# Help! (broken shell)



## Jiriza92 (Apr 27, 2021)

I live in central florida and found this poor tortoise! It breaks my heart to see what happened to his shell!! Any advice or tips??


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 27, 2021)

He has his own hide..


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## Krista S (Apr 27, 2021)

My goodness, this is absolutely heartbreaking. This poor tortoise needs to go to a very experienced vet who has experience with tortoises. That whole area needs to be cleaned up, probably covered and repair the crack where the carapace ans plastron meet. I don’t know legally what you’re allowed to do, but if you can’t take him to a vet, is there a tortoise rescue in the area that you can call or take him to?


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## TeamZissou (Apr 27, 2021)

Brutal. I would call the DNR and see if they can come pick it up and get it the care it needs.


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## wellington (Apr 27, 2021)

Its probably illegal to take him so call your local turtle and tortoise rescue. If you can't find them then call a vet and ask them who too call.


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## TeamZissou (Apr 27, 2021)

This seems to have the contact info that you need:






How to Contact the FWC


Contact




myfwc.com





I would call this number, and see what they say. It seems to be a 24/7 hotline:






What to do If You Find a Dead Turtle?


contact




myfwc.com


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## TeamZissou (Apr 27, 2021)

This brochure recommends contacting the local FWC, or to take it to a vet. I do not know if you would be responsible for the bill, however. Good luck. I hope you can help it. It's a beautiful looking tortoise.



https://www.fdot.gov/docs/default-source/construction/districtoffices/d1web/environmental/gopher-tortoise/GopherTortoise_LivingWithBrochure.pdf


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 28, 2021)

Hi everyone,

Thank you all so much for the information. Sometimes it can be hard to have a caring and loving heart for animals...

I emailed our local exotic veterinarian. Someone by the name of Pat got back to me and gave me a few places to try. I called FWC and the woman who answered told me that since it's a native tortoise and was found in the wild, to leave it alone and let nature take its course. Which tbh made me really upset...

But if that's the way it is, not sure what else I can do ? but let nature take its course, like she said. 

Hesitant on calling anywhere else for it may be the same answer.


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## Ddflinn (Apr 28, 2021)

Jiriza92 said:


> I live in central florida and found this poor tortoise! It breaks my heart to see what happened to his shell!! Any advice or tips??


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## Sleppo (Apr 28, 2021)

I am sorry you got that response, thank you for looking out for this tortoise.


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## Lyn W (Apr 28, 2021)

The poor thing.

I know its different in the UK, and the US has all sorts of laws about torts, but most wildlife rescues here would treat any injured animal and then hopefully release again. If it wasn't possible to help it they would humanely euthanise it to prevent any unnecessary suffering. 
That's so sad.


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## TeamZissou (Apr 28, 2021)

Jiriza92 said:


> Hi everyone,
> 
> Thank you all so much for the information. Sometimes it can be hard to have a caring and loving heart for animals...
> 
> ...



That's pretty brutal. There's no way that this happened by any 'natural' means. It looks like someone hit it with a hammer or threw a big rock at it. You'd think that if it got run over the break would be less localized. 

You might try the wildlife alert number and see what they say.


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 28, 2021)

TeamZissou said:


> That's pretty brutal. There's no way that this happened by any 'natural' means. It looks like someone hit it with a hammer or threw a big rock at it. You'd think that if it got run over the break would be less localized.
> 
> You might try the wildlife alert number and see what they say.


So in the picture I posted, towards the left alllll the way in the back, there's a fence. He has himself set up behind the fence which unfortunately says "no trespassing."

So I emailed Pat back and told her what FWC said, and she convinced me to give another organization called CROW a call. So I did and spoke with a lovely girl named Robin. She said from what I described, it sounds like the injury is pretty old. I told her that he/she is able to use all 4 legs and I don't see any discharge or blood from the wound. Because of this, she said to leave it alone. But if I do see that its having complications to call back. She said that trauma to a tortoises shell can cause spinal issues, and the fact that its able to use all 4 legs with no problem is a good sign.

The tortoise honestly seems fine in this area it has itself set up in...I checked up on it today and once it noticed me, it scurried so fast to its hide it was kinda cute. But I felt really bad ?. I will pray for it and keep checking in on it!!


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## Ink (Apr 28, 2021)

Thank you for trying and just keeping an eye on it. So sad that no one will help this animal.


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## ZenHerper (Apr 28, 2021)

It's hard to tell from the pics if a piece of carapace has been bashed down in....OR if there is new growth coming in under an old injury and subsequent bone deterioration (no intervention required...it will continue to heal from the inside-up)...

@Yvonne G ?


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## Relic (Apr 28, 2021)

Honestly - and I will preface this comment with an admission that my veterinarian skills are non-existent - that injury appears to be a death sentence. The dirt - and all the microbes in the dirt - has entered into what was before a sterile chamber. Insects have an opening to invade. The carapace is completely broken into floating pieces (in humans we would call this a flail chest) and may be abrading and lacerating interior tissues and organs (the lungs are especially vulnerable). And I agree that this is apparently an assault on the poor fellow - unless he fell of a cliff and landed on a protruding rock, it is unlikely he injured himself. Pity all around...

But as my dear wife reminds me almost daily: _"You may be wrong!"_


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 28, 2021)

Its cute little face ?


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 28, 2021)

ZenHerper said:


> It's hard to tell from the pics if a piece of carapace has been bashed down in....OR if there is new growth coming in under an old injury and subsequent bone deterioration (no intervention required...it will continue to heal from the inside-up)...
> 
> @Yvonne G ?


That's pretty much what CROW said...no intervention needed


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## TeamZissou (Apr 28, 2021)

ZenHerper said:


> It's hard to tell from the pics if a piece of carapace has been bashed down in....OR if there is new growth coming in under an old injury and subsequent bone deterioration (no intervention required...it will continue to heal from the inside-up)...
> 
> @Yvonne G ?



To me it looks like there's a piece of carapace that's bashed in rather than new growth. The growth lines on the inner piece match the patterns on the rest of the shell, suggesting that this is recent. It looks like the bottom part of the caved in part is filled with sand.


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## TeamZissou (Apr 28, 2021)

Jiriza92 said:


> That's pretty much what CROW said...no intervention needed



You may have done all that you can do.

The only other option I see is to find a vet willing to fix it pro bono. You'd need to find an experienced tortoise vet. It just seems like the local news loves stories of "Shelly the turtle got a new shell prosthetic, and it's 3D printed!" Maybe they could get some good press. Who knows. 

Then there's the challenge of actually getting the tortoise since it's behind a fence on someone's land. This might be the toughest part. Based on the brochure from the state that says you can take an injured animal directly to a vet, it seems like you'd be within the law to do so.

You could also make the argument that if you leave this injured tortoise in place, there's a chance that it could reproduce before succumbing to the injury, whereas if it were taken to a vet and rehab center, it may never reproduce again to propagate more gopher tortoises in FL. It seems like getting it vet care would be the way to go though.


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 28, 2021)

TeamZissou said:


> You may have done all that you can do.
> 
> The only other option I see is to find a vet willing to fix it pro bono. You'd need to find an experienced tortoise vet. It just seems like the local news loves stories of "Shelly the turtle got a new shell prosthetic, and it's 3D printed!" Maybe they could get some good press. Who knows.
> 
> ...


"
Hello Jessica,

Thank you so much for caring about this poor animal! That shell really is in bad shape.

The only thing I can say is that you can try contacting The Conservancy or CROW clinic. Gopher tortoises are a protected species. Either of these organizations may be able to guide you as to either getting the tortoise some help from an organization closer to you, or they may be able to send someone to get the tortoise (We are all located on the west coast of Florida. I'm really not sure, but I do know that we are not able to help with this as we cannot take a protected species from its natural environment. Either of the other agencies should be able to guide you. The Conservancy should be able to give you some helpful information as to next steps. CROW has a clinic and they may be able to help with rehab of the animal if the Conservancy can't help." 

I already contacted CROW ?


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 28, 2021)

Agh, this all just kills me! ? sucks sometimes to have such a big caring heart


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 29, 2021)

Still alive ?. Probably gonna keep checking on him for I come here every week to dog sit!


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## AmandaTX (Apr 30, 2021)

Your other option is to report this as a federal violation of the ESA to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Harming an endangered or threatened species is a direct violation of both state and federal law. It appears that this injury could be caused by a person as several folks have suggested. 

It looks like most of the Florida websites direct you to the state wildlife agency only. "Report a suspected crime involving a federally listed species by emailing [email protected] or calling 1- 844-FWS-TIPS (397-8477)." Another site has a different number/ contact you can try too: https://myfwc.com/contact/wildlife-alert/

As a former USFWS employee, staff at local National Wildlife Refuges are overworked and often have few to no resources to handle an injured animal. You have a couple of refuges to the east of Orlando you could call for advice. Do not take it to them or expect them to come collect the tortoise- it's just not in their power.

As a former zoo employee (I've had multiple careers in my time!) I can tell you some zoos are set up to work with T&E injured animals and some are not. I'm lucky to be near the Houston Zoo, where our amazing vet staff regularly pitch in to help injured wildlife. I have worked at other facilities where people have tried to bring in animals and we just couldn't accept anything due to the facility's policies. (Once while working at the Fort Worth Zoo, someone left 7 wine boxes full of adult desert tortoises at the door of the education center one night. Fort Worth can't take in outside wildlife so we as the education staff had to scramble to find rehabbers and fosters. Not cool.) You can find a list of American Zoo and Aquarium Association certified zoos here: https://www.aza.org/current-accreditation-list?locale=en Again, don't take the animal to them or expect them to come out- what they have the power to do is up to that zoo's specific policies.

I hope this helps a little! Unfortunately these kinds of cases require some serious phone time to find an answer.


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## ANGELA BRZECZKOWSKI (Apr 30, 2021)

Oh this is so heartbreaking-good luck. I hope you can find someone!


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## Obbie (Apr 30, 2021)

How sturdy is this fence ? If the owner of this land “owned” this poor guy, he should have taken care of him. I would hope that land owner doesn’t watch his fence lines. Go get the tortoise and don’t say where you found it. Sorry but I’ll pick a tortoise over a silly “do not trespass“ sign. This guy needs to be assessed by a good vet. You can put him back, I wouldn’t


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## Obbie (Apr 30, 2021)

Obbie said:


> How sturdy is this fence ? If the owner of this land “owned” this poor guy, he should have taken care of him. I would hope that land owner doesn’t watch his fence lines. Go get the tortoise and don’t say where you found it. Sorry but I’ll pick a tortoise over a silly “do not trespass“ sign. This guy needs to be assessed by a good vet. You can put him back, I wouldn’t


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## JMM (Apr 30, 2021)

So sorry to see this. I would suggest contacting the University of FL Vet School in Gainsville. They may be able to intervene and get the authorities to require this animal be given access to veterinary care. They would be one place in the area that you could take this animal for appropriate care. That wound definitely needs to be investigated and appropriately treated or the animal humanely euthanized if necessary. Feel free to PM me.


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 30, 2021)

Obbie said:


> How sturdy is this fence ? If the owner of this land “owned” this poor guy, he should have taken care of him. I would hope that land owner doesn’t watch his fence lines. Go get the tortoise and don’t say where you found it. Sorry but I’ll pick a tortoise over a silly “do not trespass“ sign. This guy needs to be assessed by a good vet. You can put him back, I wouldn’t


I believe it's government property, or county property. I'd rather not deal with THAT...but I will call around


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## Obbie (Apr 30, 2021)

AmandaTX said:


> Your other option is to report this as a federal violation of the ESA to the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Harming an endangered or threatened species is a direct violation of both state and federal law. It appears that this injury could be caused by a person as several folks have suggested.
> 
> It looks like most of the Florida websites direct you to the state wildlife agency only. "Report a suspected crime involving a federally listed species by emailing [email protected] or calling 1- 844-FWS-TIPS (397-8477)." Another site has a different number/ contact you can try too: https://myfwc.com/contact/wildlife-alert/
> 
> ...


I think this should be looked as a crime, that is a human caused injury !


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 30, 2021)

JMM said:


> So sorry to see this. I would suggest contacting the University of FL Vet School in Gainsville. They may be able to intervene and get the authorities to require this animal be given access to veterinary care. They would be one place in the area that you could take this animal for appropriate care. That wound definitely needs to be investigated and appropriately treated or the animal humanely euthanized if necessary. Feel free to PM me.


That is actually a good idea! I'm sure someone there can help!


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## Jiriza92 (Apr 30, 2021)

Thank you all so much for all your replies! I will see what I can do come Monday and keep updating! Prayers!


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## JMM (Apr 30, 2021)

Jiriza92 said:


> Thank you all so much for all your replies! I will see what I can do come Monday and keep updating! Prayers!


I wouldn't wait until Monday--the vet school is open 24/7.


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## Jiriza92 (May 1, 2021)

JMM said:


> I wouldn't wait until Monday--the vet school is open 24/7.


I just called and operator stated to call back during regular business hours...


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## Farcryjj (May 1, 2021)

I actually don't understand the logic behind this whole thing... Because it is a native endangered animal, nobody can or is supposed to help it? Does it mean if it is a sulcata, people can actually offer it helps? How does it make sense? ?


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## Obbie (May 14, 2021)

Hello, I’m looking for an update on “the tortoise “. Any news ?


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## Jiriza92 (May 14, 2021)

Obbie said:


> Hello, I’m looking for an update on “the tortoise “. Any news ?


It is still alive! I have found 2 other hides that it made for itself..still yet to contact the vet school


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## Jiriza92 (May 14, 2021)

This was yesterday


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## Jiriza92 (May 22, 2021)

Update:
I've been meaning to post! Last week when checking on the tortoise, I found 2! So there is definitely a family or something...there are a total of 6 hides. I found a tortoise in 2 of the hides..


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## Jiriza92 (May 22, 2021)




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## Jiriza92 (May 23, 2021)

So the person I dog sit for sent me this photo! 


? this is a different tortoise! 


Doing research, this is a gopher tortoise. It is a tortoise known to Florida and is state PROTECTED. 

-
https://www.treehugger.com/please-stop-rescuing-gopher-tortoises-florida-asks-4868626

https://myfwc.com/wildlifehabitats/wildlife/gopher-tortoise/
-


The first link, although it does mention mistakenly releasing tortoises into the ocean (I'm not doing that), it also states that they are a necessity to Florida's wildlife. Mainly because of the burrows they dig, which allows over 350 other species in FL to use once the tortoise is no longer using it. 



Which also explains those 6 holes. So awesome that the tunnels gopher tortoises can dig can range up to around 50 ft long and around 20 ft deep!! (Attached picture) 

The second link states to report injured tortoises to FWC. This was the first thing I did, and was told to leave it alone..

That being said, it would be a wise choice to let the injured tortoise live out its life naturally with no intervention (imo now that I have done some research).


Soooo guess that answers this thread ?..


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