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Check your setup against this sheet
I keep one 102 plants usable with this species

Setup

The numbers

Thermal gradient

152025303540 °C
24–30°Cool side
38–42°Warm side
20°Night

Day: a real gradient, 38–42°C warm against 24–30°C cool, so the animal chooses. Night: 20°C.

Why

Same scale on every sheet here, so two species compare by eye.

The sheet stateswarm 38-42 °C / cool 24-30 °C / night 20 °C

Humidity

50–60%Target RH

The sheet statesbetween 50-60% during the day and up to 80% at night

UVB

T5 12%UVI 4–6

The sheet statesArcadia T5 HO Desert 12% ... UVI of 4.0–6.0 in the basking area

Diet
Alfalfa, Aloe, Bermuda grass, Carrot greens, Celery greens, Chicory, Clover (leaves and flowers), Daisy (leaves and flowers), Dandelion (leaves and flowers), Endive, Escarole; Young and growing pancake tortoises should be given as much as they can eat every day

Traceable. The figures above appear in the page we cite, which we opened on 10 Aug 2026. That means you can check them, not that we have confirmed they are right. reptifiles.com

14:00
Day

Drag the sun. The sheet states a night temperature, so the rail follows it.

Enclosure and conditions

Enclosure

38–42 °C50–60 % RHUVB tube56 in24 in
warm sideUVB tube
50100150200 cm
56 × 28 × 24 in · 142 × 71 × 61 cmWidth × depth × height
101dm² of floor
Substrate: not in our dataWater: not in our dataHides: not in our data

Drawn from the stated numbers. Only what the sheet states is drawn inside.

Why

The rectangle carries the exact width-to-height ratio of the figures above it, and the ruler under it places that width on the 0–250 cm scale every sheet here shares, so two species still compare at a glance. Nothing is added that the sheet does not name: a lamp drawn on a sheet that never mentions one would be invented equipment. What the sheet leaves out is listed rather than left blank, because an empty tank reads as « none needed ».

The sheet states56″L x 28″W x 24″H, or 10.9 square feet of floor space

What your climate adds

This sheet states a range to hold. Your local climate decides how much work holding it is. Pick the nearest city: nothing is sent anywhere, the choice stays in this browser.

What it needs

Enclosure at least 142 × 71 × 61 cmbecause Enclosure — 56″L x 28″W x 24″H, or 10.9 square feet of floor space
A heat sourcebecause Temperature — warm 38-42 °C / cool 24-30 °C / night 20 °C
A thermostat to regulate itbecause Temperature — warm 38-42 °C / cool 24-30 °C / night 20 °C
A thermometerbecause Temperature — warm 38-42 °C / cool 24-30 °C / night 20 °C
A way to check the night figurebecause Temperature — warm 38-42 °C / cool 24-30 °C / night 20 °C
A hygrometerbecause Humidity — between 50-60% during the day and up to 80% at night
UVB 12-12% (T5), stated as requiredbecause UVB — Arcadia T5 HO Desert 12% ... UVI of 4.0-6.0 in the basking area

Every line above is deduced from a value this sheet states, and names which one. Nothing here is a general recommendation.

The species

CITES I is a global listing and holds in every country. National law is not global, and we hold no national wildlife law for any country, Thailand included. Check your own authority before buying or selling.

Questions & sources

Common questions

Why is the shell flat and soft?

That is normal for the species. It wedges into rock cracks instead of relying on a thick heavy shell.

Can it climb?

Surprisingly well. It climbs rocks and will scale a low wall, so the pen needs a secure lid or a high smooth wall.

Do I need papers?

Yes, it is on CITES Appendix I, so only documented captive-bred animals are legal.

Can two live together?

Females and juveniles can share a big rocky pen, but two adult males will fight. Keep one male at most.

Back to the Atlas My keep

https://keepr.pet/husbandry/en/malacochersus-tornieri

Pancake Tortoise (Malacochersus tornieri), photographed in the wild
Photograph · Rob DiCaterino · CC BY

Photographed by an observer on iNaturalist and published under a Creative Commons licence; the photographer and the licence are named under the image. It is not an animal of ours, and no animal was handled by us to produce it.

Others in this group

Russian TortoiseTestudo horsfieldiiHermann's tortoiseTestudo hermanniGreek TortoiseTestudo graecaEgyptian TortoiseTestudo kleinmanniLeopard tortoiseStigmochelys pardalisAfrican spurred tortoise (Sulcata)Centrochelys sulcataRed-footed tortoiseChelonoidis carbonariusYellow-footed TortoiseChelonoidis denticulatus

What this sheet states

85%
TemperatureHumidityEnclosure sizeActivityOriginDietSourcesUVB

This sheet states 6 of 7 of the fields this product runs on. What is missing turns something off: day/night engine and awake count on the globe. We show the gap rather than fill it with a plausible number.

UVB is measured but does not count: it is absent from 420 of 678 sheets, and on most of them that is not a gap, since a nocturnal snake's sheet has no reason to state a UV index. Counting it would call the library incomplete without cause.