Adoption Process
Note: Your adoption will take place on site at the foster home or facility where the tortoise is located. For the sake of the animals' health, we will not ship them. However, we can sometimes make arrangements for the tortoise to be brought to a different facility. The current location of the tortoise is listed on their profile.
1. Choosing an adoptable Tortoise or Box Turtle
At the bottom of this page you will find a list of adoptable animals. Click on the animal you are interested in to see more information about them in their profile. Then use the "Apply for Adoption" button on their profile page to submit your application. Be sure you understand the needs of species for which you are applying before you apply! The application form includes questions about how you will care for the animal, and we only approve applications that ensure the animal's needs will be met. See the below section "Finding Your Match" for species care requirements.
2. Email enclosure pictures
E-mail photos of the enclosure(s) intended for the animal with authentication (your name and date on a piece of paper is fine) in the same frame as at least one of the pictures, to: contact@texastortoiserescue.com An email form is available on the Contact page. See the site menu at the top.
3. Adoption approval and appointment
We will review your completed application once we receive the photos and follow up with any questions we have. Please watch for and respond to any follow-up questions! Once you’re approved, you'll receive an e-mail with a calendar link or a phone number to schedule the adoption. We will hold a tortoise for 5 days after the adoption is approved. In those 5 days, you must schedule an appointment to pick up your tortoise. We do not accept appointments more than a month after the adoption approval.
4. Come get your new shell baby at the appointed time!
Finding Your Match
We believe every captive box turtle or tortoise deserves to live outdoors where it can enjoy natural sunlight, dirt and grass, lots of plants to eat or hide under, lots of hiding places, clean fresh water, and opportunity for grazing, just as if it were in the wild.
For these reasons, we adopt to applicants only when they meet a few basic needs for the animal they apply for.
The minimum habitat sizes below are required for adoptions, but we encourage you to provide the largest habitat that your space allows, as free-ranging tortoises in the wild use ranges measured in hectares or square miles.
African Tortoises
African Spur-Thigh (Sulcata) Leopard Tortoise
. -Sulcatas can reach 150lbs or more. Leopard tortoises can reach 80lbs or more. -African tortoises may live to be over 100 years old and need to be included in an estate plan and/or a plan for when they become too heavy to care for as their keepers age. -Your yard should have a mix of sun and shade areas to allow tortoises to thermoregulate. -You need an extremely secure fence or wall around the enclosure. Field fence won't cut it. A fence they can't see through is best, but not required. -These tortoises are herbivores who eat primarily grass and cactus. They don't need grocery store produce and cannot tolerate high concentrations of oxalates. -African tortoises do not hibernate, and require heated winter housing that they can access whenever outdoor temps drop below 60 degrees. -Sulcatas don't typically get along in groups, just one per yard is sufficient. Yours isn't lonely, we promise. We will only adopt one sulcata per enclosure. -They cannot cohabitate with dogs or pigs.
6,000 square feet
Requires a minimum of
Mediterranean Tortoises
Russian Tortoise Greek Tortoise Hermann's Tortoise
. -Mediterranean tortoises may reach up to 3lbs and live 50 – 80 years. -Enclosures should have a mix of sun and shade areas to allow tortoises to thermoregulate. -Enclosures should have a lid to prevent raccoons or other predators (if the enclosure is not already inside of a fenced yard). -Enclosures should have an overhanging lip on the top to prevent climbing out. -These tortoises are primarily herbivores and should be allowed to graze on grass, cactus, and other tortoise-safe plants that are planted in their enclosure. -Most Mediterranean tortoises brumate in the winter, so you may not see them much between December and April. -These tortoises typically do not get along in groups. We will only adopt one Mediterranean per enclosure. -They cannot cohabitate with dogs or pigs.
100 square feet
Requires a minimum of
Box Turtles
Ornate Eastern Three-toed Desert Gulf Coast
. -Box turtles may reach up to approximately 1lb and live 50 – 80 years. -Enclosures should have a mix of sun and shade areas to allow tortoises to thermoregulate. -Enclosures should have a lid or other deterrent to prevent raccoons or other predators (if the enclosure is not already inside of a fenced yard). -Enclosures should have an overhanging lip on the top to prevent climbing out. -Box turtles are omnivores and will eat worms and bugs and also graze on grass, cactus, and other tortoise-safe plants that are planted in their enclosure. -Most box turtles brumate in the winter, so you may not see them much between December and April. -Box turtles generally get along in groups but need to be monitored closely for signs of stress or fighting. -They cannot cohabitate with dogs or pigs.
100 square feet
Requires a minimum of
South American Tortoises
Red-footed Tortoise Yellow-footed Tortoise
. -Red-footed tortoises may reach up to 30lbs and live 50 – 80 years. -These tortoises are from tropical areas of South America and should have a lush yard with many hiding places as well as sunny spots for basking. -Red-footed tortoises are omnivores and will eat small animals, worms and bugs and also graze on grass, cactus, and other tortoise-safe plants that are planted in their enclosure. With a well planted enclosure they do not need grocery store produce. -Red-footed tortoises need heated winter housing that they can access whenever outdoor temps drop below 60 degrees. They do not hibernate. -Red-footed tortoises generally get along in groups; however, if multiple animals are housed together they need to be monitored closely for signs of stress or fighting. If they all get along, up to three animals can be kept in 600 square feet. -They cannot cohabitate with dogs or pigs.
600 square feet
Requires a minimum of
Other Tortoise and Box Turtle Species
The above categories include the most common animals we receive at Central Texas Tortoise Rescue. Occasionally, however, we receive a rarer species. Either because they are not as frequent in the pet trade or because they were taken from the wild and can no longer be returned there due to the presence of human pathogens, these tortoises and box turtles find their way to us a little less often, but are available for adoption when we get them!
Information about these species will be found on the profile of the specific animal.
Adoptable Animals
Applications only work on a computer web browser - you cannot submit an application using a mobile device!
Click the picture of the animal you are interested in below to see more information. To apply to adopt them, simply click the "Apply for Adoption" button!
