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Ibera Greek and marginated tortoises are very hardy and require the same care, which is also applicable to Hermann’s tortoises (Testudo hermanni) and Russian tortoises (Testudo horsfeldi). There is no difference in the care between hatchlings and adult animals, other than the size of the pen they require. During the warm months of the year, the tortoises should be kept outdoors in the biggest pen you can create: backyard-sized for adult animals and 4 X 5 foot pens that are covered with wire or plastic mesh for hatchlings. In the winter, they should either be hibernated or brought indoors and kept in "summertime conditions." It's important that these tortoises not be kept too warm indoors, as this can harm or even kill them. While they need a warm basking area, they will suffer if the room gets excessively warm. A good rule of thumb is if the room is comfortable for you, it's comfortable for your tortoises. If it's too warm for you, it's too warm for them. Aquariums are never suitable for housing these tortoises indoors because the high sides and glass can hold too much heat. Large, shallow, open tubs or boxes are best for indoor housing for these tortoises. The tub should be fitted with an incandescent bulb to provide a warm basking area and a U/V producing fluorescent light for additional lighting. These tortoises come from temperate (not tropical) regions, so they do very well in temperatures in the high 60s and 70s. They like cool nights and can easily tolerate night time temperatures down into the 50s.
Indoor pen for hatchlings. This pen is constructed on a 2 X 4 foot piece
of plywood. The side walls are 6" high and fluorescent light fixtures
are positioned approximately 12 inches above the floor of the pen. Note
the piles of crumpled newspaper strips that provide hiding and sleeping
places for the young tortoises. Tortoises feel very uncomfortable in bare
pens (both indoors and out), and I have found newspaper strips to be an
convenient and inexpensive way to provide them with the cover they need.
An outdoor pen for hatchlings. The pen is 4 feet wide and 5 feet long and the sides are 10 inches tall. A small house is provided as a shelter. A piece of shade cloth covers the feeding area, to help prevent the food from drying out in the sun. The cover is made of ½ inch PVC piping, with plastic “bird” netting stretched over it and secured with plastic zipties. Note that the water dish is filled with stones to prevent the tortoises from accidentally drowning.
Outdoor hatchlings pens.
Feeding
These tortoises should be fed daily a mixed diet of greens (escarole, endive, dandelion, kale, mustard greens, turnip greens) with a little fruit (tomato, apple, berries) and/or veggies (squashes, broccoli, okra, corn) added. I add calcium supplement (Repcal with vitamin D3 for indoor animals, powdered oystershell for those kept outdoors) and vitamin supplement (Reptivite) at each feeding. Outdoors, the tortoises will supplement their the food you provide for them with the grass, clover and weeds that grow in their pen. They should always have a shallow dish of water available to them.
Soaking
A weekly soak in shallow, tepid water is one of the most important things you can do to maintain the health of your tortoises. The water should be just deep enough to touch the tortoise’s chin and just warm to the touch — you don’t want to drown or cook your pet! Soaking keeps the tortoises’ digestive and urinary tracts functioning properly. It’s messy, because they will foul the soak water with waste, but that’s exactly what you want to happen. This is an old tortoise-keeper’s tip that really works.
It’s important to soak tortoises weekly in shallow water. Soaking keeps the animals’ digestive and urinary tracts functioning well and it provides you with a good way to keep their shells cleaned on a regular basis.
How Large Will They Grow?
This is probably the question I get asked more than any other. Marginated and Ibera Greek tortoises are the largest of the European tortoises, but they are still much smaller than many of the other tortoises commonly kept as pets, such as redfoot, yellowfoot, sulcata and leopard tortoises. These animals can usually reach breeding size (at weights of 5-7 pounds) in 7 to 10 years. Females are generally larger than males of a similar age.
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