# Burnt shell



## Alisha hurtado (Jul 26, 2017)

Hello everyone,

I am writing to ask what your opinion is on my sulcata tortoise's shell.. i have had my baby for almost 6 years now but last year I enlisted in the military and had to leave her behind with my family. When I came back this last month, my baby's shell has completely "broke" off in the front. They had told me they thought it was shell rot because at first it was very soft and turned white but now the whole front of the shell is gone.. I took her to the vet and she told me that it was a burnt shell. She took tests and the results were fine, her shell just looks bad. My question to y'all is this something she can heal from? What should I be doing?? I changed the heat bulb to a heat pad that goes under her box, but I feel so horrible when I see her shell. Please help


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## Tom (Jul 26, 2017)

Hello and welcome, and thank you for serving our country.

That would be a very unusual spot to get a burn, and if that portion of the shell was burned then the face and legs would have been burned too.

Shell rot in sulcatas is very uncommon, unless there is some sort of physical damage that later gets infected.

What I see on your tortoise is old partially healed dog damage. Is that a possibility?

Where in the word is Soledad? I'm wondering what the weather is like there.


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## Yvonne G (Jul 27, 2017)

Hi, and welcome! Thank you so much for your service.

I'm afraid I have to agree with Tom. We DO see burned shells, but it's more on the very top of the carapace, not at the front like what has happened to your tortoise. This tortoise was chewed by something (or dropped). There's nothing to do about it. It won't grow back, but it is healed and not causing him any discomfort or pain.

Soledad is over on the coast south of Salinas.


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## Tidgy's Dad (Jul 27, 2017)

Hello, and a very warm welcome to Tortoise Forum. 
You have a very pretty tortoise, the shell damage just adds a little unique element.


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## Markw84 (Jul 27, 2017)

I'm thinking a rat here. Looks a lot like a rat gnawing at the shell. Some looks older, but some looks fairly recent. Like an ongoing issue. With many chelonian collections outside near agricultural areas, rats are frequently the biggest problem. I know I fight them constantly. The Behler center says it's their biggest problem. You are located right between us!


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## Tom (Jul 27, 2017)

Markw84 said:


> I'm thinking a rat here. Looks a lot like a rat gnawing at the shell.



I considered this too, but upon zooming in on the photo, I don't see the tell-tale parallel teeth marks that rodents all leave behind.


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## Markw84 (Jul 27, 2017)

Tom said:


> I considered this too, but upon zooming in on the photo, I don't see the tell-tale parallel teeth marks that rodents all leave behind.



I think I do up where it is more recent. Our left side where the scutes are chewed down to the bone. Look at the scute edges there...


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## Tom (Jul 27, 2017)

Markw84 said:


> I think I do up where it is more recent. Our left side where the scutes are chewed down to the bone. Look at the scute edges there...



I can't say that rodents are not the issue, but I'm not seeing the teeth marks. The pic is of pretty good resolution and I zoomed in pretty tight. If its there, I'm missing it.

@Alisha hurtado , How is this tortoise being housed. Especially at night? Could rodents gain access to it? How about a dog?


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## Alisha hurtado (Aug 2, 2017)

Tom said:


> I can't say that rodents are not the issue, but I'm not seeing the teeth marks. The pic is of pretty good resolution and I zoomed in pretty tight. If its there, I'm missing it.
> 
> @Alisha hurtado , How is this tortoise being housed. Especially at night? Could rodents gain access to it? How about a dog?




I apologize for the late reply,

My tortoise is housed indoors in a large box and is taken out in the day to roam the backyard. We don't have a rodent problem in our house. It started off in a small spot, not a hole but as if the shell was getting really soft and peeling away. There was no chew marks on the edge of the shell when this first started happening, it was on top of the shell then worked its way (peeled I guess) and broke off little by little till it turned to this.
Soledad is located in the Monterey county near salinas. And we do not own a dog, so no pets that could be chewing on her outside nor was she ever dropped.


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## Alisha hurtado (Aug 2, 2017)

Alisha hurtado said:


> I apologize for the late reply,
> 
> My tortoise is housed indoors in a large box and is taken out in the day to roam the backyard. We don't have a rodent problem in our house. It started off in a small spot, not a hole but as if the shell was getting really soft and peeling away. There was no chew marks on the edge of the shell when this first started happening, it was on top of the shell then worked its way (peeled I guess) and broke off little by little till it turned to this.
> Soledad is located in the Monterey county near salinas. And we do not own a dog, so no pets that could be chewing on her outside nor was she ever dropped.



Here is a picture from when it first started happening


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## wellington (Aug 2, 2017)

What temps are you having where you live? If she is outside all day and you have warm temps in the house a heated sleep box may not be needed. There can be dangers with a heat pad under a box and under a tortoise. At proper height heat light wouldn't burn her. The pic of when you said it first started looks pretty normal to me, not like a burn or anything.
Hello and Welcome. May I also say, thank you so very much for your service. Please take care of yourself in and out of duty.


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## Alisha hurtado (Aug 2, 2017)

wellington said:


> What temps are you having where you live? If she is outside all day and you have warm temps in the house a heated sleep box may not be needed. There can be dangers with a heat pad under a box and under a tortoise. At proper height heat light wouldn't burn her. The pic of when you said it first started looks pretty normal to me, not like a burn or anything.
> Hello and Welcome. May I also say, thank you so very much for your service. Please take care of yourself in and out of duty.



Right now the temperatures are very hot indoors and outdoors, so the heat lamp is not being used. The shell looks normal, but it was very soft to the touch and the tiny hole that was there grew bigger and bigger. I think the heat lamp was too close to her box and my family was not turning the light on/off as it should have been. I just don't understand how a burn could become this bad.

Thank you all for the warm welcomes! It feels so good to talk to people who actually have/know about tortoises. I walk in the blind here where I am from, most pet stores and people don't know anything about tortoises


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## wellington (Aug 2, 2017)

Well, what ever it is from, it can heal. It will take a long time and probably will never look normal again, but it will look better. Just keep an eye on it to not get worse and keep it clean. 
Don't be so hard on yourself. Not your fault and your family didn't know. 
You have found the right place for all the help you will need. 
We even have sections to just talk about anything, within in the rules that is. 
Stick around and enjoy.


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## TammyJ (Aug 5, 2017)

Hi there. You came to the right place for help! Hope all goes well with the healing, whatever the problem was.
Just follow the care sheets on correct humidity and temperatures and diet advice for this species, and make sure he is safe from any predators.


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