CHANGING TORT BEHAVIOURS

Giving Mediterranean tortoises the welfare they deserve.

Tortoises have been kept in the UK for centuries. In fact, the earliest documented record goes all the way back to 1625 when William Laud, Bishop of London kept a Spurthighed tortoise (Testudo gracea) at Lambeth Palace. Fast forward almost four centuries and our fascination with these charismatic reptiles is just as prominent as ever.

As exotics keeping continues to develop into a professional hobby with animal welfare standards at the forefront, our relationship with tortoises is a perfect example of the leaps and bounds that exotic pet care has taken.

Eleanor Chubb is the European Lead for the European Turtle Alliance, Founder, Coordinator and Lecturer of Tortoise Welfare UK and Norfolk Tortoise Club. Eleanor explained: “We should look at the wild to care for tortoises in the best way we can. Tortoise keeping has become so much more exciting because of improved information and products to help animals to not only make them more interesting to keep, but also to help them thrive in captivity.”

“We now know tortoises shouldn’t last just a few years. If you get it right, you should have a beautifully smooth tortoise who’s active and lives for a lifetime. The most important thing is to keep up with research. Things do change and nothing is black and white. With a variety of correct and incorrect answers to confuse us, it’s about having a good broad overview.”

Coming out of your shell

Eleanor is keen to encourage keepers read, join clubs, groups and social networks to keep up to date with the latest breakthroughs in tortoise welfare. As each keepers’ circumstances are different, there is a vast spectrum of successful tortoise keeping standards. In summer, outdoor enclosures are always considered the best but available space, south-facing gardens, varying budgets and number of tortoises will always mean there are multiple ways to do things. There are online resources that can offer constructive and supportive advice. Pinterest enclosure can offer some great visual resources, whilst sites like ‘the tortoise table’ offer a free online directory of edible feeds. Modern keeping has never been easier.

Eleanor continued: “We now know that tortoises massively benefit from outdoor and indoor enclosures. There are lots of resources online so really there’s no excuse to not provide both. There is always a way to create an indoor and outdoor enclosure to your budget without it costing the earth. Plus, why waste money on extra lamp time when the sun is a free and effective way to offer vital vitamin d3? Just make sure you avoid using netting as tortoises don’t understand they can’t walk through and can get trapped and never underestimate how good they are at climbing and wandering off within a moment of distraction”

Outdoor enclosures can vary in size and the different materials that are used to create them. From paving slabs used vertically to state-of-the-art panel fencing, there are a whole myriad of ways to create an outdoor enclosure for a tortoise. Of course, the very best outdoor enclosures will also be attached to a shed or greenhouse that allows a warm area for the tortoise to bask as and when it needs to.

Eleanor continued: “One breakthrough that’s come to life in recent years is the benefit of providing a basking lamp. Not a spot lamp, not a radiator and not a heat mat. Tortoises should have a lamp that will warm them to their core, and this is essential to help them digest properly, to absorb vitamins and to ovulate properly. If you have one tortoise a flood all-in-one lamp can work well, but if you have a group, separate UV strip