Sorry if there's already a thread for this...I searched several pages back and didn't see one.

I've got a beautiful Hermann tortoise. Had him since birth and he's about 6 years old now.

I swapped him out of a large tank into a smaller one for feeding and UV lighting only.

Why? Because I give him a couple of hours (3-4 hours of feeding and lighting) and then let him have a wander around the house.

I also have never bought all the stuff that your meant to buy in terms of feeding (i.e. internet gobblydook) and just buy a good mixed salad from Tesco, Asda, Coop ,etc, and fruit of all sorts chopped up, and finlally veg ready for the bin...carrots, potato skins, cabbage leaves, in fact most vegs except onion and pepper type varieties (washed of course) ....and he's happy as Larry.

I also give him a thorough wash once a week in the sink. I don't add anything at all to the water, but just let him bathe. However, if he does the toilet in it, I change the water and let him have another bath. (I've noticed that tortoises like warm water to poo in.....in fact it's often a solution for them if they are constipated). So let them sit and bathe in that nice warm water and just drain and run again each time they dirty it until your happy that they've emptied themselves. Dry with a nice warm towel and make sure that you get in under their neck and into their legs under the shell as much as possible.

After that.....give them a slap up meal. Make sure the light and heating is on too.

Anyway.....I've never had one problem with our tortoise in 6/7 years. He's thriving fantastically, despite all the dos and don'ts on how to feed raise a tortoise. He gets his UV light, which I know is vitally important.....but as for most of the other stuff I've read, well it was a long long time ago, and I barely remember.

Our wee tortie, has adapted to our household fully.

My aunt had a lovely tortoise called Percy when I was a little girl, I used to feed him lettuce leaves and loved how he ate them so slowly

I don't remember too much about him, as I was quite young, but I know he mainly lived in the garden, and hibernated in a box in the outside toilet during the winter.

I also remember their garden being pitch black of a night, as she lived right out in the country, and being afraid I would step on him...I was so worried that I had a recurrent nightmare as a child of stepping on a tortoise and his shell being soft and jelly like

I remember him being a gentle slow creature and really fascinating to watch. It was the late 60's and he was quite old by the time I came along, He belonged to her, by then, adult son, and I don't remember him being around much after the 70's

I assume tortoise care has improved a bit since poor old Percy's day .

I'd love a tortoise but to be honest all the stuff I've read on the internet about care etc kind of put me off - so it's good to know most of it is a load of drivel. I guess it's like most animal care - the stuff on the internet is very often 'in an ideal world' kind of thing where no one lives.

When I've moved I might look into it again. Thanks for starting the post JTW

We had a tortoise before I was born and sadly died at age 30, on my mother's 60th birthday party.

They can be rewarding but they love heat and get stuck on their back sometimes if you leave them to roam the house on their own. It was a constant anxiety!

My neighbour has a tortoise. He found him abandoned 50 years ago so we dont know how old he actually is. He has three legs as when he was found he had string attached to a stump so was obviously tied up.
He loves his warm bath once a week, he never hibernates now. He lives in the house during the winter and has the run of the garden in the summer.
He eats everything the OP states and his favourite is dandelion heads and their leaves. They are a staple diet for him with all the fruit and veg as extras.
Pete loves company, he has an array of small toys to plough through when the mood takes him. Small balls with bells in them and rocks to clamber over etc. He has a birds cuttlefish to nibble on for his beak.
His owner has left him to me in his will should he die before Pete......lol

My Granddad's tortoise is called Sparky and is still alive and kicking! He has been part of the family for over 50 years.

Sadly my Granddad passed away a few years back so he now lives with my Aunt.

We never used to do anything other than the basics with Sparky - he lived is his house in the gardeb during summer and he hibernated in a box through the winter in a spare bedroom.

He was fed fruit and veg, had the run of the garden and used to love chilling out with my Granddad's cat.

You would know he was out of hibernation when you could hear the floorboards creaking and I was always in charge of giving him his first clean.

My Aunt lives quite far away so I've not seen the tortoise for a while - but he is fab!!

Hi

We have a tortoise called Timmy (original i know!|) and he lives in a run in the garden in the summer and goes to sleep in a box in the shed during the winter, we have had him for about 30 years, not sure quite how old he is but he is a big boy!

he eats Lettuce, Tomatoes, cucumber and his favourite are dandilion flowers.

He is great, so cool!

Thanks so much for your responses and experiences.

I absolutely love our wee (or big fella). He's such a gentle soul and so intelligent.

Okay, I know if anyone else who has never experienced having a tortoise live with them for 6 years will probably think I'm nuts given that they don't do much at all except eat, move around a bit, hide and sleep, But believe me they are intelligent and their heads move up and they turn their head as soon as they see you or you speak to them.

Wise as hell.

They also have great memory retention.

An example is that my young grandson gave Paddy a bad experience.....i.e skited him around the room with a floor brush and thought it was hilarious. (Our Cairn Terrier suffered the same fate).

Anyway, neither ever forgot or forgave him. (My cairn has since passed away...god love her), but Paddy literally shies away to the furthest corner he can cram himself into as soon as he hears my grandson's voice coming anywhere near him. Honestly.

So I guess they are a bit like elephants in that they have great memory retention and respond in that they come right out of sleep or hiding when they hear your voice and come up to the front of the glass. It gladdens my heart every time, because I know they have no other way of communicating and rely solely on goodwill and good care.

So thanks again for sharing. They are wonderful creatures and far more intelligent than what they are given credence for.

I have read what you say JTW, doubtless you will ask "who is this upstart?”

But I still feel compelled to put you right on some points.

The shop bought salad mix you are feeding to your tort is not the best nutrition for him. Fruit is OK as an occasional treat, even carrot, though this should be only tiny amounts on the very odd occasion. Potato skin is not a good idea and cabbage, kale, sprouts etc, which we eat regularly, are Brassicas, which contain oxalic acid. This can prevent the absorption of calcium. High levels of calcium are essential to a tortoise for the growth and health of bones and the shell. Lack of absorbed calcium can result in 'pyramiding' of the scutes. (Scutes = Sections of the Carapace [upper part of the shell]).

The best food for a Hermann (Testudo Hermanni), Med Spur Thigh (Testudo Graeca) and other Mediterranean species are weeds. Dandelion, Sow Thistle, Hawksbeard, Chickweed, Common Chicory, Common Mallow etc. All can be grown in your garden, absolutely free.

Tortoises should not be kept in a vivarium (tank). They should be on a tortoise table with a heat (basking) lamp and a UV lamp. Or combined basking/UV lamp, such as a Megaray. But the best place, during the warm summer months, is the garden, where he will get natural sunlight.

Your bathing regime is good. The reason your tort poos and wees in the bath is because in their natural environment water can be scarce, so they will wee when there is fresh water to replenish them.

Can I just add, for the benefit of anyone else reading this, dog & cat food is a definite NO NO! for these species of tortoise. American Box & Wood Turtles, Redfoot, Yellowfoot and African Hingeback are the only tortoises which are omnivorous.

Your experience with your grandson is a good case to support the myth that tortoises make good pets for children. They DO NOT.

As for the intelligence of tortoises, I have to agree with you. I have two Med Spur Thigh torts and they know more than they are given credit for. But then, since their species has been around since long before the dinosaurs, they've had a long time to learn.

Finally, I would direct all tortoise keepers to the Tortoise Trust web site and the Tortoise Protection Group website.
http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/webdiet.htm There are some disturbing illustrations of what can happen to a tortoise if not properly looked after on this page. http://www.tortoise-protection-group.org.uk/site/1.asp

By the way, I founded the Tortoise First Forum http://www.tortoisefirst.com