We are seeing numerous reports on Facebook and receiving emails and calls about people ‘acquiring’ tortoises and looking for advice on how to keep said tortoise. We instantly encourage all reporters to find the original owner, by checking for a microchip and then posting online and asking around vets for reports of missing tortoises. The only sure way to get your tortoise back if it is lost or stolen is to microchip your tortoise.
You can check to see if your tortoise was pre chipped by the breeder by looking at your tortoise’s certificate. The certificate number will be listed in the “Description of Specimens” box, under the hatch date. If your tortoise was pre chipped by the breeder, it is an unregistered chip and needs registering through a microchipping registration site (there are a few). You can then pass this information onto your vet, as they normally have microchip details listed for all registered pets.
If your tortoise is not microchipped, we do recommend taking your tortoise to the vet, once their plastron length reaches 100mm to get microchipped. Vets will register your details on the microchip there and then.