Care questions

[lenorecannon]

I found this beautiful creature on the road about a month ago, where it could have easily been run over while I was on a walk in my city. I took it home as I’m pretty certain it’s not a wild animal; I live in a pretty built-up area. It must have been someone’s pet as its shell seems to be painted green and red. I’m guessing it made a run for it. Hah.

I knew almost nothing about a tortoise's needs, and I’ve been slowly educating myself on taking care of it. I was planning on finding it a new home, but I got really attached to the little thing and can’t stop thinking about it! 🫣

It seems “healthy” from my point of view. After getting a bit of sun every morning, it just goes on patrol, exploring outside and inside at its own leisure (very active). It eats often and poops at least twice a day.

Okay, here come the questions.

Is it a Greek tortoise? That’s my best guess from the research I’ve done.

Male or female?

Is it okay to feed it broccoli? I found mixed answers online. I fed it once, and it seemed to like it. But I stopped to err on the side of caution. I mostly feed it arugula, kale, and carrots now, as that’s what I’m able to find in my area. I fed it lettuce when I first found it as I didn’t know any better. I’m on the hunt for mustard and other leafy greens but so far, no luck. If broccoli is safe, I’d like to give it as much variety as I can. Also, it seems to have lost interest in kale after a couple of days.

Is it okay to crush cuttlefish bone to a powder and mix it with its food? It wouldn’t interact or do anything with the bone besides pee on it once. I did break it down into small pieces, but still, it just ignored it.

Does it need a bath/soaking? I gave it one once and I’m pretty sure it didn’t enjoy it as it tried to escape. The water was lukewarm and pretty shallow.

Is its shell rotting??? I joined this subreddit recently and saw someone asking if their tortoise had shell rot. I didn’t know that was a thing! I now notice some black spots on its underbelly and a few on its upper shell.

How old do we think it might be? Its shell is 9 cm long. I know it’s almost impossible to know, but a ballpark estimate would be nice.

Is there anything I should be asking that I haven’t? I want to provide it the best care it can get given the circumstances.

Thank you in advance.

[Nina]

Hi Lenore and welcome to The Tortoise Table!

It is so good of you to give this little tortoise a good home. Unfortunately there was no photo attached to your post, so we can't give you an ID for it. In order to upload photos you need to reduce them in size (here is a guide to uploading photos http://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/site ... hp?f=4&t=3 but if you can't make that work then just send the photos by email to contact@thetortoisetable.org.uk and we will ID it for you.

Broccoli isn't the greatest food for a tortoise (here is our entry in our plant database for it https://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/pla ... nt=622&c=8 but in small quantities it would do no harm. You can check if any plant is good to feed by using our database https://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk and if you can't find a plant there you can contact us and we will look it up for you. You can also use our filter tool to produce lists of good plants to eat -- just go to this page and scroll down to the section called 'How to Use the Traffic Light Filters' https://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/pla ... -database/

Can I ask what country you live in? It's useful to know because there might be plants growing near you that can be fed, and also it helps to know what your climate is like. Tortoises are ectothermic, meaning they don't make their own body heat like mammals do, so in countries like the UK, etc. they need extra heat in order for their systems to work properly.

Just one other thing --- have you checked with your neighbours to check if they have lost a tortoise? Chances are it has escaped from a home near you and the owners might be frantic with worry, so just doing a check in your area might be a good idea.

We can send you a care sheet for your tortoise as soon as we know the species, so we look forward to receiving photos.

Best wishes,
Nina

[taylorswift]

If the shell is high-domed and the patterns are distinct, it could be a Greek tortoise (Testudo graeca).
Generally, males have a more concave plastron (the underside of the shell) and longer tails, while females have a flatter plastron and shorter tails.