Baby sulcata unhealthy?

Macy Fidler

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Joined
Oct 30, 2014
Messages
155
I got my baby sulcata a UVA&UVB bulb (built into one) and this made him more active. But, his shell is still very squishy and it looks like it's losing color. What do I do? I've gotten everything he needs on the care sheet, and he is more active now and eats and stuff. So I don't know what all could be wrong, and when his shell will gain color/get harder. Or if he is dying or something. So please help!
 

Tom

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What kind of light? Mercury vapor bulb? Florescent tube? Compact florescent?

Please remind us where you got the tortoise and how it was started.
 

wellington

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Besides Toms questions, is it warm enough where you are to get the little one outside for some natural sunlight?
 

Vinh

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Feb 8, 2015
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My girlfriend and I recently got a baby Sulcata three weeks ago from not very trust worthy sales professionals from Repticon when they came. I'm not too sure if this can help but maybe you can learn from our experience :) . When we got Hermes he/she was already clicking and had slight nose bubbles since the group we bought him/her from only had a UVB bulb over them. What I did notice was that his/her shell was soft on the carapace (undershell) but VERY VERY soft on the side. I just assumed that maybe I was squeezing too hard. However, Kimberly noticed it too. Hermes ended up having a very mild upper respiratory infection (which yore not worrying about at this time), a calcium deficiency, and being very well underweight. After a lot of care and research, he/she is better now.

What I can recommend is try your best to expose your Sulcata to natural sunlight. If that is not possible, allow it to absorb some heat with your basking bulb and UVB rays. Since they are endotherms and cannot produce body heat themselves, it's best to allow it to bask and absorb the heat to work it's metabolism. This also leads to eating and calcium. A soft shell might indicate an illness or even just simply calcium deficiency. Most people on a daily basis sprinkle calcium on their sulcata's servings maybe twice a week. In your case, try 3-4 times till the shell gets harder, just be sure to keep her hydrated. It's a very good sign that your Sulcata is very active and eating. Hermes was the same and it a huge indication that your Sulcata is still fine in most cases. Be sure to keep an eye out if it stops eating or starts to just bask all day and become lethargic. They'll eat a lot.

On another note it might also help at night to keep it a bit warmer. I know some websites say "can go down to 70 degrees". Well in my opinion, if your tortoise is sick or lacking calcium, or underweight.. I would keep it at 80-85 at night just to regulate the metabolism while it's sleeping, but that's just me and my opinion being me science major.

Hermes was able to get better and healthy again in the span of two weeks, luckily. Just remember that their metabolism is very slow and these won't happen over night. Be patient. :) ImageUploadedByTortoise Forum1423464805.804723.jpg
 

russian/sulcata/tortoise

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Northern California, bay area
My girlfriend and I recently got a baby Sulcata three weeks ago from not very trust worthy sales professionals from Repticon when they came. I'm not too sure if this can help but maybe you can learn from our experience :) . When we got Hermes he/she was already clicking and had slight nose bubbles since the group we bought him/her from only had a UVB bulb over them. What I did notice was that his/her shell was soft on the carapace (undershell) but VERY VERY soft on the side. I just assumed that maybe I was squeezing too hard. However, Kimberly noticed it too. Hermes ended up having a very mild upper respiratory infection (which yore not worrying about at this time), a calcium deficiency, and being very well underweight. After a lot of care and research, he/she is better now.

What I can recommend is try your best to expose your Sulcata to natural sunlight. If that is not possible, allow it to absorb some heat with your basking bulb and UVB rays. Since they are endotherms and cannot produce body heat themselves, it's best to allow it to bask and absorb the heat to work it's metabolism. This also leads to eating and calcium. A soft shell might indicate an illness or even just simply calcium deficiency. Most people on a daily basis sprinkle calcium on their sulcata's servings maybe twice a week. In your case, try 3-4 times till the shell gets harder, just be sure to keep her hydrated. It's a very good sign that your Sulcata is very active and eating. Hermes was the same and it a huge indication that your Sulcata is still fine in most cases. Be sure to keep an eye out if it stops eating or starts to just bask all day and become lethargic. They'll eat a lot.

On another note it might also help at night to keep it a bit warmer. I know some websites say "can go down to 70 degrees". Well in my opinion, if your tortoise is sick or lacking calcium, or underweight.. I would keep it at 80-85 at night just to regulate the metabolism while it's sleeping, but that's just me and my opinion being me science major.

Hermes was able to get better and healthy again in the span of two weeks, luckily. Just remember that their metabolism is very slow and these won't happen over night. Be patient. :) View attachment 117803
welcome to the forum! please create your own thread so that the original question is not left out.:):tort: on your thread we can answer all your questions.
 

Macy Fidler

Member
Joined
Oct 30, 2014
Messages
155
My girlfriend and I recently got a baby Sulcata three weeks ago from not very trust worthy sales professionals from Repticon when they came. I'm not too sure if this can help but maybe you can learn from our experience :) . When we got Hermes he/she was already clicking and had slight nose bubbles since the group we bought him/her from only had a UVB bulb over them. What I did notice was that his/her shell was soft on the carapace (undershell) but VERY VERY soft on the side. I just assumed that maybe I was squeezing too hard. However, Kimberly noticed it too. Hermes ended up having a very mild upper respiratory infection (which yore not worrying about at this time), a calcium deficiency, and being very well underweight. After a lot of care and research, he/she is better now.

What I can recommend is try your best to expose your Sulcata to natural sunlight. If that is not possible, allow it to absorb some heat with your basking bulb and UVB rays. Since they are endotherms and cannot produce body heat themselves, it's best to allow it to bask and absorb the heat to work it's metabolism. This also leads to eating and calcium. A soft shell might indicate an illness or even just simply calcium deficiency. Most people on a daily basis sprinkle calcium on their sulcata's servings maybe twice a week. In your case, try 3-4 times till the shell gets harder, just be sure to keep her hydrated. It's a very good sign that your Sulcata is very active and eating. Hermes was the same and it a huge indication that your Sulcata is still fine in most cases. Be sure to keep an eye out if it stops eating or starts to just bask all day and become lethargic. They'll eat a lot.

On another note it might also help at night to keep it a bit warmer. I know some websites say "can go down to 70 degrees". Well in my opinion, if your tortoise is sick or lacking calcium, or underweight.. I would keep it at 80-85 at night just to regulate the metabolism while it's sleeping, but that's just me and my opinion being me science major.

Hermes was able to get better and healthy again in the span of two weeks, luckily. Just remember that their metabolism is very slow and these won't happen over night. Be patient. :) View attachment 117803
Thank you soooo much!!! This post helps me very much!
Hermes is SO cute :)
 

Vinh

New Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2015
Messages
5
You'll be fine :) it just takes patience and with it comes love. Just make sure if you're feeding your Sulcata a lot that you're keeping it very well hydrated, mist it in the morning, access to water should be an always.
 

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