The Tortoise Table

Sounds like you've got it sorted! No problems with the thermometer, and I think he will be very happy with the playsand/topsoil mixture. As I said, most use it 50/50, but mine seem to like it more like 60/40 or 70/30 (more soil than sand) and you either spray it lightly every day or so, or you can j...

Hi Niamh, and thanks for posting here. First of all, congratulations on getting a nice big tortoise table for Terrence -- it's a good size and should last him for quite some time -- and he will love the climbing thing! You've laid it out really nicely too, and there are just a few things that I woul...

Hi Niamh, Oh my goodness, isn't Terrence a gorgeous little Horsfield, and thanks so much for the photos!. Actually you probably won't know if he is a Terrence or a Theresa for a little while, because it's very difficult to sex tortoises until they are about 5 or 6 years old. Did you find the care sh...

Sounds perfect then. Did you also see the link to the care sheet in Lin’s post? I hope it will be useful. Tortoises can be really stubborn about giving up their favourite foods. They do like pellets because the manufacturers put flavours in that attract them, but most pellets are far too high in pro...

You’ve made the viv as nice as possible, but they are really very bad environments for torts (good for snakes and lizards but not for tortoises), so converting it is a good idea. I have a couple of photos of converted vivs but my computer is on the blink, and I’m on my iPad and don’t have access to ...

Hi DaVinci, and welcome to The Tortoise Table. I must say, you’ve built Leo a really lovely outdoor enclosure — lots of room, lots of interesting things to walk over and around. If he had a secure, dry area with heat and UVB lamps to provide a temperature of around 30C directly under them, and aroun...

Hi Cheryl, My goodness you’re making excellent progress! Isn’t it wonderful what difference the proper substrate can make. Can’t wait to see pictures! You are right not to hibernate him this year, but just be warned that many tortoises have a strong hibernation instinct, and they sense when the days...

Excellent news, and thanks for the update!

Nina

Hi Cheryl, Yes, I agree that this table will be fine for him until you can get a bigger one. The conservatory sounds fine for him, as long as it doesn’t get too hot (but with the dark, cold weather we’ve been having that extra light will be most welcome!). What wattage is your lamp? That is great th...

And just to add also about a cold house, unless the temperature in the room drops below about 13C or 14C at night, there should be no problem. If it does drop lower you can get a ceramic heat emitter on a thermostat that comes on when the temps drop too low. Otherwise you just get a higher wattage b...

Hi Cheryl, Welcome to The Tortoise Table, and congratulations on getting Dumbledore (great name by the way)! I can understand that you feel overwhelmed, but I’m really encouraged because you have all the right concerns and have pinpointed the potential problems. First of all, here’s a link to a care...

In addition to Lin’s good advice you might find the information on this page helpful ( and click on the links to indoor and outdoor enclosures).
https://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/tor ... 0kKgcp4Wf0

Nina

Hi Beeccaa, I'm glad to hear that she's receiving treatment, and hopefully her eye will open soon. Did the vet tell you that while she is on the antibiotics it's a good idea to keep the heat on in her enclosure 24 hours a day (the antibiotics are more effective if the tortoise's body temperature doe...

I agree completely with Lin.

Nina

Hi and thanks for contacting us. It's good that you are asking these questions before you before you buy your Hermanns tortoise, rather than afterwards. It's not ideal to take a tortoise on a long journey, as it's a bit stressful for them, but it's not impossible either. The important thing would be...

Thanks so much for the good news! Tortoises are amazing escape artists and it's just brilliant that the neighbour found him (definitely relief all round)!

Nina

Hi Beeccaa, It's really hard to say what has caused her eye to close, so forgive me if I ask a lot of questions. It's possible that a bit of grit got into it, in which case bathing with the warm water might help. You could also try 'hypromellose', which is sold in chemists and is usually called 'art...

You can send any photos to contact@thetortoisetable.org.uk and we will put them on the Facebook page for you.

Nina

Thanks for posting and we will post this on our Facebook page too. I do hope you find him -- chances are that he is still in your garden but has just dug down under a bush or something, to escape rain or for the night. Do a fingertip search of everywhere in your garden, looking for areas where the s...

Hi Jody, I hope Jemima is enjoying the bits of sunshine that we're having in between thunderstorms. Re your questions: 1). I think she should be OK outdoors as long as it is warm, even in some rain, but she will need somewhere to shelter if the rain is heavy. Wet grass is also no problem as long as ...

Yes, powdery mildew has been a big problem this year, and I have lots of it in my garden. As far as I know it is not toxic to tortoises (whereas black mould can be toxic). My tortoises have eaten some Evening Primrose leaves with mildew on them with no ill effects. I think I would avoid feeding lots...

Hi Lucre, I’m so sorry that neither Lin nor I responded to your email! For some reason we didn’t get notified when you posted it. How are they doing now? Letting them nibble on clover and dandelion in the garden is absolutely fine, and no need to starve them if they are eating themselves. Most torto...

Lol, do you two mean ‘balmy’ or ‘barmy’? Whatever it is, my torts just seem to want to sleep when it gets too hot!

Nina

I think that is very hopeful news. I would definitely keep on with the dandelions, but I would wet them thoroughly and then cut up something else that is good into very tiny pieces and sprinkle a few of those tiny pieces on the dandelion, so that they stick to it, and that way when he takes a bite o...

It sounds like he is in good hands, and the fact that he was energetic when he was outdoors is a very good sign. Have you tried hand feeding him with something that you know he is fond of? It's a slippery slope because if you hand feed too much then they don't want to eat by themselves, but you coul...