Anyone ever keep a tortoise?

[PaulVerrall]

The wife loves them, I was thinking of getting one for Xmas, but initially put off with the size of the table it needs to live in.
Any advice on types, how small I could get away with the table being, most hardy and small species etc.

[Martinspuddle]

Yes, but I'll have come back to you this one @PaulVerrall ...busy today.

[PaulVerrall]

Yes, but I'll have come back to you this one @PaulVerrall ...busy today.

OK mate, I'm just floating it, won't be getting (if I do) til xmas

[F3l1ss]

Hrm if you're already thinking what's the smallest impact you can get away with are you sure it's the right animal to get? They're not short-lived animals, shortest is 30 years I believe...

[PaulVerrall]

Hrm if you're already thinking what's the smallest impact you can get away with are you sure it's the right animal to get? They're not short-lived animals, shortest is 30 years I believe...

Yeah, age is not a problem, size of tortoise isn't either, just my first look online says minimum 5ft x 3ft table for it. I can't fit that in the area it would go, so I need one that either needs less space or I'll have to pull the plug on the idea

[F3l1ss]

Go multilayer

[PaulVerrall]

Go multilayer

Wow that's very cool!!
How big is it please mate?

[Martinspuddle]

How big is it please mate?

...that would be missus.

Anyway, below is a picture our late Tortoise 'Tim'. He was male Moroccan Spur-thighed Tortoise which a small species with a maximum shell length of 6 - 10 depending on sex and lived for some 25 years with us. He was probably already ten years old when my mother purchased him in 1979 from the local pet shop.


click to enlarge

We never kept him in a enclosure indoors, instead from spring till autumn he lived in the garden in a fenced off area which was move regularly around the lawn. Apart from eating Buttercups, Clover, Dandelions and Sour-thistles, he was fed on a diet of various vegetables and salad leaves. Hibernation, he was left in a crate packed with straw for the winter months until it was warm enough again.

Seems these days a lot of people keep their Tortoises in doors year round and so species size would be critical for those wishing to keep the animal indoors. If you did keep the animal outside every night, you must make sure it is inside a secure hutch. Ours had a wooden hutch with door and was sat on four builders bricks to stop damp getting in.

Mites and ticks can be an issue if kept outdoors but easily cured with trip to the vets and I would suspect that's why so many are housed indoors.

They're not short-lived animals, shortest is 30 years I believe...

They can, again depending on species can be very long lived. My friends mother Deidre has a Tortoise (not sure which species) which she has had since a little girl, lives in their garden all it's life except wintertime. Mikes mum is now in her seventies, so this give you an idea how long some Tortoise species can live.

Giant Tortoises can live 200 years or more. There is the case of 'Timothy' (link below) who was a Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise who was thought to be about 160 years old when the creature pasted away.

Wikipedia - Timothy (tortoise)

[PaulVerrall]

How big is it please mate?

...that would be missus.

Lol yeah I know, that's the chatham chav coming out in me, calling everyone mate!

Cheers for the info, I'm definitely looking at an indoor tortoise, assuming I can cater for its needs properly and the vivarium/table will fit.
Are they smelly to have indoors? Obviously with substrate, water and waste I wouldn't want my lounge to smell!

[BigBen]

I have a Horsfield Tortoise, called Sherlock. He's about 8 now. I built him an enclosure outside. He's preping himself for hibernation now. We'll pop him in the garage for the winter soon.