle Tea with TTPG

Welcome back to Turtle Tea with TTPG! Today's episode kicks off a special installment in our series, For the Love of Turtles, celebrating the dedication, accomplishments, and real-world impact of our members in turtle and tortoise preservation.

Host Wendy Montroy sits down with lifetime TTPG member Ralph Till, one of the founders of the Kleinmanni Assurance Project (KAP). Testudo kleinmanni, the Egyptian tortoise, is one of the smal...

Ask any tortoise keeper what their dream species is - and chances are their answer will be "Radiated Tortoises". In this episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, host Wendy Montroy sits down with longtime keeper and recent breeder Paul Rattay to talk about Astrochelys radiata, one of the most strikingly patterned and critically endangered tortoises on the planet.Paul got his start with Radiateds nearly 20 years ago, sourcing young animals ...

What happens when a self-proclaimed "cuddly cat person" marries a dedicated reptile keeper? In this episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, host Wendy Montroy explores the human side of the chelonian community with guest Tara Troxell from Arctic Reptile Ranch.

Tara shares her fascinating journey from being an anxious snake-sitter to a highly intuitive, primary tortoise caretaker. From navigating extreme weather shifts to mastering the stre...

Welcome back to Turtle Tea with TTPG - the definitive Turtle and Tortoise Podcast! In this episode, host Wendy Montroy sits down with Chris Leone of Garden State Tortoise to do a deep dive into the complex and often confusing world of Mediterranean tortoises.

Chris shares the incredible personal story that sparked his lifelong obsession with the Testudo genus, involving a 1990s flight from Italy and a tortoise in a purse, before piv...

Are leopard tortoises one of the world's worst pet tortoises? Or are they just deeply misunderstood, notoriously sensitive giants?

In this episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, host Wendy Montroy sits down with dedicated keeper and breeder Cliff Graham-Lee (Pink Tortz) to unlock the mysteries behind Stigmochelys pardalis. From navigating the confusing genetic mix of South African versus East African localities to the strict realities of ...

In this follow-up episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, Wendy Montroy and Anthony Pierlioni move from basic care into the specialized world of breeding McCord’s Box Turtles. This conversation goes beyond simple husbandry to explore the evolving mindset of the modern keeper and the critical role the private sector plays in keeping this species from vanishing forever.

Anthony reflects on his personal journey as a breeder, discussing ...

In this episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, Wendy sits down with Anthony Pierlioni of Just Turtles and The Turtle Room to discuss one of the most enigmatic and charismatic species in the hobby: McCord’s Box Turtle (Cuora mccordi).

Once so common in their native range that they were reportedly "more numerous than rocks," these stunning yellow-headed turtles haven't been seen in the wild for over 15 years. Anthony shares the soberi...

"There will be some bloodshed." Think tortoise breeding is all slow-motion romance? Think again. Forsten’s Tortoises are vocal, violent, and incredibly picky about who they date."Wendy Montroy sits down with breeder Stephen Sifuentes to pull back the curtain on one of the most aggressive yet rewarding species in the hobby. From the high-stakes "supervised dating" required to keep pairs from maiming each other to the surprisin...

They are violent, they are beautiful, and they will absolutely bite your toes if you’re not wearing shoes. In this episode, we dive into the intense world of Forsten’s tortoises.

In this episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, we go deep into the world of the Forsten’s Tortoise (Indotestudo forstenii). Host Wendy Montroy sits down with species specialist Stephen Sifuentes to discuss the highs, lows, and intense aggression...

Join us for International Turtle and Tortoise Week™ (ITTW) , April 20-24 2026! Host Wendy Montroy welcomes TTPG founder Russ Gurley and Ashley Rademacher, the Director of Animal Care and Education at Zoo Med Labs, Inc. ITTW provides FREE educational packets to thousands of students across fifteen countries. Educators of all types, homeschoolers, teachers, 4H groups, or after school clubs can register to receive digital downloads or...

In this episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, Wendy Montroy and Cameron Lamb discuss the practicalities of breeding and raising Three-toed Box Turtles. Cameron explains his preference for starting with hatchlings to better understand the natural history and care of the species before moving into breeding and producing offspring. The conversation covers the entire lifecycle, from the spring breeding season to the 70-day incubation period...

Ever wondered why a Three-toed Box Turtle might actually have four? Wendy Montroy and Cameron Lamb dive into the quirks and care of these favorites.

In this installment of Turtle Tea, host Wendy Montroy sits down with TTPG board member Cameron Lamb to explore the fascinating world of the Three-toed Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina triunguis). This episode is a special part of Podcasthon, an initiative where podcasts spotlight various ...

Unlock the secrets of breeding Bog Turtles as we break down everything from egg laying to hatchling care. In this episode, Wendy chats with Raul Gonzalez about the challenges and rewards of working with one of North America’s rarest and most coveted turtle species.

Raul pulls back the curtain on his breeding program, sharing everything from the subtle signs of nesting to the critical "penny-sized" hatchling care that follows....

Tiny, elusive, and fighting for survival - Bog Turtles are one of North America’s most endangered reptiles. In this episode, host Wendy Montroy sits down with Raul Gonzalez to explore the fascinating and often stressful reality of working with bog turtles (Glyptemys muhlenbergii), a species few people ever encounter, let alone care for.

Raul shares his unexpected journey into bog turtle keeping, which began over a decade ago w...

Flippers, snouts, and a reputation as the “holy grail” of turtles - Fly River Turtles are unlike anything else in herpetoculture. In this episode of Turtle Tea with TTPG, host Wendy Montroy sits down with longtime keeper Raul Gonzalez to explore the fascinating world of the Fly River Turtle, also known as the Pig-Nosed Turtle (Carettochelys insculpta).

Raul shares how childhood dreams turned into hands-on experience with...

Breeding padlopers isn’t optional - it’s essential. In this episode, host Wendy Montroy sits down with Dirk Barnard to unpack what it really takes to breed parrot beak tortoises successfully.

Founder of Tortoise Conservation South Africa and a keynote speaker at the 2025 TTPG Conference, Dirk shares hard-won insights into why captive breeding is now inseparable from the survival of the common padloper. Together, they exp...

Host Wendy Montroy welcomes Dirk Barnard, founder of Tortoise Conservation South Africa and a keynote speaker at the TTPG Conference, for a fascinating deep dive into one of the world’s smallest and most misunderstood tortoises: the common padloper (Homopus aureolatus).

In this episode, Dirk shares the personal journey that led him into tortoise conservation, beginning with a childhood encounter alongside his father in rural S...

Join us as we talk to Jason and Tara Troxell of Arctic Reptile Ranch about life with Galapagos tortoises. We'll talk about how they ended up on the islands to begin with (hint, it's not island gigantism!) and earned the nickname "Galap-holes". We go beyond the standard nature documentary fare to dig into what life with these magnificent animals is truly like. It’s a story that begins in an unlikely place, finding Galaps in Al...

Wendy sits down with long-time keeper and founding member of the Kleinmanni Assurance Project (KAP), Ralph Till, for a deep dive into breeding the critically endangered Egyptian tortoise. Ralph shares decades of hands-on experience, including ideal female size and age, seasonal breeding behaviors, how to set up reliable nest boxes, incubation best practices, and what to expect from hatchlings during their first fragile month of lif...