Wild tortoise collection for the exotic pet trade creates acute welfare impacts during capture and transport and depletes wild populations of slow-reproducing species.
Wild tortoise capture creates an acute welfare-to-chronic welfare progression: the capture stress of being collected from familiar territory, placed in crowded transport conditions, and shipped internationally or domestically causes immediate physiological stress in animals that evolved in stable, predictable home ranges. The chronic welfare problems that follow — inadequate UV-B, incorrect temperature gradients, inappropriate diet, and inappropriate social conditions — cause progressive metabolic bone disease and other deficiencies that unfold over months to years. Captive-bred tortoises, starting from hatching in appropriate conditions, have a dramatically better welfare trajectory. The availability of captive-bred stock for virtually all commonly traded tortoise species means that wild capture is not justified by any practical necessity.