EXPERIENCE ROXY'S PET SHOP CARE SHEETS

• Enclosure Size: Hermann’s tortoises need a spacious environment to roam and explore. For a single adult tortoise, the minimum enclosure size should be 4 feet by 2 feet for an indoor setup, but larger is always better. If you're planning to house multiple tortoises, the enclosure should be even larger to reduce territorial disputes. If you have the space, a larger tortoise table or outdoor pen will provide the best habitat.
• Outdoor Housing: Hermann’s tortoises do well in outdoor enclosures if you live in a temperate climate. A secure outdoor pen should be at least 6 feet by 6 feet for one tortoise, with a high fence to prevent them from escaping (Hermann’s tortoises are excellent diggers). Ensure the pen provides both sunny spots for basking and shaded areas where they can retreat to cool off.
• Indoor Housing: For indoor enclosures, a tortoise table or large plastic tub can be used. Make sure to provide a dry area with access to moist areas for hydration. For larger spaces, you can create a naturalistic environment with rocks, hides, and areas to dig and burrow. Use a substrate like coconut coir, cypress mulch, or orchid bark that is easy to clean and mimics natural conditions.
• Temperature: Hermann’s tortoises require a warm environment. The basking area should reach 90-95°F (32-35°C), while the cool side should be between 70-75°F (21-24°C). The nighttime temperature can drop to 60-65°F (15-18°C), but should not fall lower than 50°F (10°C). If kept indoors, use UVB lamps and heat lamps to maintain a proper day-night temperature gradient.
• Lighting & UVB: Proper UVB lighting is crucial for Hermann’s tortoises to produce Vitamin D3, which is necessary for calcium absorption. Provide UVB bulbs with a 10-12 hour light cycle each day. Natural sunlight is ideal, so if your tortoise is housed outdoors, ensure they have access to sunlight for at least a few hours each day.
• Substrate: Choose a non-toxic substrate, such as coconut coir, cypress mulch, or organic soil. Avoid substrates like sand or peat moss, as they can cause respiratory issues or digestive problems if ingested. Ensure the substrate is deep enough to allow your tortoise to dig and explore, which is a natural behavior.
• Humidity: Hermann’s tortoises are adapted to relatively dry, Mediterranean climates, so they do not require high humidity. Maintain 40-60% humidity in the enclosure. A shallow water dish for soaking is important to keep your tortoise hydrated, but avoid waterlogged environments that could cause respiratory issues.

• Herbivorous Diet: Hermann’s tortoises are strictly herbivores and require a varied, high-fiber, and low-protein diet to stay healthy. Their diet should consist mainly of leafy greens, flowers, and grasses. Provide a mix of dandelion greens, clover, collard greens, mustard greens, endive, kale, and plantain leaves. Avoid high-oxalate greens like spinach and beet greens.
• Wild Plants & Grasses: If possible, offer a variety of edible wild plants and grasses. This can include dandelion leaves, thistle, clover, and plantain. If you don’t have access to wild plants, make sure the greens you provide are pesticide-free.
• Vegetables & Flowers: Vegetables such as squash, carrots, bell peppers, and zucchini can be offered occasionally, but should not be the bulk of the diet. Offer edible flowers like hibiscus, roses, and dandelions as a treat to add variety.
• Calcium & Vitamins: Hermann’s tortoises require calcium for proper shell and bone growth. Offer calcium-rich foods like dandelion leaves, kale, and clover. You can also supplement their diet with calcium powder (without phosphorus) 2-3 times a week. Additionally, a multivitamin supplement can be added to their diet every 2-3 weeks to ensure they receive all the necessary nutrients.
• Avoid Toxic Foods: Hermann’s tortoises should never eat fruit in large quantities, as it is too sugary. Avoid toxic foods such as avocado, onions, garlic, rhubarb, and potatoes. Stick to safe, natural, and non-toxic plants for their diet.
• Fresh Water: Provide fresh water daily. Tortoises often drink little water, so offering a shallow water dish for soaking is essential. This allows the tortoise to stay hydrated and encourages natural behaviors, such as soaking.

• Generally Solitary: Hermann’s tortoises are not particularly social animals and do not require regular companionship. In fact, it is often recommended to house them individually, as they can become territorial and aggressive towards one another. If you plan to keep more than one, ensure there is enough space and hiding places to prevent conflicts.
• Handling: While Hermann’s tortoises are not cuddly pets, they can tolerate gentle handling. Pick them up carefully, supporting their body fully. Avoid handling them too often, as excessive interaction can cause stress. Allow them to roam and explore at their own pace, and observe them from a distance.
• Environmental Enrichment: Though Hermann’s tortoises do not require much in terms of socialization, they enjoy having an enriched environment to explore. Provide rocks, logs, and burrowing materials in their enclosure to encourage natural behaviors such as climbing, digging, and hiding.

• Shell Care: A healthy shell is vital for a tortoise’s overall health. Ensure your tortoise has access to plenty of basking time under a UVB light to encourage proper shell growth. If you notice any cracks, softness, or abnormalities in the shell, it could be a sign of a calcium deficiency or illness, and you should seek veterinary care.
• Soaking: Offer your tortoise a shallow bath 2-3 times a week. This not only helps with hydration but also aids in digestion and shedding. Soak your tortoise in lukewarm water, ensuring the water level is shallow enough that the tortoise can easily climb out when it’s finished soaking.
• Nail & Beak Care: Hermann’s tortoises will naturally wear down their nails and beak through movement and foraging. However, if the nails grow too long, you may need to trim them carefully with tortoise nail clippers. If your tortoise's beak becomes overgrown, a veterinarian can help trim it.
• Monitoring Health: Regularly monitor your tortoise’s activity level, eating habits, and overall health. Signs of illness include lethargy, loss of appetite, swollen eyes, or runny nose. If you notice any of these symptoms, consult with a reptile vet immediately.

• Mating Season: Hermann’s tortoises breed in spring and early summer. Males may exhibit head bobbing, chasing, and flipping behavior toward females. Male tortoises can become quite persistent during mating season.
• Egg-Laying: Female Hermann’s tortoises will lay 2-5 eggs per clutch. Provide a nesting area with soft, moist substrate, such as coco coir, where the female can dig and lay her eggs. After laying, the female will cover the eggs with substrate and leave them to incubate.
• Incubation: Eggs should be incubated at a temperature of 80-85°F (27-29°C) and a humidity of 70-80%. Incubation takes about 60-90 days, and the hatchlings will be ready to emerge once the eggs have fully developed.
• Caring for Hatchlings: Baby Hermann’s tortoises should be housed separately from adults to avoid aggression. Provide a suitable habitat with proper lighting, temperature, and humidity. Baby tortoises can be more sensitive to environmental changes, so it’s important to monitor their health closely.

• Curious and Active: Hermann’s tortoises are known for their curious nature. They are generally active during the day, foraging, basking, and exploring. They have a gentle disposition but can be quite independent and prefer their own space.
• Docile: Hermann’s tortoises are typically docile and easy to care for, making them excellent pets for first-time tortoise owners. However, they can be slightly more skittish than other species when introduced to new environments or when handled too frequently.
• Solitary by Nature: These tortoises are solitary animals, so while they may tolerate the presence of other tortoises, they do not form strong social bonds. They are best housed alone to reduce stress.

• Toxic Plants & Materials: Always make sure your tortoise’s environment is free from toxic plants like azaleas, rhododendrons, lilies, and oleander. Also, avoid using non-stick cookware (Teflon) in areas where your tortoise might be exposed to fumes, as these can be toxic.
• Predator Protection: If housed outdoors, ensure that the enclosure is secure against dogs, cats, and wild animals. Hermann’s tortoises are vulnerable to predation, so the enclosure should have a strong fence and cover to protect them.

Hermann’s tortoises are hardy, fascinating, and relatively easy to care for, making them an excellent choice for reptile enthusiasts. With the proper housing, diet, and a little bit of patience, these charming creatures can live for decades, offering companionship and enrichment. Whether housed indoors or outdoors, providing a natural, spacious, and secure environment will ensure that your Hermann’s tortoise remains happy and healthy for many years.

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Firstly it should be a species that hibernates. Secondly it should be over three years of age. Finally it should have a pre-hibernation check, ideally we would advise that this is with a vet. This will make sure that there are no obvious signs of ill health before hibernation and that they are a good weight to have enough energy stores during hibernation.

Hibernation should begin in late November to early December. This may be even later for younger tortoises, as discussed later. This means that tortoises in the UK will need to be housed in the autumn indoors with the correct lighting and temperatures for their species before hibernation. If they are not housed indoors then they may go into hibernation earlier due to changes in weather and so will need to be housed when they have finished hibernation.

Hibernation should be no longer than 16 weeks but ideally should last around three months. This is because of the weather conditions of where these tortoises have originated from. If left to their own devices tortoises in the UK will often end up hibernating for five or six months and sometimes even more because of our climate. Over the years these extra months of hibernation take their toll and can lead to kidney disease, a lower immune system and other health problems. This is why only three to four months is recommended. Ideally hibernation should end around mid to late March when the weather in the UK is starting to get warmer.

We recommend starting hibernation when your tortoise is about three or four years of age, because juveniles are more susceptible to sudden changes in temperature. For the young tortoises starting hibernation for the first time we recommend just four weeks of hibernation. In the coming years we add on a week each year until they reach the three to four months advised. We aim to wake up the young tortoises about four weeks before the adults are brought out of hibernation.

Before hibernation it is important for your tortoise to undergo a ‘fasting period’. This will be between two to six weeks depending on their size. The environmental temperature should be dropped and they should not be fed anything. They need to be bathed daily to encourage water intake. Make sure that the temperature remains about 12-13°C for about 3 weeks after their last meal to aid digestion, to avoid asphyxiation or bacterial infection if they are hibernated with undigested food.

Ideally faeces should be checked for signs of worms before hibernation and those affected need to be wormed. Some owners chose to worm without testing.

The ideal temperature for hibernating your tortoise is between 3 and 7°C. If the temperature drops below 0°C there is a risk of your tortoise freezing, sometimes to death. Not only does this affect the organs if they do recover, but it often leads to blindness. If the temperature goes above 10°C then your tortoises metabolism will be too high and the bodies stores of energy will be used up too quickly. This may cause problems with recovering from hibernation.

Therefore we recommend fridge hibernating your tortoise. Yes, you read that right. The fridge is temperature controlled and so will ensure that your tortoise is kept at the right temperature. The best fridges are wine coolers as these are designed to never reach freezing point on their own. Before using your refrigerator it is important to have it set up and tested to ensure it is reliably staying at the right temperature. This means using a separate digital thermometer probe with a minimum and maximum temperature reading. This should be placed within the air of the fridge and not touching a surface. Often the thermostats in the fridges are not accurate.

One main concern with fridge hibernation is airflow. Firstly a hibernating tortoise has low oxygen needs. Secondly this is easily overcome by opening the fridge door for a minute or two around 3 times per week.

Tortoises can be hibernated in insulated boxes or by being buried in the ground. Both these methods have problems and so are not recommended.

Tortoises can be hibernated in cardboard, plywood or plastic boxes. They should be big enough for the animal to turn in and deep enough to prevent escape. They should be kept in a 50/50 mix of play sand and soil or shredded paper, just enough to allow the tortoise to bury itself.

If your tortoise wakes during hibernation they should not be put back to sleep again but woken up, fed and housed indoors with the correct heating and lighting. Tortoises should be weighed before hibernation and once per week during hibernation. If a tortoise loses more than 10% body weight during hibernation or passes urine then they need to be woken up early.