 They are increasingly being bred in captivity for the pet trade.For example, most tortoises exported from Kenya and Tanzania originate in captive breeding programs, alleviating collection from the wild.The leopard tortoise has been listed in Appendix II of CITES since 1975 and in 2000, the United States banned their import because of the risk posed by heartwater, an infectious disease carried by tortoise ticks that could seriously impact the US livestock industry.