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Pet Box Turtle/Tortoise in Australia/QLD

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Bluelighter
Joined
May 11, 2009
Messages
238
Hi I am just wondering if anybody knows whether or not you are able to have a pet tortoise in Australia, in particular in SE QLD to be exact.

I would really like to get one as a pet, not a giant one but a miniature one like the one from the TV show 'My Name is Earl' if anybody knows what I am talking about Box Turtle Picture Link. I think they are called box turtles but are actually a tortoise. :\

I tried to search on whether you are able to keep one as a pet or not n Google but got all kinds of mixed results so I have brought my question to here to see if anybody on here has the correct answer...

Thanks in advance.
 
You can but you need a permit. As far as I know. Where were you planning on obtaining said turtle? Pet stores that sell turtles will certainly be able to point you in the right direction for a permit.
 
I'm not to sure as of yet, I'm currently just in the research period at the moment...

I'm going to look on Google for pet shops in my city that specialise in that area of pets and ask them where to get the certain type of turtle I am looking for, or even if I am able to get them in Australia at all.... From what I have noticed so far is that their are only three types available in Australia and they are the snake neck turtle, snapping turtle and red stomach turtle or something like that. I will only get a turtle if I can get a box turtle otherwise I won't get one at all.

Once I find a pet store that specialises in that area I'm hoping they will be able to answer all of the questions I have, I'm not in any kind of rush to get it but I thought I might as well start a discussion here seeing as it was too late to go to a store and it was the weekend. :)
 
Turtle_Om_Nom_Nom.jpg
 
The animal you have shown as an example is a tortoise.

There are a number of animals within that species and the majority (if not all of them) come from either North America and certain parts of Asia (India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia etc) where they are often called Star Tortoises.

There are no miniature box tortoises nor are there any giant ones for that matter. The so-called "miniature" tortoises are simply babies/juveniles which then grow in to the "giant" tortoises i.e. adults.

These animals can live for anywhere between 40 and 50 years and need to be kept in an enclosure that supplies UV (A and B) light via natural or artificial sources. Heat and humidity also needs to be kept at a controlled level.

To house and keep a reptile in most states of Australia you will need to have a reptile license and maintain a log book that must be supplied to the state wild life authority in your state each year. These concessions only apply to native animals.

The key consideration for you to keep in mind is that it is illegal for an individual to import a non-domestic reptile, amphibian or bird into Australia. The only way you could legally qualify to import a reptile is if you where a professional herptologist or similar researcher backed by a university or zoo.

Lastly you should know that these animals (particularly the Asian species) are under threat and definitely people importing and keeping these animals (either legally or illegally) are just adding to the problem.

Read through this link and tell me if you think taking these animals out of their natural habitat is really a good idea
 
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