hi looking for some advice?

[UNHAPPY-GREEN-EYES]

hi everyone, ok here is my story, my lil girl and me really want a tortoise, but ive never had one and dont know wat they need or how much attension they need?

has anyone ever had one, r they good for children? obviously she wont b yanking it around or anything but i mean r they pretty calm tempered?

we hav a dog who ive had for years , long b4 she was born, but she just wants somethin of her own now i think, i think they r so cute too id love one but just not sure about them?

 

[Fluffygirl]

Hiya,

I would also love a tortoise ( my 5 year old is desperate for one!) but they do need quite a bit of work and cost. From what I understand you will need a tortiose table with UV light and a heat lamp along with a suitable substrate ( normally soil and sand I think) and you will also need to have an outside grassed area, so you can have a run for it in the summer months (runs will have to be wired to protect from predation). They are fed on weeds, dandelion etc daily which need supplementing with calcium and nutribal.
Obviously care depends on the type of tortoise, I think Horsefield and Hermann are classed as beginners tortoises. They can live over 110+ Years!

A really good forum to ask about is Reptile Forums UK - Care, Pictures, Classifieds & More There is a tortoise section ( under Shelled) on there!

Hope this helps,

Louise

 

[MinnieMel]

Also, you need to very careful handling tortoises and turtles, and the like. I had a friend whose husband ended up in hospital with salmonella from handling their tortoise! He was actually in intensive care for a few days -- very ill.

 

[Fluffygirl]

Thats the same with all animals tbh, we have lots of different reptiles and it is fine aslong as you use anti bacterial gel after handling them.

We have a 5 year old and he is allowed supervised contact aslong as he washes his hands after and uses anti bac gel and he has always been fine.

With all animals there is risk of picking up salmonella (dogs and cats are just as bad) its just as case of being aware and using anti bac gel a lot!

 

[UNHAPPY-GREEN-EYES]

seems liuke i need to do some more research about them as i dont know much but i think il defo still get one in the next few months

 

[Blue Butterfly]

I wanted to get a tortoise years ago coz I have tons of other animals and wanted something new and different!
But I soon changed my mind when I did my research and found out that they take ALOT more looking after than I thought! I read quite a few times about them not going into hibernation and people having to put them in their fridges lol
And they live 100+ years,so its a very very very long term pet!

 

[MinnieMel]

Hi BB et al -- We did a tour with the Girl Guides of the local animal shelter and they had a whole presentation on the problems of abandoned tortosies in the UK. There are apparently a lot of them -- and Peterborough has some sort of special shelter there. They get big and people just set them free and then they are a problem for the local flora and fauna.

MM

 

[Martina2426]

Tortoises are a lifelong commitment and usually have to be willed to someone after the owners death. Turtles also live long. I had a fully grown Southern Painted turtle for more than twenty years. I don't know much about tortoises but I know a little bit about turtles. They are easy pets to have but they do require a lot of space. And check the legality laws in your area. In the states you cannot purchase a turtle that is under four inches. I don't know what they would be there though.

How old is your daughter? It sounds like you need to do quite a bit of research on all types of pets and then decide.

Regardless of whatever you get, if you get a reptile or other "exotic" type of pet make sure you get it from a reputable breeder or dealer and not someone who aquired the animal illegally. And around here (in the states), people often pick up turtles and tortoises out of the wild and try to turn them into pets, which is something one should never, ever do.

Good luck in whatever you decide!!

 

[MinnieMel]

Welcome and Info for Martina

Hi Martina, :welcome:

I think what I am about to do here is called hijacking a thread -- so I apologize to the Pet Corner posters. But, I was unable to send a private message to this newbie. :hijack: Please Forgive me.

Welcome to Minimins. I see that you are an American (I'll have to check my atlas to see where your town is located -- I have several friends in NC, mostly near Ft. Bragg).

Most of the people on the site are British. But, not all -- and some are Brits living in Spain, Australia, etc. It is nice to see another American posting -- I have come across a couple of others. I am American but live in the UK and have for 8 years (total).

Here are some tips for this site: if you go to the games, off topic sections, etc. and start playing the movie games, change a letter games, etc. It is a quick way to up your posts -- once you have a certain number of posts you are allowed to add photos and partake in other features on this site. Including being able to visit other peoples albums and send private messages. Also, if someone's post is particularly helpful you can click on the thanks button on the right hand side of the post -- this site tracks the thanks you have given, and those you have received. I am not sure what this does for your access to Minimins, but it has taken me awhile to figure a lot of things out.

There are tutorials listed up on the main page banner -- and one by Pierce was especially helpful for "how to set up a ticker".

Are you using Cambridge Diet US? I am using the Cambridge Diet FFL (I like it because it is Soy Based and seems to agree with me better). I can order from the US and have it sent to my APO address (US military mailing address).

I am doing CD to take off the 20 plus pounds I regained after intially losting about 60 doing a British program called Lighter Light. It was very good and worked well and fast. It was very expensive, but it had a fantastic counseling component.

I am surprised that LL has not been introduced in the US -- it has been here in the UK for about 14 years (I think). I had gained a lot of weight when I first moved overseas (in 1994) and could never stick with a diet enough to take it off, but the simplicity of the meal replacement worked for me. But, keeping it all off was an issue (I quit working out and started gaining... which is part of why I gained the weight all those years ago). :cry:

Good Luck to you -- and your post about the lifespan was very helpful... I had forgotten to mention that and the shelter stressed that to the girl guides.

MinnieMel

 

[Martina2426]

MinnieMel~~ I think its best we wait until we can PM each other. I've been around forums (mostly Military Significant other forums) since 2003 and I always think things like this are best handled via PM. My facebook is in my profile, if you want you can PM me there.

 

[MinnieMel]

Hey Martina,

I can't access your page -- you may need to have 50 posts before I can do this.

MM

 

[duncan]

tortoises can run up a lot of expense,i would advise you to get pet insurance,this probably sounds stupid to you, the first year i hibernated harry he came out of hibernatio with pneumonia not only him nearly dying the vet bill was nearly £1000, he no longer hibernates we keep him in a viv through the winter,i have to say we get through a lot of bulbs