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missdaisy79
missdaisy79 Posts: 566 Member
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Does anyone out there have a tortoise or two? I'm looking for tips for looking after them, as it looks like my husband and I are going to be taking on his brother's tortoises (new arrival in the family means the torties are coming our way!).

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  • GemmieNoWobbles
    GemmieNoWobbles Posts: 398 Member
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    Yes, Ben had one... he ran away though (he used to roam the garden and managed to get out)... he was awesome, called Windom. Ben had a heated tank for him, but he spent alot of time just roaming around Ben's room when he lived with his parents. Ben fed him things from the garden and the odd vegetable. He loved peas but did suspect things to his poo!!
  • missdaisy79
    missdaisy79 Posts: 566 Member
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    I'm just concerned about where to keep them, and whether they will get on with the cats or not! :huh:
    I don't want to take them on if I'm not going to be able to look after them, and I don't yet know if I can look after them (worried).
  • dmpizza
    dmpizza Posts: 3,321 Member
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    Regarding the cats, its more up to your cats then the tortoise.
    Remember they are cold blooded and need heat, but not too much, they need a cool place to go to also, so they can regulate their body temperature.
    They also need special kinds of light to mimic daylight.
    If you take care of them, they will live a very very long time. Tortoises technically don't age the way other animals do. They can get sick and die, but the DNA in their bodies doesn't start to make mistakes like in people or mammals when they are old.
  • GemmieNoWobbles
    GemmieNoWobbles Posts: 398 Member
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    Ben had cats too and they were only mildly interested in Windom... they'd look at him as if to say what the heck is that and whats it doing but they never really touched him.
  • missdaisy79
    missdaisy79 Posts: 566 Member
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    Thanks both. Well, I guess there's only one way to find out if we can cope, and that's to go ahead and do it. I wasn't sure if we'd manage with ferrets, but they both seem happy enough. How hard can tortoises be :bigsmile:
  • missdaisy79
    missdaisy79 Posts: 566 Member
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    So, the little dudes are arriving tonight with my father in law - can't wait!
  • missdaisy79
    missdaisy79 Posts: 566 Member
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    And the good news is that they are still alive, and seemingly very well. We had a lovely day weather wise yesterday, so we let them out for a zip around in the back garden, which they seemed to enjoy. The cats didn't pay them any attention, which was also good. We've also had to get a bigger enclosure for them in the house, a bit deeper so they can't climb out of it! I never knew tortoises were such escape artists.
  • thekarens
    thekarens Posts: 254 Member
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    Their care is depedent on the species. Not all tortoises need the same care. Find out what kind you have and do some research so your guys can have a long healthy life.

    Congrations on your new family member!
  • clare07866
    clare07866 Posts: 12 Member
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    I have 4 tortoises. they dont take a great deal of work but the care for them is dependant on what type of tortoise they are.

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