Northwest Tortoise Rehoming Service
Simply put, I can’t take them all. The demand never stops. Never. Ever. Stops. Due to the very limited options in the northwest, I want to continue to help our shelled friends.
I created the following program in hopes it will help where I cannot.
The NWT Tortoise Rehoming Service works like this:
- An owner that would like to rehome their tortoise contacts NWT.
- NWT collects information about the tortoise and posts the tortoise for adoption.
- The owner houses the tortoise while it is posted for adoption.
- If/when a potential owner becomes available both parties will be contacted.
Details/instructions how to use this program are in the documents below:
“Turtles need rescuing?” “Yes, unfortunately,” is always the answer. Just like any other captive animal, humans have an incredible ability to mistreat them. Whether it’s improper care, outright abuse or as simple as the owner looses interest, they deserve a better home.
The goal is to rehabilitate them until they are healthy and adopt them to people who have done their research and really understand what it takes to keep a turtle/tortoise for life. Turtles and tortoises are not ‘throw away’ pets. They are exotic pets and require a deep level of understanding of the species in order to provide a lifetime home.
Northwest Tortoise invests extensive time vetting potential owners. If you are looking for a quick turtle/tortoise and expect to fill out a form and get immediate approval its recommend you look elsewhere.
Surrendering a turtle/tortoise
If you need to surrender a turtle/tortoise, fill out the form here and send it through our contact form or email it to terese@northwesttortoise.org.
Adoption policies
1. Must be 18 years or older. Parental permission required for those younger than 18.
2. All fees will be paid prior to shipping/pick up.
3. Adopter will pay all shipping charges. A $20 handling fee will be added. This will cover proper shipping containers, packing, and delivering to the shipping site. (Adoptions requiring Delta Dash will be considered on an individual basis)
4. If you are local to NWT, NWT may be able to arrange a meeting to drop off the tortoise. If a meeting is arranged, a $20 handling fee will apply.
5. Terms and conditions: NWT cannot guarantee the health of an animal. Tortoises come to NWT with little to no information about their health history. Northwest Tortoise does its very best to provide a healthy turtley/tortoise at adoption.
6. All fees are non-refundable.
7. Placing deposits to hold an animal:
8. You may place a hold on an animal via a monetary deposit. It’s common to place a deposit on a specific animal to wait for warmer weather for shipping or other reasons. In this case the following guidelines apply:
- To hold an animal, a non-refundable 50% deposit must be made.
- If the adopter changes their mind for any reason, the deposit is forfeited.
- If the animal dies or is injured, the buyer will have a choice of a replacement animal if one is available and agreed upon. If one is not available or agreed upon the buyer may choose a refund or keep the deposit on file to choose from the next available group.
How to apply to adopt
If you are interested in adopting a rescue, please follow the following steps:
- Fill out the initial contact form (pdf or word) then email to terese@northwesttortoise.org, subject tortoise. The form consists of basic information such as location, species interested in and experience level. Filling this form out allows NWT to get a better understanding of the potential adopter and makes matching with a turtle/tortoise much easier.
- After a potential match is found, the potential adopter must fill out the adoption application. First-time owners are welcome. After a potential match is made the adoption application will follow. This application is a compressive evaluation of your understanding of tortoise care including housing, lighting, and diet. All aspects of turtle/tortoise care will be discussed. This process is not an easy or quick way to get a turtle/tortoise. I will not skimp on screening potential adopters! If you are dedicated enough to own a turtle/tortoise, you are dedicated enough to go through the screening process!If you are approved, payment/shipping/delivery will be discussed.
Please keep in mind I do work an actual job that takes 40+ hours of my week. Additionally I do not have an army of volunteers helping me. I try to respond* within 24 hours.
*If you do not see an email, check your junk and/or spam folder.