I would like to have a pet tortoise, but know nothing about them, can you advise on difficultiness?

we are considering doing the garden out so a tortoise can roam freely





will a tortoise get attacked by cats





do they sleep in a hutch at night





i know you have to allow them to hibernate i live in England





how long do they live for





any other vital information





thank you for your help as this will be considered very carefully before we decide wether to or not





can i or should i consider medical insurance for a tortoise





thank you for your help








xxx viciI would like to have a pet tortoise, but know nothing about them, can you advise on difficultiness?
i've had a tortoise since i was 6 years old.





as far as i know, tortoises don't usually get attacked by cats. they can protect themselves pretty well, and i don't think they move quick enough to be of much interest to your average moggy.





the don't tend to sleep in a hutch. my tortoise was given a little wooden shelter to use on a night (my dad made a basic box out of wood, with a little doorway cut in one side). just find a sheltered area of the garden, and put a wooden box or something similar down that the tortoise can crawl in and out of when it feels like it. what we found though is that she preferred to go crawl in amongst the rockery plants, or under the bushes near the garden wall.





they can live for over 100 years, so u have to seriously plan on having this pet for the rest of your life, and then handing it on to someone who u can trust to take care of it.





unless u plan on keeping it as an indoor pet, which i wouldn't recommend, then u will need to let your tortoise hibernate from about late october to early march. mine gets put in the garage. u need somewhere nice and cool like that. a house would be too warm for it to hibernate in. a secure shed or garage are the ideal places. ours gets put into a carboard box that has a decent amount of newspaper in the bottom to make a kind of 'nest' for it to sleep on. then the cardboard box (don't forget the breathing holes !) gets sealed with a bit of tape, and then put into a larger box loosely filled with more newspaper. (for insulation). it's always a good idea to open up the box mid-winter and check that the tortoise is ok. if u touch one of it's legs, it's reflexes should make it withdraw it's leg slightly.





u can tell when a tortoise is ready to hibernate. it will refuse food, and start to spend most of the day sleeping somewhere sheltered. there is a period during early autumn though when u will be able to still let it out through the day, but will need to put it in it's cardboard box overnight. not a good idea to leave a tortoise out on a frosty night.





when they come out of hibernation (check on it daily once it gets to march time), it helps to give your tortoise a wash in a shallow tray with some luke warm water in it. it's eyes might need wiping with some water on a cotton wool ball. the tortoise might not eat for the first couple of days, and might need to be brought in on an evening until it gets warmer.





tortoises love to eat the following : most crunchy salad vegetables - like cucumber, lettice, raw peas, dandelion leaves. also fruit (mine loves strawberries - makes such a mess !). but dogfood can also be good for them. it helps promote healthy shell growth. get a brand that is more of a meat paste consistency, rather than the type with lumps of meat in it. (we use Chappy) we spread a little bit onto pieces of cucumber.





i have no idea as to whether or not u will need any pet insurance. it's not something we have ever needed, luckily our tortoise has never needed medical treatment.





tortoises make quite good pets, but obviously it will never show u the kind of affection that u would get from most other pets. i guess it all depends on what u are looking for from a pet.





hope this helps. any further questions, feel free to e-mail me.I would like to have a pet tortoise, but know nothing about them, can you advise on difficultiness?
Try these sites





Care of Desert Tortoises


Comprehensive care-sheet.www.tortoise.org/general/desc鈥?- 19k - Cached





Cheloniauk - Tortoise care in the 21st century.


... Tortoise, Testudo hermanni boettgeri, Testudo Graeca, Testudo Ibera, Testudo ... site for Tortoise keepers in the UK - concentrating on the care of Tortoises ...www.cheloniauk.com - 18k - Cached





Slowcoach tortoise site : care of Mediterranean tortoises


A site for tortoise enthusiasts ... The tortoise is a living fossil having ... Jackson graph on the correct weight for your tortoise (see separate care sheet) ...www.slowcoach.org.uk/care/caremed/car鈥?- 16k - Cached





Tortoises For Sale - UK - Mediterranean Pet Tortoise For Sale


Specialising in Captive bred Mediterranean tortoises for sale to UK residents.www.pettortoise.co.uk - 5k - Cached





Help and Advice for your Tortoise


Expert help and advice on all kinds of tortoises and reptiles. ... advice on how you should care for your tortoise, our advice is to listen ...www.tortoisehelp.com - 38k - Cached





Tortoise Care sheets - in a downloadable document format


tortoise, chelonia, redfoot, spur thigh, hermanns, hermanni, testudo, gracea, kleinmanns, kleinmanni ... Tortoise and Chelonia Information and Care sheets ...myweb.tiscali.co.uk/cheloniauk/care.h鈥?- 11k - Cached





The Tortoise House


Welcome to The Tortoise House where you will find reliable and accurate tortoise information and tortoise related advice to help you care for your tortoise.www.thetortoisehouse.com - 6k - Cached





Tortoise - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


The tortoise has both an endoskeleton and an exoskeleton. ... Tui Malila remained in the care of the Tongan royal family until its death by ...


Quick Links: Evolution - Biology - Birth


en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tortoise - 52k





Slowcoach tortoise site : care sheets


A site for enthusiasts of Mediterranean Tortoises ... Care sheet for Mediterranean Tortoises. Tortoise Fingerprinting ... HORSFIELD'S TORTOISE. Back to top of page ...www.slowcoach.org.uk/slocare.html - 5k - Cached





Mediterranean Tortoise Care Sheet, Hermans tortoise, Marginated tortoise, Greek Spur-thighed tortoise, Horsefield's ...


... breeder that the new owners will be giving the tortoise the best possible care. ... scratches the surface of the captive care on these interesting reptiles so my ...www.pettortoise.co.uk/tortoise_care_s鈥?- 40k - Cached
1. No it will not be attacked by a cat as it can hide in its shell and has too tough skin to get hurt.





2. Yes they will sleep in a hutch at night my friend has one.





3. They can live for 80-100 years





You must not let them bury themselves and make sure there are not little holes in the fence they can get through. Feed them once a day and line their hutch with straw or hay and make it warm and cosy.





While its young keep it indoors.................... hope this helps good luck!
make sure you get home bred one.no dont let a young one hibern8 they often die.they get attacked by rats.keep it indoors in winter.
i have had my tortoise for forty years he has the run of the garden all summer but i always take him indoors at night in the winter he stays in doors out doors they hibernate when it gets cold but they wont survive being left out in winter also if you have a pond make sure it is covered so the tortoise cant fall in funny enough they dont float and they cant swim
Garden- make sure it is VERY escape-proof first, and as dog-proof as possible. Tortoises can get through a lot of gaps you don't even notice, and they tend to push through any opening they get their head through.





Cats- not usually a problem. Dogs, raccoons, skunks, birds of prey, and humans are generally bigger issues- but cats can attack and harm tortoises.





Hutch- Depending on your local environment, a warm (or heated), dry, weather-proof hutch is a good idea.





Hibernation- research this well! http://www.tortoisetrust.org has good articles on this and many other issues as well.





Longevity- most pet tortoises go for about 20-40 years with good care, but sadly, many will not make it to 5 because their needs are not being met.





Insurance- tortoises rarely generate enough medical costs, when well cared for, to justify this.





Good luck! Check out the site mentioned- it is British as well, so should be very useful.
I would advise you from purchasing a Tortoise until you have researched enough to know that they are not easy to keep.





Tortoises can be attacked by cats as well as birds. Tortoises can not defend themselves though can retract into their shell - not good if a bird decides to peck in between!





Tortoises will only hibernate if the temperature falls enough to send them into hibernation. This can be extremely dangerous since they need time to digest any recent food intake for at least a few days in order to give them a chance to get rid of anything left inside of them or else it'll rot inside their stomachs and kill them during hibernation. In fact you only need to hibernate a Tortoise if you're going to breed them otherwise it is not necessary.





Tortoises should be kept indoors, not only to protect them from the dangers but Tortoises are cold-blooded reptiles and therefore need a constant source of heat to help keep them warm. Preferably they need to be kept in a vivarium with all the necessities. All what is required can be found in related books.





There is so much vital information that placing a question here simply isn't going to help you. You need to do research and buy a few books to get a proper idea as to what is involved as well as the huge investment needed in order to keep a Tortoise as a pet.......vet bills alone (with or without medication) is a whole lot more than for your standard domestic pet.
They cant roam freely its not warm enough you need a terrarium heat lamps etc etc...you can only put them out when its warm do you know how much they cost? don't get one on a whim cos they generally live for a very long time