Advice needed (red coloration on plastron)

[purplebanana]

Can anyone help. This is my daughter’s 14 month old marginated tortoise. I’ve just lifted him and noticed he is very pink which having read that this can be a sign of something wrong I’m now worried. My vet is closed for the night so I cannot call them until the morning. He seems happy and alert at the moment.

 

[zovick]

View attachment 334071
Can anyone help. This is my daughter’s 14 month old marginated tortoise. I’ve just lifted him and noticed he is very pink which having read that this can be a sign of something wrong I’m now worried. My vet is closed for the night so I cannot call them until the morning. He seems happy and alert at the moment.

If the tortoise is eating and acting normally, I would attribute the reddish color on the plastron to the normal high vascularization which occurs in rapidly growing new bone showing through the shell.

If the tortoise goes off its feed and begins acting lethargic when the plastron looks like this, that is when it would be considered a bad sign.

In other words, I think your daughter's tortoise is fine. Enjoy the tortoise and don't be worried unnecessarily at this point.

 

[purplebanana]

Thank you for your reply.