Tortoises: More or less popular than 2 years ago?

[Mgridgaway]

Maybe it's because I'm in the bubble, but it seems like tortoises have become much more popular pets in the past two years. What do you guys think?

I'd love to hear from breeders and resellers since they'd probably know better than most

 

[Millerlite]

I actually think it went down as far as availability, but as long as I been keeping them which had been 12 years it seems pretty much the same, always new faces but doesn't really seem more popular. Think your just in the bubble and notice it more, kind of like when you get a new car and all of a sudden everyone has one,

 

[Levi the Leopard]

I'm curious why you say "2 years"?

How long have you kept tortoises?

I just started keeping shelled pets a year and a half ago. In that time I have leaned about people in my life that have turtles I never knew had them, or I now notice turtle nick knacks I was oblivious to before. But I think it's because I'm a keeper now so I notice it more. Not because it's suddenly popular.

Just my thoughts...

Heather
sent while on my purple android TFOapp

 

[Mgridgaway]

I say 2 years because one year didn't seem long enough. I've been keeping turtles for 18 years but have only kept tortoises for the past year and a half ago like you.

Personally, I feel like I've seen a boost of popularity in tortoises since I've started keeping them. But again, I realize I do live in a bubble. That's why I wanted to get some numbers from the breeders and resellers and see if there's any truth to my inklings.

 

[wellington]

It's been longer then two years. I joined two years ago and it was going strong before then too, lots of new first time tortoise owners and members. I think as time goes on, it will be more and more as forums get more members and spreads the word.

 

[JoesMum]

I think tortoise keeping has just become more obvious. Computers hadn't properly been invented forty odd years ago when Joe came into our lives, let alone the internet. It's only in the last couple of years that internet use has really become the norm and forums have truly become a normal part of using it. As a result, we get to find out how many people keep tortoises much more easily.

 

[Tom]

In my AO, I haven't noticed a change over the last couple of years. As the years pass, I get to meet more and more tortoise people, but most of them were keeping tortoises long before I met them.

 

[theelectraco]

From my experience, in the past two years I have seen way more tortoises in pet stores then I ever had before.

 

[Millerlite]

I feel like Russian Toetoises have always been in pet stores. Redfooted tortoises have become so widely bred to that you start seeing them in stores. There was another forum that was huge about turtle and Toetoises more turtles but it fiZzed away like most forums. This ones still going strong who knows tho I follow the crowd and where the actions at and members

 

[Madkins007]

I think a few things are happening.

1. Regional fluctuations. I would bet money that it is getting more popular in some parts of the country, less in others, and the same in yet others.
2. Small numbers and special attention. Here on the site and in our own experiences, we may see changes, but a. we are more likely to see tortoise stuff as we get deeper into it, and b. there are not a lot of tortoise keepers as compared to other animals, so changes seem more significant.
3. More advertising on-line and more breeders being more visible to more people, which might mean more pets being bought, or just more visibility to the issue.
4. Availability. Seeing tortoises in pet stores often reflects availability at cheap prices more than demand for tortoises. When Russians are available in large numbers and are cheap, my local shops carry them, then they vanish for months at a time. This does not really help us determine if the actual popularity is changing at all.

 

[Mgridgaway]

Thanks for everyones opinions

I'd still like to hear from some of our resident breeders/resellers.

 

[EricIvins]

Chelonians will, and have always had a cult following. Those numbers seem to stay fairly constant. What you may be seeing is Chelonian keeping becoming more mainstream here in the US. Most other societies have been keeping these animals for 100's of years, and they were popular among royalty in many different continents...

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

We do know more about how better to care for our shelled friends these days. Maybe that's contributing to an increase in tortoise-keeping??

 

[[email protected]]

Well there are new people getting into tortoises everyday so id say more popular

 

[Madkins007]

Nicely said Eric!

 

[Mgridgaway]

Chelonians will, and have always had a cult following. Those numbers seem to stay fairly constant. What you may be seeing is Chelonian keeping becoming more mainstream here in the US. Most other societies have been keeping these animals for 100's of years, and they were popular among royalty in many different continents...

That's the sort of response I was looking for. Thanks, Eric.

 

[EricIvins]

I think it may also be the fact that more people are dabbling in Chelonians, but I wouldn't put them in the equation. Once they figure out that they cannot be kept like a Ball Python or Leopard Gecko, they sell everything off and go about their business. I couldn't tell you how many times this has happened on this forum alone in the recent past....

 

[mctlong]

I don't know about the last two years, but they are definately more popular than when I was a kid. My family was the only people I knew who had tortoises when I was kid. I didn't meet any other tortoise owners until after college. I feel like tortoise ownership here in socal picked up maybe 10 or 15 years ago and has been steadily on the rise since then. I now have several neighbors and co-workers who own tortoises, which is a massive difference from just a decade ago.

 

[Millerlite]

Reptiles in general too have been getting more popular. As far as breeders go seems like there are less if them now then 10 years ago.