There are nearly 50 different tortoise species in the world, and they exhibit a range of lifestyles, morphologies, and behavioral patterns. Some make great pets for committed owners, while others are unsuitable for domestic keeping or even illegal to own.
Every tortoise species has its own specific husbandry requirements, and prospective owners need to learn about the species they intend to care for. Nevertheless, several principles and practices apply to most members of the group.
1. Housing Requirements
Tortoises thrive best in outdoor enclosures, where they have access to natural sunlight. However, this is only possible in places where the climate is like that of the tortoise’s homeland; otherwise, you’ll have to house your tortoise indoors.
Before taking ownership of your new pet, you’ll need to research the climate of their endemic habitat to understand where you should locate their enclosure and how best you can replicate their native environmental conditions.
Outdoor enclosures can be made of several different materials, including concrete, wood, or metal. The walls should be at least one to two shell lengths high, and they should extend below the surface of the surrounding soil for at least 12 inches (or deeper in the case of large species).
It is also important to include a removable wire top to protect the inhabitants from predators, pets, and anyone else who you’d prefer not to have access to your precious pet!
Indoor tortoise maintenance is the only option for enthusiasts living in cooler regions.
The best types of indoor housing are either custom-built enclosures, repurposed livestock tanks, or commercially manufactured “tortoise tubs.” Aquaria do not make ideal enclosures, as they are heavy, fragile, and fail to provide enough air exchange. Additionally, because tortoises do not encounter transparent or reflective surfaces in the wild, they may become stressed by the glass aquarium walls.
Whether you keep your tortoise indoors or outdoors, you’ll want to provide as much space as is possible. As a minimum rule of thumb, small tortoise species, including Egyptian (Testudo kleinmanni), Russian (T. horsfieldii), and Greek tortoises (T. graeca), require approximately 8 to 16 square feet of space per pair of individuals.
Larger species, including Sulcata, red-footed (Chelonoidis carbonaria) and leopard tortoises (Stigmochelys pardalis), require 50 square feet or more.
2. Environmental Conditions
Different tortoise species require different temperatures, as well as varying light and humidity levels. So, once again, owners will have to research the specific needs of the species being kept. Nevertheless, there are several general rules that apply across the group.
Temperature
All tortoises are cold-blooded and require something called a thermal gradient. This is a range of temperatures inside the enclosure that allows the tortoise to regulate their body temperature (or thermoregulate).
To establish a thermal gradient, cluster the heating devices at one end of the enclosure. The temperatures will need to be typically around 90- to 95-degrees Fahrenheit directly under the heat sources, and in the mid-70s Fahrenheit at the “cool” side of the enclosure.
The two best types of heating devices are heat lamps and radiant heat panels. Lamps are generally more affordable and satisfy some of the animals’ light needs, but radiant heat panels allow for more precise thermal control (when used in conjunction with a thermostat).
Humidity
Tortoises that hail from rainforests such as the Red-footed and Yellow-footed tortoise require high enclosure humidity, while the Sulcata and Sonoran Desert tortoise are desert dwellers, who thrive in dry conditions. This makes it difficult to provide broad advice in this regard.
However, almost all tortoise species spend a great deal of time underground, where the relative humidity is high. So, even tortoises hailing from deserts should have access to at least one hiding spot with high humidity. This is especially important when keeping young tortoises, who dehydrate rapidly.
Additionally, all species require access to a shallow dish, full of clean water. Regular soaking regimens, in which tortoises are given 15- to 30-minute long “baths” several times per week, are also helpful for maintaining hydration levels.
Lighting
Tortoises require access to full-spectrum light, which includes not only visible light, but light in the UVA and UVB portions of the spectrum too. These UV rays allow tortoises to produce Vitamin D internally. They also help encourage natural behaviors and support mental health.
In a climate that provides 10-12 hours of daily sunlight, outdoor tortoises will not need any special lighting to obtain the UVA and UVB they require – the sun will provide all that they need. However, indoor-living tortoises will need special lights.
There are two types of bulbs that can provide the full-spectrum lighting your pet needs: mercury vapor bulbs such as the Mega-Ray Mercury Vapor Bulb, and fluorescent tubes such as the Zilla Slimline Reptile Fluorescent Lighting Fixture.
Mercury vapor bulbs are more expensive, but they also produce heat, thereby eliminating the need to include separate lighting and heating devices in the enclosure. Fluorescent tubes are more affordable, yet they do not produce much heat.
In either case, it is important that your tortoise can get quite close to the bulbs to absorb enough ultraviolet radiation – typically within 12 inches. It is also important to replace the tubes or bulbs every 6 to 12 months to ensure that UV emission remains optimal.
Other Enclosure Necessities
As with most other aspects of tortoise husbandry, the ground covering for your tortoise’s enclosure will differ from one species to another.
Desert and Mediterranean tortoise require dry substrates, while forest species thrive best when provided with a slightly damp substrate. Take advice before buying to determine whether a custom soil blend, or a commercially produced tortoise substrate is best.
In the wild, tortoises are well adapted to foraging for food, burrowing, and evading predators. In captivity, most of this is taken care of by their conscientious keepers but they still stimulating surroundings to keep them moving and mentally challenged.
Make sure their enclosure contains objects such as a hideout, visual barriers and rocks on which they can climb, and hollowed out tree logs and small spaces where they can shade and sleep.
These will help keep your tortoise’s stress level low and offer mental stimulation.
3. Food and Supplements
Different tortoise species require slightly different diets, but there are some generalities that apply to most.
For starters, all tortoises are primarily herbivorous. Some will opportunistically consume animal-based protein sources in the wild, usually in the form of carrion. However, this is not necessary and is generally discouraged.
Additionally, most tortoises can be fed on a similar schedule.
Young, growing individuals are best fed daily, while mature adults usually thrive when fed five or six days per week. Just be sure that you monitor your pet’s body condition and weight to ensure he or she is not being over or under fed.
While tortoises are all primarily herbivorous, different species require different types of plant material. As a rule, species hailing from deserts and grasslands should consume high-fiber, low-calorie plants, while those who normally dwell in forests can consume some fruit as well.
Some of the best foods to feed a tortoise include:
- Collard greens
- Turnip greens
- Mustard greens
- Green and red leaf lettuce
- Romaine lettuce
- Spinach
- Parsley
- Endive
- Escarole
- Clean, non-treated Bermuda grass
- Carrots
- Squash
- Green beans
- Radishes
- Strawberries
- Apples (with core and stem removed)
- Pears (with core and stem removed)
- Peaches (with pit removed)
- Blueberries
- Blackberries
- Grapes
- Commercially manufactured tortoise food
- Dandelion greens
Avoid feeding your tortoise:
- Animal-based proteins
- Insects
- Earthworms
- Cat or dog food
- Toxic plants
- Plants or grasses treated with pesticides, herbicides, or insecticides
Supplements and Vitamins
To help avoid deficiencies, most tortoise keepers sprinkle supplemental calcium and multivitamins on their pets’ food once or twice per week. Alternatively, you can provide your tortoise with small pieces of cuttlebone, which will allow your pet to consume calcium as is appropriate.
4. Common Health Issues
Some of the most common health issues of tortoises include:
- Parasites: While parasites are not common in captive-bred tortoises, virtually all wild-caught individuals will be highly parasitized. You’ll need your vet’s help to treat these types of issues but symptoms include diarrhea, anorexia, and weight-loss.
- Dehydration: Dehydrated tortoises often exhibit sunken eyes, and their skin will remain “tented” when pinched, instead of snapping back into place quickly. If you suspect your tortoise is dehydrated, begin an immediate soaking regimen, and contact your vet for advice.
- Respiratory Infections: These can be very serious for tortoises. Frequently seen symptoms include open-mouthed breathing, lethargy, and discharges from the eyes, nose, and mouth. You’ll need your vet’s help and prescribed medication to treat this effectively.
5. Routine Care
Tortoise keepers need to complete several tasks on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis to keep their pets healthy. The most important things to do are:
- Inspect the enclosure every day and remove any feces, shed skin, uneaten food and soiled substrate.
- Monitor the enclosure temperatures every day and ensure they’re within the target range.
- Empty, wash, and refill the water dish every day.
- Feed the tortoises on a daily or semi-daily basis, depending on the age of the animals.
- Record the weight of all tortoises at least once per month.
- Clean the enclosure walls on a biweekly basis.
- Replace the substrate in the enclosure once per month.
- Visit your veterinarian at least twice per year to ensure your pet remains healthy.
6. Human Interaction
Tortoises don’t require much socialization, and most will adjust to their keeper over time. However, wild-caught tortoises will require much more time than captive-bred individuals will in this regard.
Always be sure to proceed slowly and watch for signs of stress (such as withdrawing into the shell or fleeing their keeper’s advances) when interacting with your pet.
One of the best ways to interact with your pet tortoise is to feed him or her by hand. Some tortoises even begin to aggressively “beg” for food and follow their keeper around in outdoor enclosures.
7. Behavioral Issues
Behavioral issues are rare among tortoises, but some individuals may not get along with others housed in the same enclosure. This is most common among mature males, but it can happen with any two individuals.
In some cases, such as before breeding trials take place, brief antagonistic encounters can be allowed, if the keeper monitors the situation to ensure neither animal becomes injured. Outside of these scenarios, separate quarreling tortoises and rear them individually.
8. Breeding
Many tortoise species will breed in captivity, though keepers should think carefully about the endeavor, as it can be challenging to find suitable homes for all the offspring.
As a group, tortoises exhibit a range of breeding patterns. So, once again, keepers will need to research the approach that works best with their chosen species.
With that said, most tortoise keepers employ a similar approach.
- Keepers begin by ensuring the tortoises are well-fed and healthy.
- Tortoises hailing from areas with pronounced cold or dry seasons are typically exposed to a climate pattern that mimics that of their home. Tortoises from areas with relatively unchanging climates are kept at consistent temperature and humidity levels.
- Following the return of normal temperatures and humidity levels, males and females are introduced to each other, if they’re not housed together all year long.
- Breeding usually commences relatively quickly.
- Over the next several months, one or more clutches of eggs are produced. Some keepers leave the eggs in place to incubate naturally, while others remove the eggs and incubate them artificially.
- Artificially incubated eggs are maintained at temperatures in the mid- to high-80s Fahrenheit. Tortoises that are incubated at the high end of this range often become female; those incubated at the low end of this range often become male.
- About two to four months later, the young begin hatching. They’re typically moved to small “nursery” environments for the first few weeks or months of their lives.
Citations
- Herpetological Conservation and Biology — Comparing Husbandry Techniques for Optimal Head-starting of the Mojave Desert Tortoise (Gopherus agassizii)
- Veterinary Nursing Journal — The importance of correct nutrition and husbandry in Hermann’s tortoises
- British Veterinary Association — Reptile illness caused by bad husbandry
- Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science — Nutrition and husbandry conditions of Palearctic tortoises (Testudo spp.) in captivity
