jan_novice_chicken_keeper Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Hi, I've inherited my aunt's tortoise. Does anyone have experience of keeping hens and tortoise(s) together? Any advice welcome! (He has his own hutch and run, but is used to free ranging.) I guess what I am really asking is a) does anyone know of any dangers in keeping them in the same garden separately, and b) can I let them out together, or do they need to timeshare the garden! Thanks, Jan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Our tortoise Kevin (40+) gets on very well with our hens. They did think he was a bit weird when they first met him and gave him a wide berth. They now ignore him on the whole. He free ranges throughout his 'awake' period and they did get together to hatch an escape plan for him last year. They dug the hole next to the fence and he squeezed through I gave him a mixed salad last week including a couple of grapes and some cucumber and did notice that Monica (our greediest chicken) sat and watched him eat it rather than try and mug him for it which was interesting as she has been known to try and take on the dog for a slice of toast Tortoises are devils at escaping so make sure that you are well fenced. The can dig, climb steps and blunder their way through the toughest of barriers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stehaggan Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 I took our tortoises to the allotment the other day but kept them well away from the hens, mine are only horsefield tortoises so about the size of a hand palm, i did contemplate putting them in their WIR but I thought they would just all peck them. But maybe if you have a big tortoise they may be OK with it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jan_novice_chicken_keeper Posted May 3, 2011 Author Share Posted May 3, 2011 Thank you. I don't know what kind of tortoise ours is - he is about the diameter of a football in size. He is at least 37 - he turned up in 1973, and was an adult at that time. They adopted him. Our hens are pretty forgiving. They are used to avoiding numerous children (mine and visitors) and the visiting neighbourhood cats, although they have seen them off when they got too close. (Cats, not children.) I am told our tortoise (due to arrive later this week) can climb, push heavy objects out of his way but is averse to digging. Our fence is secure, but I will watch him carefully. It will be best if they can share the garden and be out together, I think, and that sounds like it should be all right. I'll watch them all carefully until we are sure they are OK. I Jan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Same advice as Chucky Mama's here. My mum and dad are custodians of the family tortoise, which we have had for nearly 35 years. The hens had a holiday at mum and dad's last year when hubby and I went away.The girls were not in the least bit interested in the tortoise (I guess it's hard to get excited about a moving stone) but I think the greatest threat is them stealing the tortoise's lettuce, cucumber and tomato. Tortoises are ridiculously strong, will patrol the perimeter looking for a weak spot and, once escaped, will shift at surprising speed! If your tortoise is used to FR, I would keep it that way. If we have to contain our tortoise for any reason, he gets in a terrible grump, refuses to eat and spends his time continually charging against the fence Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
migsy Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Sorry to side track but when I was a girl all tortoises lived in gardens. Why do people keep them in teeny little boxy things now? Is it because you buy them small these days or are they a different type of tortoise to the traditional garden ones? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavenders_Blue Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 Hopefully someone will correct me if I'm wrong, but ancient tortoises like Chucky Mama's and mine (and probably the ones you are thinking of) were generally the plucked-from-the-wild-and-imported kind and therefore reasonably untameable. Ours still spits and hisses when you go near him, the delightful creature They were usually imported as adult tortoises and therefore had had a life of free ranging and weren't happy being kept in tanks. As this is now illegal, tortoises are bred in this country and usually sold a lot younger. These need to be kept warmer whilst they are still young, and also are more adaptable to living in vivariums etc as they have never known any different. I don't see any reason why they couldn't live outside when warmer/fully grown. I also wonder if there has been a bit of a shift in the way we keep animals generally For example, it wasn't unheard of a few decades ago for many dogs to be kept in gardens not houses and let out to take themselves for a walk. I wonder if this is a similar thing, preferring to have an animal in the house rather than garden? (Could be barking up completely the wrong tree here, though!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freddie Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 our tort and hens get on really well! between them they've pretty much eaten everything! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chucky Mama Posted May 3, 2011 Share Posted May 3, 2011 If your tortoise is used to FR, I would keep it that way. If we have to contain our tortoise for any reason, he gets in a terrible grump, refuses to eat and spends his time continually charging against the fence I agree, Kev is a lovely old man but truly hates being confined. We have to bring him in late autumn to stop him burying himself for the winter and keep him in after he wakes up in April until it is warm enough for him go to go out. He really hates it and will do just about anything to go out. It would be cruel not to let him free range if that is what he is used to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
surfer_chicken Posted May 4, 2011 Share Posted May 4, 2011 I don't know about chickens, but my friends tortoise attacks her cats- and wins, so you might not need to worry about him standing up for himself Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
