Buying a tortoise?

Question

ok im thinking of buying a tortoise and my mum said if it is annoying and you know does her/his toilet business all over the house and moves every where so it can hide or something she is giving it away so i need to know infromation about tortoises if you have one please tell me and where to keep it and stuff like that!

im thinking i buy a small one!

thanx in advance!

Answer 1

The smallest are the Russian and Greek. Of the two, I prefer the Greeks, but they are more expensive and harder to find.

Letting ANY tortoise roam the house is not a great idea- they want habitats a bit different than we like.

Try http://www.tortoisetrust.org for details.

Answer 2

i think a russian tortoise also called a horsefield woul dbe best for you they don't grow very big and are a hardy tortoise, you keep them on a tortoise table so your mum will be happy as all the mess stays on the table not the floor (unfortunatly you can't toilet train a tortoise)  http://www.russiantortoise.net/index.htm  on this site it will show you how to build a tortiose table and how to set up an outside pen, the diet is fairly easy and you can get a lot of it from your garden  Dandelion (Taraxacum officianale)

Hawkbits (Leontodon spp.)

Sowthistles (Sonchus spp.)

Hawkweeds (Pictis spp.)

Hawkbeards (Crepis spp.)

Plantains (Plantago spp.)

Clovers (Trifolium spp.)

Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum) [preferred by T. hermanni]

Cat's ears (Hypochoeris spp.)

Vetches (Vicina spp.)

Trefoils (Lotus spp.)

Mallows (Malva spp.)

Bindweeds (Calystegia spp.)

Sedums (Sedum spp.)

Ivy-leaved Toadflax (Cymbalaria muralis)

Also (observed eaten by T. hermanni and T. marginata in Greece):

Robinia (pseudo-acacia) leaves

Wild clematis

Acanthus

Nettles    

russains are a great little tortoise and although people think they are slow and boring they are full of personality  and will learn to come to you when they see you walk in a room, here is another site that has lots of good articles  http://www.tortoisetrust.org/  follow the advice that is given on mediteranean tortoises as horsefield tortoises are cared for and fed the same as these tortoises, best of luck honey hope you find the tortoise you are looking for.

Answer 3

russian tortoises are great. they only grow to about 8 inches,and can live most fo the time outside except in the colder months,   they need a good secure inclosure outdoors and indoors,do NOT  use a tank for indoors, make or buy a tortoise table., they eat romaine lettuce, collard greens, carrot tops, kale, mustard greens, carritsm squash,  bell peppers, grasses, and hay's. also a  multivitamin, and vitamin d3 supplement on occasion, cuttlebone stuff is good for calcium.  russian tortoises are full of personality and are pretty cheap.  http://www.theturtlesource.com/tortoise_...  OR http://www.turtlesale.com/home/index.php...  hope this helps. OH also, when kept indoors, provide a basking lamp and UVA and UVB  bulb, some bulbs can do all three.