Adult sulcata beak maintenance

[vladimir]

Hi everyone,

Vladimir is almost 60lbs now, and I was hoping to get some advice on how his beak looks currently and what we should do to keep it in good shape moving forward. Here's a current shot:



I was concerned about the areas immediately right and left of the notch in the center. I've increased cuttle bone access and have been allowing him to chew on the skin of some acorn squash to try to make him wear his beak down more evenly, but I wanted to get some advice from others.

An open beak shot:



Thanks in advance!

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Feeding on a cement or slate slab helps.
I also place random, flat cement pads around the enclosures to help with trimming nails

 

[Yvonne G]

Perfectly normal. Most large sulcatas get those points, even longer than Vlad's. Dracula mouth!!

 

[Maggie3fan]

That top beak is normal. They are sharp as hell. I'd get a picture of Big Sam's beak for ya... but I'm scared now, so take my word for it,

owwwch. Great gobs of ouch,

 

[Chefdenoel10]

That top beak is normal. They are sharp as hell. I'd get a picture of Big Sam's beak for ya... but I'm scared now, so take my word for it,
View attachment 305061
owwwch. Great gobs of ouch,
View attachment 305062

how are you feeling!??
Ooouch!!!
Is it healing nicely?
? yikes!!

 

[Len B]

I noticed Walkers (24 years old) beak getting a little rough a while back and decided to work on it to get it better looking. I don't believe feeding on slate or any other hard surface does much good for total beak maintenance. I do feed him on slate and upside down ceramic tiles but for other reasons. His beak smoothness and sharpness has improved with feeding old growth opuntia pads, dry mazuria and stems from large collard leaves. I feed him carrots and water melon, cantaloupe, honeydew rinds which are kinda tough. The carrots I quarter long ways to avoid chocking on them. Also the way I cut back my mulberry trees the leaves get very large and that makes the leaf stem much thicker and tougher for him to cut through when he eats them which I believe helps in beak maintenance too, along with his normal grazing. It has been a slow process but I can see a big difference in his beak. During winter after the opuntia dehydrate, some of what I grow get so tuff he has a hard time eating it.

 

[Len B]

I probably should add that I hand feed him opuntia pads by hand daily and have for years. that way he has to bite each peace off on the way I hold the pad which is a way he cuts through the stems in the pad in a way that benefits the beak maintenance. He also has what I call the cactus feeder that he eats from at his free will.

 

[Tom]

Hi everyone,

Vladimir is almost 60lbs now, and I was hoping to get some advice on how his beak looks currently and what we should do to keep it in good shape moving forward. Here's a current shot:
I was concerned about the areas immediately right and left of the notch in the center. I've increased cuttle bone access and have been allowing him to chew on the skin of some acorn squash to try to make him wear his beak down more evenly, but I wanted to get some advice from others.

The front of the beak looks a little over worn. The rest looks good.

I agree with Len. I don't think feeding on a slate or rich surface doesn't anything. I've never done that, and all of my tortoises of all species have never had any beak problems. I once got a rescue that had a beak the was very over grown and in bad shape. I figured I'd give her a few weeks to settle in before I traumatized her with beak trimming. I decided on a day, and when I went to get her for her procedure, most of the trouble spots had worn down and looked pretty good. A few more weeks and you'd never be able to tell there was ever a problem. Like Len, I feed whole opuntia pads, whole pumpkins, mulberry and grape vine branches, and all foods for all ages of tortoises are not cut up. They have to bite, rip and tear to get their food. They also graze on weeds and grass in their pens for about four months of every year.

I use terra cotta saucers in the indoor baby enclosures for food, and I use plastic fast food type trays for feeding larger tortoises outside.

 

[vladimir]

Thanks everyone! I'll adjust the diet a bit to try to make him work his beak more.

I appreciate everyone's input.

 

[vladimir]

a quick update - we gave Vlad a nice size acorn squash over Christmas, and I noticed the overgrown part of his beak on his left side seems to have broken off or been worn down:

 

[Chefdenoel10]

a quick update - we gave Vlad a nice size acorn squash over Christmas, and I noticed the overgrown part of his beak on his left side seems to have broken off or been worn down:

View attachment 314685

Handsome devil!