[Closed] Tortoises as a pet

We had one. It died during hibernation. This is apparently really common...

It also was hard to keep in the garden - it was male and randy. Poor bugger wandered around the Herefordshire countryside looking for a mate.. someone found it a mile away at the end of the road and brought it back to us.

Reading up on it, apparently they die during hibernation due to dehydration.

I've never really understood having one as a pet.

You might as well paint a face on an upturned cereal bowl 🙂

I was surprised at how quickly they do actually move though.

Takes ages when you walk them.

Some (possibly all?) are protected. Seem to recall my wife's godmother had problems getting rid of her husbands collection when he died. He was some sort of top dog in the tortoise breeding world, as it were, they had dozens, if not hundreds.

He also owned a lingerie shop, and could size a woman for a bra just by looking at her when she was dressed. Amazing party trick! He also had tbe decency and insight to judge which women would not be amused.

Had them as pets when I was young and thought they were really cool, one was particularly hardy but kept on running off so eventually had his address painted on his back, he could scale a 6ft garden fence...

http://www.britishcheloniagroup.org.uk/caresheets/childtort

Games of fetch take a long time.

My parents bought me two as pets when I was 3 years old. I remember the disappointment when I got them, as I really wanted a dog!

I'm now 43 and have two dogs... as well as the two original tortoises. I suspect the buggers will out live me.

For some reason my two have been easy to keep, they hibernate in a cellar and live in a fenced run in the garden in summer. They have escaped in the past, and as mentioned they can shift when they want to, so we have their names painted on the back (although the neighbours know where they live and generally return them before they go too far.) We thought we had lost the male one autumn, only to find him again in the spring as he emerged from his hibernation in the flower beds.

However - as a pet they are pretty dull, but if your daughter is into reptiles then probably worth a bash.

We have one and they are kept more like lizards and snakes now. Its in a heated vivarium and not encouraged to hibernate which is what causes the problems due to undigested food on the stomach. I was surprised at the amount of time and effort required but he's an interesting little fella. They love climbing so need plenty of variation in their habitat.

Initial Setup is expensive though. And Some places will Only Sell you a Tortoise if you buy the full setup also.

My Advice, get a bearded Dragon, cost less and can become very friendly.

We have one which is between 60 and 70 years old.

Our is a male Hermans tortoise and is a bit likely to bite anything black, so bike tyres, shoes lycra shorts with you in them. He live in the dinning room during the spring and autumn and hibernates for 3 months over the winter. In the summer he goes out side but has a hut with an £80 Basking light which needs replacing every 18 months.
When he is in the house he does poo paintings on the dinning room floor about 2-3 time a week which is quite hard to clean effectively.
he has another basking light in the Dinning room and hibernates in the fridge. (Constant 5 degrees C).

Small tortoises need a careful diet to avoid health problems.

I don't want to put you off but they do require some care and attention and if well looked after may outlive your children.

It is also worth looking on the tortoise trust web site.

www.tortoisetrust.org

We had one when I was a kid, kept escaping from the rubbish pen my Dad made. One time brought back with a hole drilled in it's shell so we could tie it up but I guess my Dad didn't tie it up very well as escaped again and never saw it after that. Pets for kids are for bonding with - hard to bond with a tortoise.

They're shit at rounding up sheep as well.

My parents bought me two as pets when I was 3 years old. I remember the disappointment when I got them, as I really wanted a dog!
I'm now 43 and have two dogs... as well as the two original tortoises. I suspect the buggers will out live me.

Ha, almost exactly the same as us...we've 2 and they just keep going.

Ours hibernate in my mums outhouse and then just have a fenced off area in the garden. Faster than you think but not as exciting as our dog

hard to bond with a tortoise

Not if you use this stuff 😉

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Ahh we lost Freddie, Mrs Dutch's tortoise a few years ago.
She brought a rock back from the seaside for him to climb on (loved his other rocks from all kinds of places) but there must have been some bacteria that didn't get washed off which got him as 2 days later we came home to the stench of dead tortoise.

Funny little creature...prob the only pet I miss(apart from my childhood dog)

Had one for many years as a kid...up until she was nicked. There was a point back then when imports stopped so their value went up....and everyone got their tortoises pinched.

I don't want to put you off but they do require some care and attention and if well looked after may outlive you[s]r children[/s].

Went to a aquatic place in Oldham recently(as they have a farm/play barn for kids),
They also sell reptiles including Tortoises, was quite shocked to see how much they cost ...£160 for a 3"long Tortoise.

For that kind of money they ought to be able to do tricks and chores round the house.

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Charlie is now 11 years old. We got him at 3 yrs old and kept him in a vivarium for a couple of years before we let him outside. He is quite a character , although don't expect him to spin round dancing on the patio. He hibernates for 5 months and he goes to a vets twice a year. Once before he hibernates, about a week before we put him to bed. They give him some gunge to kill off any mites in his gut, which could cause him to die while asleep. We also bath him for a few days before to build up his fluids. On his waking up, he goes again. Another gunge injection and weight and eye check and off we go again. He costs us £20 in vet fees and a lot in strawberries and lettuce. All tortoises except Hermans, need to be Defra registered now and micro chipped. Usually at 3 yrs old. If you are offered a tortoise without this, please be wary. He is a happy cha, although he will nip the cats or dog if they are in the way in the garden. He will hopefully outlive me and the wife, although the kids are fighting who wants him after we tottle off this planet. We did lose him one autumn and the local petshop said to rake the flower beds, we did and the ground dropped and he was buried, which you couldn't see where. So in the autumn, he stays in his garden pen, to stop him hiding again.

Prob better pet than a rabbit. All mine do is run away from me.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/iRobot-Roomba-Vacuum-Cleaning-Robot/dp/B009XDEQDM

more entertaining - may not last as long