# New Rescue



## dmarcus (Jul 2, 2011)

Matt asked me if I could take in a Sulcata rescue that he got yesterday and he sent me a pic and after I saw the photo I could not say no. This little tort is gonna need some TLC after not having this best care. My daughter decided to name the little tort "Honey" 
































This little one weighs 586 grams and id 6.5 inches long. Gave the little one a warm soak and a mixure of Mazuri, Red sticks and Cactus, after eating a little Honey went to sleep..


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## Edna (Jul 2, 2011)

Poor Honey! I'm glad you've got her now, hope she enjoys her new home!


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## dmmj (Jul 2, 2011)

wow looks rough.


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## jaizei (Jul 2, 2011)

Good Luck.


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## matt41gb (Jul 2, 2011)

Thanks for adopting her from me. I know she's in great hands now. I had a good time talking with you guys today. 

-Matt


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## dmmj (Jul 2, 2011)

I just noticed that dalano and matt are from the same town neat. You two neighbors? I hope the little guy gets better.


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## dmarcus (Jul 2, 2011)

She has a great disposition and as long as she keeps it up we will do all we can for her..



matt41gb said:


> Thanks for adopting her from me. I know she's in great hands now. I had a good time talking with you guys today.
> 
> -Matt



Thanks for asking Matt, and as always we enjoyed hanging with you and your herd. My daughter is still talking about your turtles...



dmmj said:


> I just noticed that dalano and matt are from the same town neat. You two neighbors? I hope the little guy gets better.



Yep, we live a few minutes away from each other, but Matt works down the street from my house.. She is eating and active and that is always a great sign..


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## matt41gb (Jul 2, 2011)

It's great to have a forum member that lives close by! He's a heck of a guy.

-Matt


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## Sulcatifornia (Jul 2, 2011)

These stories make me smile


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## Yvonne G (Jul 2, 2011)

Is Honey's shell soft?


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## CJSTorts (Jul 2, 2011)

So glad Honey is getting proper care now. Good luck!


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## Candy (Jul 2, 2011)

Thank goodness he's with someone who knows how to take care of him properly now. He's in good hands.


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## dmarcus (Jul 2, 2011)

emysemys said:


> Is Honey's shell soft?



its not squishy, it has give like a hatchling shell.


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## Torty Mom (Jul 2, 2011)

Poor Honey!!!! You my friend have been bitten by the tortie bug! I am so glad you are giving her a wonderful home, she deserves it! She is lucky to have you and she will have that figured out in a few days! I think you are awesome!!! Tell your daughter that she picked a great name!!!


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## dmarcus (Jul 2, 2011)

CJSTorts said:


> So glad Honey is getting proper care now. Good luck!



Thanks, were gonna do all we can to make her happy and strong..



Candy said:


> Thank goodness he's with someone who knows how to take care of him properly now. He's in good hands.



I am glad Matt gave her to me, she has a great personality..



Torty Mom said:


> Poor Honey!!!! You my friend have been bitten by the tortie bug! I am so glad you are giving her a wonderful home, she deserves it! She is lucky to have you and she will have that figured out in a few days! I think you are awesome!!! Tell your daughter that she picked a great name!!!



Thank you Mary Anne, as soon as my daughter saw her she said I wanna name her Honey.


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## Laura (Jul 2, 2011)

pretty serious issues, but should do ok if eating and cared for. .. fingers crossed.. 
kinda like my first one.. we built these huge pens with the promise to get some rescues, and I met another tort person,
she got two in.. a desert and a sulcata.. he was prob abou the same size when i brought him home. I couldnt say no or leave him behind.
i was told his life expectancy was not good and probably would not grow.. but he's doing great and twice the size. he wont even be smooth, but he runs now and the new growth is smoother. 
Lots of sun, grass and calcium... good luck!!


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## Maggie Cummings (Jul 2, 2011)

A dip in their back like that 'generally' means MBD. She is old enough now that she shouldn't feel soft at all. I would kinda double up on the calcium for a while and try to harden her up. Do you have any TNT? If not, PM me your address and I'll send you some.


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## Torty Mom (Jul 2, 2011)

Maggie, will the sway get better or just stay the same? When the new growth starts to come in, will she kinda flatten out?


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## froghaven5 (Jul 3, 2011)

Great of you to take in Honey. Will be looking for updates to see how things go.


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## Missy (Jul 3, 2011)

Torts like Honey have a way of touching your heart. Someday when I have more room I would love to take in a few more rescues


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## Maggie Cummings (Jul 3, 2011)

Torty Mom said:


> Maggie, will the sway get better or just stay the same? When the new growth starts to come in, will she kinda flatten out?



I'm not sure about that. Generally with healthy growth the 'pyramids' become little points and the new growth will harden and that would remove the sway.


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## dmarcus (Jul 3, 2011)

maggie3fan said:


> A dip in their back like that 'generally' means MBD. She is old enough now that she shouldn't feel soft at all. I would kinda double up on the calcium for a while and try to harden her up. Do you have any TNT? If not, PM me your address and I'll send you some.



The shell thing is worrisome, you can see her shell move when she breathes, but she is active and she was out basking in the sun when I checked on her. 



Laura said:


> pretty serious issues, but should do ok if eating and cared for. .. fingers crossed..
> kinda like my first one.. we built these huge pens with the promise to get some rescues, and I met another tort person,
> she got two in.. a desert and a sulcata.. he was prob abou the same size when i brought him home. I couldnt say no or leave him behind.
> i was told his life expectancy was not good and probably would not grow.. but he's doing great and twice the size. he wont even be smooth, but he runs now and the new growth is smoother.
> Lots of sun, grass and calcium... good luck!!



When we picked her up she would walk around with her head in her shell but today she was out in the sun walking with her head extended out. As long as she has some great new growth and her shell hardens then I will be happy.


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## Yvonne G (Jul 3, 2011)

Just make sure she is fed plenty of calcium-rich foods and gets plenty of sunshine. The sway-back will never go away now. She's too old and established for it to do any changing. But you can get it to harden up (along with all the bones) and the new growth will be smoother.


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## dmarcus (Jul 3, 2011)

emysemys said:


> Just make sure she is fed plenty of calcium-rich foods and gets plenty of sunshine. The sway-back will never go away now. She's too old and established for it to do any changing. But you can get it to harden up (along with all the bones) and the new growth will be smoother.



Thanks Yvonne, were gonna make sure she gets all she needs to improve her health and harden her shell.


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## Zouave (Jul 3, 2011)

Honey will be fine now that she has a keeper like D. :thumbsup:


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## dmmj (Jul 3, 2011)

amazing how a little sunshine can often change a tortoise's disposition.


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## Livingstone (Jul 3, 2011)

emysemys said:


> Just make sure she is fed plenty of calcium-rich foods and gets plenty of sunshine. The sway-back will never go away now. She's too old and established for it to do any changing. But you can get it to harden up (along with all the bones) and the new growth will be smoother.



Can you cause internal damage to the animal by changing the diet so much? For example if a person is severely dehydrated you have to give them water in small incremental amounts, you cant just throw them into a pool of water. Would a tortoise that is so severely mal nourished be the same?


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## dmarcus (Jul 3, 2011)

Zouave said:


> Honey will be fine now that she has a keeper like D. :thumbsup:



Thanks for the kind words!!!!



dmmj said:


> amazing how a little sunshine can often change a tortoise's disposition.



I just had to bring her in, we just got some un-forcast rain, so she is chowing down on some chopped up cactus and once the sun come back out she will be outside enjoying the sun again..


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## Laura (Jul 3, 2011)

rain is ok, as long as it isnt a cold rain... they love it!


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## dmarcus (Jul 3, 2011)

Laura said:


> rain is ok, as long as it isnt a cold rain... they love it!



Its was 103 degrees before it started to rain, she is back outside exploring the back yard..


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## terryo (Jul 3, 2011)

I'm starting to get very jealous of all you people with your beautiful sulcata's. She will have much love with you and I know you will do a wonderful job with her.


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## dmarcus (Jul 3, 2011)

terryo said:


> I'm starting to get very jealous of all you people with your beautiful sulcata's. She will have much love with you and I know you will do a wonderful job with her.



Thanks Terry, she is enjoying the yard, it's not as lush as Matt's but we have a lot of vegetation for her to seek shade under or take a few bites if she want's..


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## Jacqui (Jul 3, 2011)

Poor Honey. I can see why you would want to adopt her the second you saw her. I can't wait to see how she improves in the coming days, weeks, and months.


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## dmarcus (Jul 3, 2011)

Jacqui said:


> Poor Honey. I can see why you would want to adopt her the second you saw her. I can't wait to see how she improves in the coming days, weeks, and months.



I am also looking forward to any and all improvements..


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## ChiKat (Jul 4, 2011)

Ohh poor thing!! Glad she's in much better hands now!


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## dmarcus (Jul 5, 2011)

ChiKat said:


> Ohh poor thing!! Glad she's in much better hands now!



She is doing very good and she loves cactus, so she will get all that she wants.


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## RV's mom (Jul 5, 2011)

I'm hoping Honey's changed living conditions / better food / better care will make the best possible outcome for this little one. I get so steamed to see such poor conditioning in animals... I'm glad you have her ~ all the difference in the world.

teri


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## dmarcus (Jul 5, 2011)

sharkstar said:


> I'm hoping Honey's changed living conditions / better food / better care will make the best possible outcome for this little one. I get so steamed to see such poor conditioning in animals... I'm glad you have her ~ all the difference in the world.
> 
> teri



It is very frustrating when you see a tortoise like her, Matt told me the guy had her for 3 years. She is so small and sunken in. She seems like a fighter so I will do all I can for her..


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## Fernando (Jul 5, 2011)

That's good to hear D. I'm pullin' for her!


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## Jacob (Jul 5, 2011)

Thats Great To Hear, She Looks Like She Had A Bad Life!
Shes in Great Hands Now, Hooray


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## dmarcus (Jul 5, 2011)

Jacob said:


> Thats Great To Hear, She Looks Like She Had A Bad Life!
> Shes in Great Hands Now, Hooray



Thanks Jacob, she has a great personality...


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## dmarcus (Jul 7, 2011)

Just a couple photo's from today. She is doing very well, she loves weeds and cactus but won't touch the red sticks or Mazuri but we will keep offering it.  Maggie was kind enough to send me some TNT so we will add that to her food several times a week. 

She loves to roam the back yard and she has even started to dig a burrow.


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## Maggie Cummings (Jul 7, 2011)

She looks wonderful in her burrow with all the dirt on her carapace. I am so glad she is happy now. Sulcata, ya just gotta love'em.


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## dmarcus (Jul 7, 2011)

maggie3fan said:


> She looks wonderful in her burrow with all the dirt on her carapace. I am so glad she is happy now. Sulcata, ya just gotta love'em.



She blends in so well with everything, it's hard to find her. She has 3 places in the garden that she like to hide.


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## matt41gb (Jul 8, 2011)

Wow! You know that he/she is doing much better if there is a burrow in the works. You're doing a great job!

-Matt


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## wrmitchell22 (Jul 8, 2011)

So glad Honey is with you, she needs some TLC and it sounds like she is going to get it!


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## dmarcus (Jul 8, 2011)

matt41gb said:


> Wow! You know that he/she is doing much better if there is a burrow in the works. You're doing a great job!
> 
> -Matt



Thanks Matt, and it's gotten a little deeper since I took that photo. The little one has been easier to find with all the work on that burrow..



wrmitchell22 said:


> So glad Honey is with you, she needs some TLC and it sounds like she is going to get it!



Thanks Jenn, Honey has been a blast so far and doing so good, gaining weight and everything..


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## ALDABRAMAN (Jul 9, 2011)

I wish Honey the best!


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## dmarcus (Jul 9, 2011)

ALDABRAMAN said:


> I wish Honey the best!



Thanks Greg, nice to see you back posting again!!


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## Eweezyfosheezy (Jul 9, 2011)

Looks like Honey is going to be living the good life from now on.


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## Zouave (Jul 10, 2011)

She needs one of these


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## dmarcus (Jul 10, 2011)

Zouave said:


> She needs one of these



Lol I like that a lot...


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## dmarcus (Jul 11, 2011)

We have to search for Honey everytime we go outside and because she blends in so good it's sometimes it takes us a little while. So yesterday we found her digging under a damaged piece of fence, and she was almost thru. Not sure how the neighbors horses would have like that..











once we filled it back in she went back to the burrow she started, so escape adverted and all is good...


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## Tortoise (Jul 11, 2011)

dalano73 said:


> We have to search for Honey everytime we go outside and because she blends in so good it's sometimes it takes us a little while. So yesterday we found her digging under a damaged piece of fence, and she was almost thru. Not sure how the neighbors horses would have like that..
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Hope Honey continues to improve-great you have her now. She doesn't look big enough to dig such substantial holes-can you tell I never had a sulcatta???? She obviously has strength and energy too-these creatures never fail to impress me-so strong and determined to survive.

Best of luck-it will be good to hear updates about Honey(love the photos too)


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## dmarcus (Jul 11, 2011)

[/quote]

Hope Honey continues to improve-great you have her now. She doesn't look big enough to dig such substantial holes-can you tell I never had a sulcatta???? She obviously has strength and energy too-these creatures never fail to impress me-so strong and determined to survive.

Best of luck-it will be good to hear updates about Honey(love the photos too)
[/quote]

When we gave her free run of the back yard, we didn't think we would have an issue with digging, but she has proved us wrong. We are happy she is digging because it means she is getting better, but I may have to build her an enclosure soon to keep better track of her. 

I too am impressed with there will to survive even under the worse care..


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