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Greek Tortoise (Testudo
graeca)
Greek tortoises are found
throughout the Mediterranean
from Spain to Russia. Their
natural habitat varies and
they can be found in open
forests, grasslands, and
deserts. Southern
California is very similar
to their native climate and
these tortoises will do well
if kept outdoors. Large
birds such as crows can kill
young tortoises so it’s best
to keep hatchings indoors.
Greek tortoises stay fairly
small and rarely exceed
eight inches. Males are
smaller than females and
adult males have a
noticeably longer tail.
Captive breeding is common
and females will lay 2-8
eggs that hatch within 80
days.
Temperature and UV
Lighting
Greek tortoises need to be
kept between 88-92 degrees
during the day and the
temperature can drop to
about 65 at night. These
tortoises are capable of
hibernating if kept
outdoors. Greek tortoises
require 12-14 hours of UVB
light for proper health and
growth. This light enables
the tortoise to produce
vitamin D3. The vitamin D3
produced by UVB metabolizes
the calcium in the
tortoises’ diet. In
general, it’s what makes
tortoises’ bones hard, and
without it they can die.
This process of inadequate
UVB and calcium is called
Metabolic Bone Disease. When
kept outdoors, no UVB
lighting is needed, natural
sunlight covers all
requirements. Also it is
very important to change
your UVB light every 6-8
months, after this time the
light stops producing
adequate UVB. If you’re not
sure if your UV light is
still producing UVB, bring
it in and we’ll be happy to
test the light for you.
Housing
The cage for a Greek
tortoise should be big
enough for it to have room
to move around easily. Our
recommendation for adults is
a 40 gallon or larger
terrarium. Greek tortoises
can also be kept outside in
areas where the weather is
similar to their natural
habitat. If you plan to
keep your tortoise outside
make sure the area is
secure. These tortoises can
dig and have been known to
escape under fences.
Bedding
Different beddings have
positive and negative
effects when used for
reptiles. The best type of
bedding for Greek tortoises
would be cage carpet. Other
types of beddings are fine
sand, crushed walnut shells,
bark, or rabbit pellets.
Certain types of sand can
cause impactions in the
intestine and kill baby
tortoises. We feel that
these types of impactions
are rare and we have never
personally encountered this
problem. Make sure to
provide a type of bedding
that maintains a low
humidity.
Calcium
Baby and juvenile tortoises
should have calcium and
vitamin supplement put on
their vegetables everyday.
This can be reduced to 1-2
times a week as an adult.
When kept indoors the
supplement must contain
Vitamin D3, because the UVB
light alone does not produce
enough D3 by itself. Once
the tortoise is large enough
to live outdoors, you cannot
use a D3 supplement. Natural
sunlight allows the tortoise
to produce the perfect
amount of D3 to keep it
healthy. Over
supplementation of D3 can be
harmful to your tortoise.
Food and Water
Greek tortoises should be
fed grasses and mixed vegetables daily. They can be fed a variety of leafy greens such as collard
greens, mustard greens, red
leaf lettuce, green leaf
lettuce, romaine lettuce,
dandelion greens, hibiscus
leaves and flowers, green
onions, spinach, green
beans, zucchini, frozen
mixed vegetables, timothy hay, and alfalfa. Fruits
should only make up about
10% of their diet. Never
feed your tortoise iceberg
lettuce because it lacks the
nutritional contents
necessary for proper
health. A shallow water
dish should be available at
all times.
Cleaning and Handling
The terrarium should be
cleaned as necessary. Any
fecal matter or left over
food should be cleaned out
several times a week. The
bedding should be completely
changed once a month. The
inside of the terrarium can
be cleaned out with an
appropriate reptile cage
cleaner, we recommend
Natural Chemistry’s Healthy
Habitat. Greek tortoises
can be handled on a daily
basis and always wash your
hands before and after
handling them.