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Keeping Tortoises Indoors
Small tortoises, up to 7cm long, are best kept indoors where a close watch on their progress can be maintained. An attractively designed aquarium or vivarium is an impressive show piece in any home. A standard aquarium tank, available from a tropical fish dealer, is the most suitable indoor enclosure. Partly filled with water, it should have a protruding piece of timber or smooth stone to enable the tortoises to leave the water as the desire.

Indoor Housing

As an alternative design, a plastic dish (about 10cm deep by 30cm in diameter) placed inside an aquarium can provide the water holding receptacle; the ground level is then built up to the rim of the dish with sand and topped with smooth pebbles. This design will not need a watertight aquarium: a glass-fronted cabinet can also be used. The edges of the dish can be disguised with flat overhanging stones; a piece of timber leading from the dish to the "shore" will enable the tortoises to climb from the water. It is best to use waterlogged timber from a creek or river as it will sink and will not discolour the water. The remainder of the tank can be decorated with plans, smooth stones and other natural materials. Potted plants are attractive if the pots are concealed behind rocks or beneath the pebbles, to give a natural appearance.

If the aquarium is small it should be carried outside regularly (about three times a week) to give the tortoises the opportunity to bask in the sun. Juvenile tortoises need sunlight. But if your tank is too large to move, the tortoises can be transferred to a small outside enclosure for their sunbath. It must be remembered that one section of the outside enclosure must be shaded.

A light bulb fixed to the lid of the inside tank will supply both light and warmth and should be switched on for at least six hours a day when tanks or tortoises cannot be taken outdoors. The air temperatures can be regulated by the amount of ventilation that you allow into the enclosure.

A submersible aquarium heater may also be necessary in an aquarium with a large volume of water, particularly if the tortoises are tropical species. Thermometers, both in the water and out, will enable you to keep a close watch on the temperature. A rapid temperature rise due to faulty equipment will have a disastrous effect on the inhabitants.

When designing the interior of an aquarium or vivarium it must be remembered that the interior will need to be dismantled from time to time to enable the enclosure to be thoroughly cleaned. Therefore, the key word is simplicity. The frequency of the inconvenient but necessary task of cleaning can be kept to a minimum by feeding the tortoises in a separate dish in which the water temperature has been adjusted to match that of the water from which they were removed. Another method of keeping a tank clean is to use a water filter. One or two tortoises in a large tank that has a strong filtration unit is best. As tortoises foul their water more than fish, overcrowding will produce a situation that most water filters cannot cope with.

The most appropriate design for the interior of a water filled aquarium is as follows: at least 5cm of river gravel should cover the floor with a few large, water-worn stones. A piece of waterlogged timber is then set into position so that it rises from the bottom of the tank to above the water level. The timber should provide enough space for all the tortoises to leave the water. The addition of water plants will enhance the appearance of your vivarium and supplement food requirements.

Once an aquarium is well established a coating of algae may form on the glass. This can be removed with a scourging pad, if the algae has not gained too strong a hold. Algae growth on stones, timber or on the tortoises’ shells will do no harm and its removal is unnecessary. The addition of 0.02g of Permanganate of Potash to each ten litres of water will help to arrest algae growth. To calculate the volume of your tank in litres, multiply the length by width by height in centimetres, and divide by 1000. However it should be remembered that some species eat algae.

Although the aquarium water may appear clean it is possible that the water may contain too much acid or alkali (pH factors). Either of these conditions are detrimental to the tortoises’ health and should be rectified without delay. There are a number of cheap, readily-available water testing kits on the market which can be used to check the acid / alkali balance. A reading of pH7 is normal, a lower reading indicates excessive acid, and a higher reading too much alkali. A reading of one unit either side of pH7 is sufficient to require attention. The water can be replaced, or if this is too difficult it can be restored to the correct pH level by the addition of various chemicals. To alleviate an acid excess, add sodium alumintate or bicarbonate of soda. When the problem is too much alkali, use sodium biphosphate.