I posted photos of my tort in another thread and i was regretably informed that she has some pyramiding of her shell. I've only had her for a couple of weeks, and the only thing i know of from the previous owners is that she wouldn't have had much exercise, and a lack of uvb and regular sunlight. so what i'm doing here is asking for help.

i've read up a lot of pyramiding of tortoises on the internet the last few days, and there's quite a lot of conflicting information, and all i want to do is make sure it doesn't deteriorate further. from what i understand, the main causes are too much protein, too much food, lack of calcium, lack of exercise, and not enough hydration. so therefore i'm trying to make sure all of these are dealt with properly, but there's still a few things i'm unsure of.

the main one of these is protein, i'm not sure where the protein sources come for tortoises? i'm feeding her leaves that are listed on caresheets daily (but not too much) and supplemented with calcium and vitamins. she's also had regular UV lighting since i got her, and a spell in the sun whenever the weather is good. she's also getting regular exercise, and bathed every 2 or 3 days. i bought her a cuttlebone too (can they have too much calcium?!)

is there any other advice people can offer? it'd be much appreciated because i'm quite worried. many thanks

Since you've only had her for a couple of weeks, It's nothing you're doing that caused it. It's a long-term development and a long term fix. From what I gather, you're doing everything right.
I also understand that your tort will excrete any excess calcium that her body doesn't need. I have a cuttlebone in with Sherman and he ignores it, but he gets calcium on his greens.
The way you're taking care of her, she should live a good, long, time.
Good luck!

It sounds like your doing everything right. The protein usually comes from a commercial pelleted diet, not from the greens and weeds.
I would make sure to supplement at every feeding right now. As this will let her build back up what she is lacking. I'd do this for 6 months, than you can go to every other feeding.

Danny

ok thanks for the replies, i'm glad to hear it. and old4x4, sweet looking tort in your display pic!