Tortoises 🐢

[BritishIdiot]

I'm am considering getting one maybe 2. I have been doing much research and they sound ideal. But from your personal perspective are they hard work? Are they happier on their own or with a mate? Are they messy or do they poo in one corner? I have plenty of secure outside space and a space in the conservatory. Oh do they smell?

Have one, have had him for nearly 5 years, happy on his own, he is a Russian( Horsfield ). As bought young he needed special vivarium with heat lamp. Tortoise himself not smelly but obviously they do poo and that is smelly! We do not hibernate him.
Loves being outside in the garden roaming free on a warm day. Eats fruit and veg but loves dandelions and weeds. Can become quite friendly and they like your company. Can totally recommend.

I have a Horsfields as well, he’s been in an indoor enclosure with light since tiny (we actually use a large rabbit cage so same effect as tortoise table, but cat proof!) he’s fairly low maintenance as pets go. Need to buy expensive bulbs every 6-12 months. Worst smell is if he manages to mush his food (greens) into his water bowl and you don’t notice to clean it up the same day; by the next morning it’s pretty funky wet rotting vegetation as it was under a light I guess so mankifies faster. We put his food the other end of the enclosure from his water dish but sometimes he seems to drag the food all around with him!

Now he’s bigger and we have a garden, I’m planning on building an enclosure for him into my new greenhouse, so the indoor section is inside the greenhouse with a secure outdoor section (Horsfields can dig) with a little door in the side of the greenhouse between the two. That’ll be great for most of the year he’ll go in/out as he pleases; we still might need to bring him in when it’s very cold for a few weeks, and in the height of summer might have to lock him out if it gets too hot in there!

I have two Hermann tortoises. They need cleaning out every 2-3 months ie substrate completely replacing and you just remove poo as it occurs (they poo wherever, mine often do it in their water). They don't really smell unless - as a pp concurs - they drag their food into their water. Mine are diggers too and I'm adapting a greenhouse for them atm to give them a bigger home. They currently live in a v large table and have 3 separate areas: one for sleeping; one for basking under a lamp and one for eating/playing. They are happy together as they've been raised together but they're happy alone tbh and pairs can become unhappy. You also have the issue with Hermanns (not sure about others) that they're really hard to sex and don't mature sexually until they're 4 or 5 so you can accidentally end up with an extremely incompatible pair.

They're lovely pets. V friendly, love a head scritch and a bath, come when called and have their own little personalities. I have a sweet and docile one and a feisty climber.

My friend is over 69 and has had one of hers since she was about 7. I don't know much about they live but she hibernates for 6 months of the year in a box in the garage.

Over 60!

My mom has had hers for nearly 60 years too. I’m not sure which sort - it’s grey.
Hibernates from October to March when it sleeps in a straw filled box in the garage.
During summer it wanders around the garden. It has a shelter but sometimes chooses to sleep under the trees and shrubs.
Eats peas, beans, cucumber, lettuce, dandelion leaves, etc.
Pretty low maintenance. But not very cuddly or interactive!

We have 2 who are 3 and 1 1/2. They do need to be looked after properly and have the right lighting, temperature, space, vitamins and food (certain weeds and flowers, not peas or beans).

They can be messy within their tortoise table but it doesn’t spread outside of it. They poo anywhere but especially in their water bowl 🙄 and they tend to drag their food around their enclosure with their bellies.

They are not smelly but need to live on soil which can smell a bit musty.

They’re entertaining to watch but not cuddly of course. My little one is an attention seeker and will stretch her head out as far as she can when she hears our voices so we have to stroke her. They’re more fun outside in summer as they get speedier and they sleep a lot in winter even if not hibernating.

Officially they prefer to live alone, but my 2 are inseparable and will literally sleep on top of each other. They can’t be sexed though until they’re about 5-6 so you have to be prepared to separate them. We refer to ours as ‘she’ and they have girls’ names but they might not be!

Yes, Ladycat, ours is called Katie but is a boy, we think!

Mine was a girl for the first 5 years, before we realised she is a he. It just wasn’t clear when we first got him!

My DD has 2, she rescued them from 2 different bad homes. One is a Florida box turtle and the other is a Russian tortoise. They are very interesting creatures but so so different. She has ended up with 2 100 gallon tanks in her livingroom as they have totally different environments. One likes hot humid damp conditions and eats basically anything, bugs, worms fruit veggies, The other likes hot dry arid conditions and only eats green stuff. The Florida box turtle has a "pool" and likes to burrow under it and stays there for days at a time. They get out every night to wander around the house when shes home ( and if the box turtle is active and not hiding under his pool).
They need special lamps, heat and basking and the box turtle has a humidity thing that keeps his tank humid. Costs a fortune in bulbs for the lights as they dont last that long. They certainly dont smell but have a fruit fly problem in the summer. ( my other Dd has a gecko that also has fruit fly issues, we bought carnivorous plant, seemed to solve that )
dd1 had hand knitted dinosaur suit thingies to put on them as they strolled around the house, sooo cute. I like em

I have one and they are quite high maintenance. I have to go out on walks every day to pick weeds for him to eat. You also need a decent size inside enclosure (at least 6ft x 4ft and not a glass vivarium) with correct temperatures and outside enclosure, preferably with heat and UV so they can stay out most of the year. He has just woken up from 8 weeks in the fridge hibernating (box method isn’t very reliable). They also prefer to be alone as otherwise one will dominate and stress the other.

There’s a lot of bad advice on the web, including from pet shops.

Here’s a guide I wrote for a friend of things I’ve learnt along the way. It’s quite long because there’s a lot to know...

House - they need an open table for when they’re inside, a lot of pet shops will try and sell a glass vivarium but they’re not good for them because they get too hot and you can’t control the humidity (also the glass stresses them out) so an open table with a mesh lid is best. You can also use an Ikea Billy bookcase or similar lay on its back and use the shelves to reinforce the back. Obviously they eventually grow to like 12-14 inches so you’ll need something bigger once they’re older.

Hide - they need some form of hide (like a little log tunnel) filled with sphagnum moss that you dampen every day, this really helps their shell

Heat and light - they need a basking/heat bulb and a UVB bulb on for 12 hours a day. It should be 32 degrees under the basking bulbs. The other end should be around 21 degrees

Substrate - a lot of pet shops try and sell bark, woodchips, sand or tortoise branded stuff but they’re all not great and can be dangerous if they swallow it. The best thing to use is normal topsoil you can get from B&M etc. You need to spray it every day so it stays damp. You can also use coco coir bricks (can get that from Amazon)

Bathing - you need to give them a bath every other day for around 15 minutes as it helps their shell and they also drink during it, they should have a water dish in their house as well though

Food - they should eat weeds and plants like plantain, sow thistle etc. The best website to check if they can eat something is www.thetortoisetable.org.uk you can search everything in there. If you buy anything from a garden centre, you need to repot it into fresh soil and wait 6 months before you feed it. people feed them fruit and veg, lettuce, salad from shops etc., they shouldn’t eat that as it’s really not good for them. Shop bought stuff is really bad as it has no nutritional value and often has additives. Fruit has too much sugar and upsets their stomach. They should eat their food off a slate tile as it helps to keep their beak trimmed

Outside - ideally they should be outside during the summer as it’s the best for their shell so they need some form of secure outside enclosure, preferably with electricity for heat and UV.

It is also best for them to hibernate as otherwise they grow too quickly. Best to use the fridge method to ensure consistent temperatures.

Also it’s dangerous to let them wander freely around your home, even for short amounts, and handling them stresses them out.

You can grow your own tortoise food really easily - you can buy seed mixes.

Love this thread, never knew they were so interesting. I had a job once where I had to visit people in their homes. I was sitting on someone's sofa and suddenly I had this cold heavy thing on my sandalled foot. It was their nosey tortoise, come to investigate the visitor. I wish they'd warned me!

If we weren’t in a flat with limited space I’d definitely have one.

My husband’s gran had one, she’d had it since she was in her twenties and loved it. It lived outside in the summer and indoors in winter.

It was still alive when she passed but we don’t know what happened to it as DH’s dad is a plonker, he cut all comms and sold/seemingly got rid of everything of hers without a word to DH who had mentioned he’d (we’d) give it a home (we lived in a different flat: ground floor with enclosed garden at the time).

Find the Tortoise Protection Group on facebook for the best advice.

I’ve got a 50ish year old spur thigh tortoise, she’s currently stomping around the bath after coming out of hibernation yesterday.
She lives in a converted green house with access to the garden on warmer days.

Your garden needs to be pretty secure to keep them in, mine is always climbing or digging. She usually hangs around the patio when we have a BBQ waiting for a bit of lettuce.

@Jloco

I have one and they are quite high maintenance. I have to go out on walks every day to pick weeds for him to eat. You also need a decent size inside enclosure (at least 6ft x 4ft and not a glass vivarium) with correct temperatures and outside enclosure, preferably with heat and UV so they can stay out most of the year. He has just woken up from 8 weeks in the fridge hibernating (box method isn’t very reliable). They also prefer to be alone as otherwise one will dominate and stress the other.

There’s a lot of bad advice on the web, including from pet shops.

Here’s a guide I wrote for a friend of things I’ve learnt along the way. It’s quite long because there’s a lot to know...

House - they need an open table for when they’re inside, a lot of pet shops will try and sell a glass vivarium but they’re not good for them because they get too hot and you can’t control the humidity (also the glass stresses them out) so an open table with a mesh lid is best. You can also use an Ikea Billy bookcase or similar lay on its back and use the shelves to reinforce the back. Obviously they eventually grow to like 12-14 inches so you’ll need something bigger once they’re older.

Hide - they need some form of hide (like a little log tunnel) filled with sphagnum moss that you dampen every day, this really helps their shell

Heat and light - they need a basking/heat bulb and a UVB bulb on for 12 hours a day. It should be 32 degrees under the basking bulbs. The other end should be around 21 degrees

Substrate - a lot of pet shops try and sell bark, woodchips, sand or tortoise branded stuff but they’re all not great and can be dangerous if they swallow it. The best thing to use is normal topsoil you can get from B&M etc. You need to spray it every day so it stays damp. You can also use coco coir bricks (can get that from Amazon)

Bathing - you need to give them a bath every other day for around 15 minutes as it helps their shell and they also drink during it, they should have a water dish in their house as well though

Food - they should eat weeds and plants like plantain, sow thistle etc. The best website to check if they can eat something is www.thetortoisetable.org.uk you can search everything in there. If you buy anything from a garden centre, you need to repot it into fresh soil and wait 6 months before you feed it. people feed them fruit and veg, lettuce, salad from shops etc., they shouldn’t eat that as it’s really not good for them. Shop bought stuff is really bad as it has no nutritional value and often has additives. Fruit has too much sugar and upsets their stomach. They should eat their food off a slate tile as it helps to keep their beak trimmed

Outside - ideally they should be outside during the summer as it’s the best for their shell so they need some form of secure outside enclosure, preferably with electricity for heat and UV.

It is also best for them to hibernate as otherwise they grow too quickly. Best to use the fridge method to ensure consistent temperatures.

Also it’s dangerous to let them wander freely around your home, even for short amounts, and handling them stresses them out.

Your tortoise hibernates in the fridge?!

I have always wanted a tortoise so am finding this thread very interesting. I love that some people have had their tortoises over 60 years!!

Disappointed by the lack of pictures on this thread. Tortoises are awesome OP! Got one for Christmas and he's awesome. Very low maintenance, fresh food and water every day, mooches around, basks under his heat lamp and loves to chase our feet 🥰

He has a bath every week where he wees and poos religiously and he does the odd wee and poo around his tortoise table too

My friend has one. Did have 2 and they were bought together but one disappeared. He's 16 yrs old and about the size of my hand. He lives in the garden in the warm summer months in a trough made of railway sleepers. Has a glass hutch in a corner and is quite deep so no way of vanishing. But most of the time roams the house as its not that warm. He woke up last Sunday after being asleep since October. It just got so warm quickly after the icy week.

He loves a warm bath where he poos, and sittings on my chest having his head scratched.

Oh and he will nibble too and has very sharp teeth!

We've had ours for 49 years. My DM bought her to keep my sister company when I started school. How could a tortoise keep a 2 year old company and only for 6 months of the year I'll never know.

The tortoise is spoilt rotten. She's towelled dried if she's caught in the rain. Sleeps in the kitchen each night when not hibernating. Is hand fed, I've seen her open her mouth when my DM has waved a piece of cucumber a couple of feet away from her. Helps herself to the lettuce my Dad grows for her.

My DM is on a tortoise Facebook page and gets annoyed by some of the questions asked "Can my little boy eat this?" Shows a photo of a dandelion. She says there is also a lot of questions and photos of tortoise poo.

Yes, there has to be a constant temperature (around 5°) otherwise if they get too warm, they can wake up and if they get too cold, they can die. So inside isn’t reliable as it can be too warm and outside can get frost etc. but the fridge keeps it constant he has his own fridge, not our food one!

We have a South American redfoot so she's larger - about the size of a medium saucepan. She doesn't hibernate and has a heat and UV regulated cabinet. As soon as the weather warms up she spends her days wandering in the garden.

She has a lovely personality, very friendly and every afternoon lets us know she'd like a walk around the house and then stomps around for a couple of hours.

She doesn't poo very frequently and it's easy to clear up but she does wee a lot so the flooring substrate needs changing regularly.

She's a great pet. I'd thoroughly recommend one.

Oh ok! This was Blue when he first came home (and was a she then according to the reptile shop I took her to, she was a stray). He’s almost double the size now probably. And a boy.

We have had one in our family for over 40 years. My sister currently has custody of him. She bought a small fridge to hibernate him in as apparently that's the safest way to do it. He has a heated indoor vivarium and outside he has a covered glass enclosure plus access to the (secure) garden.

DD1 got a horsfield 5 years ago. He lives indoors in a 6ftx4ft table, heated by the worlds more expensive light bulb. He is on topsoil and has live plants to stomp through. He mainly poops in his bath. Vivariums are too hot, humid and cramped.
The only food horsfields eat should be Weeds and flowers. Not fruit, the sugar feeds any intestinal worms. Shop bought cereal type food leads to excessive growth where the shell cannot grow properly. I have a weekly delivery of organic food. (highly recommend Speedy Weeds from Tortoise BnB for any other owners on here)

We haven't hibernated this year as he was borderlining the lower end of the weight bracket. We use a hibernation service, there's a wind down period, by the time he gets to the fridge he is hydrated but with a stomach empty of food.

He has a raised planter in the garden for summer days. If he's out too late we play 'dig up Dave'. He is ridiculously hard to find once he digs down for the night.