What kind of tortoise?

[sebakachan]

I'm hoping to get a tortoise soon (my mother already owns one, but he is over 50 years old and I would really like a baby). I was wondering what species would be best for me. I need a tortoise that:
~Doesn't grow very big (as small as possible please!)
~Needs a relatively small tank
~Can live outdoors when it grows older
~Has isnt too fussy about tempurature and humidity (I will be out the house a lot, and may not be able to check the tempurature all the time)
Thank you for any advice

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

What part of the world do you live in?

No species are suitable for a small tank.

If you want a baby, they are all pretty fussy about temperature and humidity. Adults are much more hardy and can take more variable conditions.

 

[Yvonne G]

You might find this thread helpful:

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/best-tortoise-for-my-environment.126894/

 

[sebakachan]

What part of the world do you live in?

No species are suitable for a small tank.

If you want a baby, they are all pretty fussy about temperature and humidity. Adults are much more hardy and can take more variable conditions.

I live in the UK. And by small I mean like 120cm x 50cm tank.

I'm fine with keeping up to date with humidity and tempurature, however, like I said, I'll be out the house quite often because of work and college, so the tortoise would have to be alright home alone for say 6-10 hours a day

 

[sebakachan]

You might find this thread helpful:

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/best-tortoise-for-my-environment.126894/

Thank you very much

 

[Tom]

Once your set up is up and running with timers and thermostats on the heating and lighting, the temperatures should maintain themselves. Daily maintenance would consists of cleaning the water bowl, putting out food and spot cleaning any leftover food or messes. Babies need to be soaked daily too, while adults can go longer between soakings.

Greeks, hermanni and russians are pretty easy keepers, and are not too demanding about temperatures, but like Sarah said, all species need a large area to roam around in. An adult Greek or Russian should have a minimum of 3x6 feet and 4x8 feet or larger would be better. They will also need and even larger outdoor enclosure for nice weather.

Tortoises are not the easiest reptile to keep. They have large space requirements, and to feed them right you will need to grow or scavenge a lots of foods. They need sunshine time outside in nice weather, and expensive UV lighting if kept mostly indoors. If this all sounds like more than you want to get into, then other suggestions would be a leopard gecko, blue tongue skink, smaller snake species, or even a bearded dragon. All of these can get by just fine in a 60 gallon tank. The blue tongue skinks don't need UV or insects, just a heat lamp, so they are probably the easiest keepers ever.

 

[Tom]

I live in the UK. And by small I mean like 120cm x 50cm tank.

I'm fine with keeping up to date with humidity and tempurature, however, like I said, I'll be out the house quite often because of work and college, so the tortoise would have to be alright home alone for say 6-10 hours a day

That size tank would be fine for a baby for about the first year or so, but then you'd need something around 244x122cm.

 

[sebakachan]

Once your set up is up and running with timers and thermostats on the heating and lighting, the temperatures should maintain themselves. Daily maintenance would consists of cleaning the water bowl, putting out food and spot cleaning any leftover food or messes. Babies need to be soaked daily too, while adults can go longer between soakings.

Greeks, hermanni and russians are pretty easy keepers, and are not too demanding about temperatures, but like Sarah said, all species need a large area to roam around in. An adult Greek or Russian should have a minimum of 3x6 feet and 4x8 feet or larger would be better. They will also need and even larger outdoor enclosure for nice weather.

Tortoises are not the easiest reptile to keep. They have large space requirements, and to feed them right you will need to grow or scavenge a lots of foods. They need sunshine time outside in nice weather, and expensive UV lighting if kept mostly indoors. If this all sounds like more than you want to get into, then other suggestions would be a leopard gecko, blue tongue skink, smaller snake species, or even a bearded dragon. All of these can get by just fine in a 60 gallon tank. The blue tongue skinks don't need UV or insects, just a heat lamp, so they are probably the easiest keepers ever.

My mother has a 54 year old tortoise that she keeps out doors, and I have quite a big garden, and shouldnt havr any trouble creating an area for one to live in. My only real concerns are for when the tortoise is a baby... i have a tank at the moment that i have kept turtles, fish, and now hamsters in (it perfectly fits in the corner of my room). I was hoping i could use that for the tortoise, too, so that it can be kept in my room. Would that tank be large enough to keep a baby in for a year or so? Once it's become too big, i could make an outdoor enclosure.

 

[Tom]

The UK is not a great outdoor environment for tortoises for most of the year. Tortoise husbandry has advanced a lot in the last 54 years, so what your mother's tortoise has managed to survive all these years, might not be the optimal keeping strategy for what we now know.

People do the same thing with desert tortoises here. Some small percentage manage to survive year after year, but many more die from being kept and fed incorrectly. Especially the babies. I would say that most DT babies don't survive and the main reasons are dehydration, or sand impaction.

 

[sebakachan]

The UK is not a great outdoor environment for tortoises for most of the year. Tortoise husbandry has advanced a lot in the last 54 years, so what your mother's tortoise has managed to survive all these years, might not be the optimal keeping strategy for what we now know.

People do the same thing with desert tortoises here. Some small percentage manage to survive year after year, but many more die from being kept and fed incorrectly. Especially the babies. I would say that most DT babies don't survive and the main reasons are dehydration, or sand impaction.

So would you instead reccomend buying a bigger tank?

 

[Tom]

So would you instead reccomend buying a bigger tank?

Your smaller tank will suit a baby fine, but after that you'll need to build something big enough to house an adult indoors with the correct temperatures and lighting. They don't make "tanks" large enough to house even the smaller species of adult tortoises. The tanks would be much too heavy and expensive. You'll also need a suitable large outdoor enclosure for the few nice summer days you get each year over there. This way, your tortoise gets the benefit of real sunshine and the great outdoors, but still has the correct temperatures and condition when inside for most of each year.

Some people in the UK use cold frames and electrically heated outdoor shelters to extend the outdoor time, but I will let them advise you.

As I said before, tortoises are not the easiest animals to keep correctly. A cold clammy climate adds even more challenges. It can be done, but it won't be simple, easy or cheap, and your initial post made it sound like that's what you were looking for.

 

[JoesMum]

Hi and welcome

I am a British tort keeper with a tort roughly the age of your mother's. We will both be guessing as torts back then were imported wild caught and who knows what age they were.

It is perfectly possible to make adaptations for outdoor care in the UK as your tort gets bigger. It depends on exactly where you are as to how much of the year is sensible.

@spudthetortoise started a baby Hermann's and is building an outdoor enclosure for him now.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/summer-preparations-tips-very-welcome.137960/

I live in Kent and this is what we have done for Joe
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/outdoor-accommodation-in-a-colder-uk-climate.140866/

Should you inherit your mother's tort at any time in the coming years it won't be able to live with yours. Torts are not social creatures and don't need, want or particularly like company. A pair invariably end up fighting and yours, being the smaller, would probably do very badly indeed.

 

[sebakachan]

Hi and welcome

I am a British tort keeper with a tort roughly the age of your mother's. We will both be guessing as torts back then were imported wild caught and who knows what age they were.

It is perfectly possible to make adaptations for outdoor care in the UK as your tort gets bigger. It depends on exactly where you are as to how much of the year is sensible.

@spudthetortoise started a baby Hermann's and is building an outdoor enclosure for him now.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/summer-preparations-tips-very-welcome.137960/

I live in Kent and this is what we have done for Joe
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/outdoor-accommodation-in-a-colder-uk-climate.140866/

Should you inherit your mother's tort at any time in the coming years it won't be able to live with yours. Torts are not social creatures and don't need, want or particularly like company. A pair invariably end up fighting and yours, being the smaller, would probably do very badly indeed.

Hello there! My mum used to have 3! Though i think because 2 of them (fred, the one who is alive now and shelly, who died last year) were raised together. Tommy was adopted by her a few years back, but he died sadly. Thank you so much for your advice! I live in Nottingham, so we get a mixture of weather to be honest. Money isnt really a major problem, so I'm sure I'd be able to make an enclosure for my baby. May I ask what species you have?

 

[JoesMum]

Your smaller tank will suit a baby fine, but after that you'll need to build something big enough to house an adult indoors with the correct temperatures and lighting. They don't make "tanks" large enough to house even the smaller species of adult tortoises. The tanks would be much too heavy and expensive. You'll also need a suitable large outdoor enclosure for the few nice summer days you get each year over there. This way, your tortoise gets the benefit of real sunshine and the great outdoors, but still has the correct temperatures and condition when inside for most of each year.

Some people in the UK use cold frames and electrically heated outdoor shelters to extend the outdoor time, but I will let them advise you.

As I said before, tortoises are not the easiest animals to keep correctly. A cold clammy climate adds even more challenges. It can be done, but it won't be simple, easy or cheap, and your initial post made it sound like that's what you were looking for.

Tom is correct that keeping a tort healthy in our climate is a challenge. A very young tort takes more effort and expense than one like your mother's where owner and tort have their routine and know what they're doing.

Even the experienced struggled last winter as it didn't really get cold enough for proper hibernation until mid January. We had a week at 13-15C in late December! Successful hibernation needs temperatures to be consistently below 10C.

Many older torts came out severely underweight as their owners boxed them as usual in October but had no idea what they weighed before or after and then ended up with a sick tort this spring.

Joe was fine, but I'm looking at switching to fridge hibernation this year. Last winter was hard work.

 

[JoesMum]

Hello there! My mum used to have 3! Though i think because 2 of them (fred, the one who is alive now and shelly, who died last year) were raised together. Tommy was adopted by her a few years back, but he died sadly. Thank you so much for your advice! I live in Nottingham, so we get a mixture of weather to be honest. Money isnt really a major problem, so I'm sure I'd be able to make an enclosure for my baby. May I ask what species you have?

I have Testudo Graeca Graeca - a "Greek"

The most common Greek in the UK is Testudo Graeca Ibera now, but most of those imported decades ago pre CITES are TGGs like Joe. I expect your Mother's is

 

[sebakachan]

Yes I just looked at Joe, and thats exactly what Fred looks like! I belive tommy and shelly were Hermans, but to be honest, I am not entirely sure.

I'll be looking up methods of keeping tortoises warm in the UK. and hopefully I'll be alright with a baby

 

[JoesMum]

Yes I just looked at Joe, and thats exactly what Fred looks like! I belive tommy and shelly were Hermans, but to be honest, I am not entirely sure.

I'll be looking up methods of keeping tortoises warm in the UK. and hopefully I'll be alright with a baby

Just keep coming back with questions as you set things up and before you commit money so that you don't make any expensive mistakes. Thanks to international time zones there are people on here 24/7 who know ... and who will admit when they don't know and tag someone who does which is just as important

 

[Gillian M]

A very warm welcome to the forum!

I believe that all pets- torts or otherwise- need a lot of room.