Hi, my name is Adrian, and this is Zelda, we are part of Aldabra Giant Tortoises UK.

So, let me tell you....

 

How it all began...?

 

   At the age of 4, I really wanted a dog.

 

   I nattered at my parents about getting one, but unfortunately (... or with hindsight, maybe that should be ‘fortunately’!) I was found to be allergic to most animals.

 

   However, in an attempt to pacify me, wanting a pet, I was offered the choice of a goldfish or a tortoise.

 

   I’ll be honest, at that age I didn’t know what a tortoise was, but my dad had kept one and thought it a good choice. So a few days later, I got my first - a little Hermann’s and my life long fascination of these amazing creatures began!

 

   I had no plans to have any more and at this point I did not even realise that giant tortoises existed!

 

   A few years later, at about 8 years of age, I visited Chester Zoo and saw their group of Aldabras. I was mesmerised by these awesome giants and that first memory of seeing them was so powerful, that it has stayed with me till this day. I stared through the window at them for ages, and had no interest in the other animals in the zoo.

 

   This was the turning point.

 

   In that instant, the seed was sown in my mind and it became a life goal to have my own giant tortoises.

 

   So I tried pleading for one....but there was no way I was ever going to get one...Or was there?

 

   Through my teens and twenties, I had a growing group of Hermann’s and Mediterranean Spur-thighs, but at the back of my mind. I still had this burning desire, to keep Aldabras. And every time I saw one in a zoo, or on TV, or in a book...that passion was reawakened.

 

   Like everyone else, I was trundling through life dealing with the day to day stuff and there just seemed to be so many things to deal with and so many other priorities - that I never had time to realise my dream. The Aldabras had joined the list of ‘to do’s’ - but certainly weren’t forgotten about.

 

   Then suddenly and unexpectedly, one morning I found my dad had collapsed with a brain haemorrhage and he died. It was a shock and set my brain off thinking about this journey of life that we were on and our uncertain future. Dad had had plans throughout his life that one day he would do this and do that and when he retired... And when he’d paid off the mortgage etc etc. At this point realisation struck - life doesn’t always go to plan and we might not get the chance to live our dreams, we really don’t know how long we have left to live. So if you have a dream - make it happen and get on with it now!!! And guess what came straight back to the front of my mind??!...within 12 months I had got my first Aldabra and outdoor set up. And I have to say that dad would have loved to have seen it.

 

   Without that shock and the kick up the backside that it gave me. I would probably still be waiting for that one day when I was going to waken up and find everything had fallen into place and I was going to be living my dream. But it don’t work like that folks. You’ve got to make it happen. You’ve got to plan and scheme and work your socks off, make sacrifices, face challenges and disappointments etc etc. But if it’s your passion and you are determined enough, it’s amazing just what you can achieve.

 

   It was the best decision I have ever made and I’ve never once regretted getting giant tortoises.

 

   Every single day when I go to their house to see them, it’s still exciting and a pleasure. ...and I go back to being that 8 years old peering through the window.

 

   But now it’s not just a dream - it’s a reality!!.....Heaven knows what would have happened if I had got that goldfish- maybe I would be telling you about how I got my first blue whale!!!

 

 

Meet the Legend....

It all started with...Zelda

 

Who, despite the name is actually a male and is the first Aldabra of our group, we got him in 2008.

 

 

 

What’s It Like Living With Giants?

 

   Having taken the plunge and got my first Aldabra from Holland. I thought that I had scratched my itch and that I could tick another thing off my to do list.

 

   But although I had kept many tortoises and for the majority of my life, I was unprepared for just how special it would be keeping a giant. They are truly special and the level of interaction you get from them, their personality, their friendly, laid back nature, their love of human fuss and attention... In my opinion surpasses and other breed by a country mile!! Ask anyone who has done a keeper experience or anyone who has met my guys at shows and I’m sure most of them will admit to falling in love with their personalities and temperament.

 

   I soon realised that instead of ticking something off my to do list - I had actually opened up a whole new interest in tortoises and over the coming years, I gradually added to my group.

 

   So, nearly all of my animals have had previous owners and came to me looking for new forever homes. They are a collection of random individuals from different backgrounds that have come to me at different times and all have a background story. they aren’t a related group, or a batch of eggs that I have hatched. And that diversity in bloodlines stands them in good stead for potentially breeding. They’ve all originated from Mauritius, Gran Canaria and the Seychelles, and to the best of my knowledge, Aldabras have only very recently been successfully bred in Europe but never in the UK.

 

   There is a good balance of male / female and a diverse range of ages from juvenile to adult. They are all still growing and will potentially get to approx 250kg each for the males and 130kg for the females.

 

   Giant tortoises are probably the longest living land animals in the world and so are a long term consideration and a massive life time long commitment. Health permitting, all of my guys will easily outlive me. They are all provided for in my will to ensure their future well being and protected as a group to ensure they stay together. I am just a custodian of them for part of their lives and they will go on to have a future with other owner(s) beyond their time with me. Because of their long lifespans, it is quite feasible that whoever looks after them much later in their lives won’t even be born for another 100 years or more!!... so, I’ve no idea who they are! I will be documenting my experience and knowledge of my animals, with photo and written records to pass on for the future.

 

   Aldabra Giants originate from a tiny Island in the Indian Ocean, a few hundred miles east of mainland Africa. It is the product of historic volcanic activity, and is 9 degrees off the equator so it is a very hot, hostile and unforgiving place to exist. As a result man has never properly inhabited it but the giant tortoises have and have evolved to cope with the very tough conditions. There are long periods without out any rain and fresh water, not a lot of shelter and shade and periods when there is little food (this is were being a ‘giant’ helps- it allows them to store food and fluids for the times of shortage and enables them to survive conditions which smaller breeds of tortoises just couldn’t). Hence, when they are in the UK, with our cooler climate and plentiful supply of fresh food and water all year round- it is necessary to consider what we are offering them and what mother nature has set them up to exist on.

 

   Basically Aldabs thrive on hardship. They have done this for millions of years and it is not our place to start telling them how to live, confining them to indoor or restricted accommodation, feeding them lettuce from Tesco. We’re never going to be able to replicate Aldabra Island, but we need to keep them as naturalistically as we can. So my guys have access to several acres of land to roam over and do as they wish. They have natural graze and weeds and browse and vegetation to help themselves to. They get hay and dried grass available in their house at all times, but other than that I don’t feed them - it’s up to them to get off their backsides as they would do in the wild and go find food. There will be days when they don’t bother and don’t eat and days when they graze for hours on end. It’s their choice.

 

   In the wild they would hide in caves and nobody brings them a plate of food, or drags them out because it’s ‘mealtime’. They can last many months living on their fat reserves and it is part of their annual cycle that they would naturally loose body fat and condition. So feeding them every day of the year is unnatural and could create overweight animals with acelerated growth. Now several of my guys had incorrect husbandry and diet in their early years from well intentioned previous owners, but they spoilt them and this has had an impact on their shell shapes, their sizes and growth patterns. I can’t undo that but with a good diet and care plan from now on, I can improve things and over the years have seen massive improvements and watched animals change for the better and improve both physically and in their behaviour and character. With many years of growing still to do, many of their lumps and bumps become less prominent as the overall shell shape changes and expands. This is the most rewarding part of keeping them - knowing that you are improving their lives and making happy, healthier, animals. And it is the same with all tortoise species - we’re all learning, nobody knows it all, and its never too late to change our ways and outlooks to help our animals get the best life. What was once considered good practice may now be frowned upon, as we learn more about tortoise husbandry. Taking the time to get to know them individually, growing their trust in me and them recognising me and having a mutual bond and respect is very special;.

 

   As part of my evaluation of what I needed to provide my tortoises with for the future. I decided a few years ago that I would move house and buy a farm for them so they could have the space, the privacy and the security, the natural food and spacious accommodation and enclosures that they deserved. Remember that these guys are still growing and the group will be very much bigger and their needs will be bigger as time goes by.

 

   So, I decided to give up my work, income, contacts, house and life down south and move up to the East of England, along with my closest support network. I must admit, just after moving, I stood in the fields one day and wondered what on earth I had done and would I ever make it work out! I had no local friends, no job, no neighbours, I didn’t know the area and lived out in the middle of nowhere! but the tortoises needed new homes and so the work began and bit by bit we’re chipping away at projects and working through my 10 year plan. For those who don’t know me, I am a private individual, I’m not a zoo. I’m not funded, I’m not rich or have an inheritance and I don’t have staff or teams of workers to help. So, everything is achieved by hard work and persistence and jobs can take much longer than anticipated! But the challenge is all part of the fun and brings satisfaction.

 

   The tortoises are all happy and healthy and enjoying their new life. There are many plans for the future and exciting projects lined up!

 

 

 

Everyone helps out in their own way - Zelda is checking the wood is suitable for basking on!