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How to Care For a Desert Tortoise

Friday, May 30, 2008

Related Tags: desert | tortoises | diet | shelter | burrow

Instructions

Things You’ll Need:

Large Fenced Area
Shelter for Hibernation
Permit or Approval (obtained when tortoise is adopted)

Step 1:
Adopt a desert tortoise from an authorized organization. Because the desert tortoise is a threatened species in the wild, it is only legal to adopt one already in captivity. You will need to show you have the facilities to properly care for a desert tortoise. These include a large outdoor area where the tortoise can live. Make sure it's escape proof!
Step 2:
Fence in an outdoor yard area. Desert tortoises are not indoor animals, and these creatures should never be caged or tethered. They need room to move around freely and exercise. Many owners plant grasses and other vegetation in their tortoise’s living area as part of its diet. It is vital not to use pesticides or herbicides on any plants the tortoise can reach.
Step 3:
Build a shelter for the desert tortoise so it can take refuge from the sun and inclement weather. Ideally, this should be a burrow with eight inches or more of dirt on top for insulation. To help keep the burrow cool, it should face north or northeast, away from the sun. It must have good drainage to avoid flooding.
Step 4:
Get to know your desert tortoise. You should be alert to any unusual behavior changes since these may indicate health problems. Desert tortoises are vulnerable to upper respiratory diseases. Symptoms of illness include difficulty breathing, loss of appetite, weight loss, and runny noses.
Step 5:
Provide a proper diet. Desert tortoises have large appetites and need diets consisting mostly of grasses and other vegetation. They eat dandelions and other flowers as well. You can supplement their diet with special feed or with ground rabbit or guinea pig food. A detailed listing of foods that are good (and bad) for your desert tortoise is available by clicking on the website at the end of this article.
Step 6:
Prepare a place for your desert tortoise to hibernate. Around October a desert tortoise becomes sluggish and eats less. It will hibernate until the weather begins to warm in March or April. You can provide an outdoor shelter by insulating a small doghouse and covering it with a waterproof tarp. More often owners place a strong box in a garage or utility room. The box needs to be deep so the tortoise cannot climb out and placed off the floor. Once the tortoise is settled in for the winter, cover it with old newspaper for insulation.
Step 7:
Check on the hibernating tortoise every few days. Keep the temperature under 55 degrees and humidity around 30 percent. Offer the tortoise water every 4-6 weeks (for young tortoises about every 2-3 weeks). Give the tortoise plenty of water and a warm bath when it becomes active in the spring.

Tips & Warnings

If you find you cannot keep a desert tortoise find a new home for it or give it to an authorized adoption organization.
Do not release a desert turtle into the wild. Desert tortoises living in captivity have almost no chance of surviving if released. Also it is illegal to release a captive desert tortoise in some states. There are organizations that will help you. There is no need to place the turtle in harm's way.