Baby Sulcata white irregular dots on scute and plastron

[Alessandro Previero]

Hi everyone,
I recently acquired a Jan. 2022 Sulcata hatchling from Arizona Tortoise Compound. She's (gender unknown but it's a she for us), very active, eats abundantly. Recently I noticed some whitish dots on her scute and plastron, but given the multiple reasons for them, I'd rather show you and get a group opinion.

I attached 3 images, 2 top, 1 bottom.

The tortoise is soaked every day for at least 15 minutes, has a ceramic pool in her enclosure with water changed once-twice a day. The water hardness where I live is 16 AVG Hardness PPM / mg/L. ZooMed 80W power sun kept on for 12hrs a day approx. at the recommended distance. Temperature is c.a. 80-85F away from the lamp and 95-100F under the lamp. Nighttime temps are 75-80F, from normal apartment temperature. After some adjustments, humidity is approx. 60-65% with basking light ON in the less exposed part, and during night time it goes up to 75% at least. Soil is 4-5 inch thick layer of 100% cypress munch (Zoo Med Forest Floor). Diet is mix of greens sprinkled with dust of Zoo Med Grassland all over (I blended it because she wouldn't eat it the soaked pellet, despite my attempts).

What is your opinion?

 

[Thomas tortoise]

Hi everyone,
I recently acquired a Jan. 2022 Sulcata hatchling from Arizona Tortoise Compound. She's (gender unknown but it's a she for us), very active, eats abundantly. Recently I noticed some whitish dots on her scute and plastron, but given the multiple reasons for them, I'd rather show you and get a group opinion.

I attached 3 images, 2 top, 1 bottom.

The tortoise is soaked every day for at least 15 minutes, has a ceramic pool in her enclosure with water changed once-twice a day. The water hardness where I live is 16 AVG Hardness PPM / mg/L. ZooMed 80W power sun kept on for 12hrs a day approx. at the recommended distance. Temperature is c.a. 80-85F away from the lamp and 95-100F under the lamp. Nighttime temps are 75-80F, from normal apartment temperature. After some adjustments, humidity is approx. 60-65% with basking light ON in the less exposed part, and during night time it goes up to 75% at least. Soil is 4-5 inch thick layer of 100% cypress munch (Zoo Med Forest Floor). Diet is mix of greens sprinkled with dust of Zoo Med Grassland all over (I blended it because she wouldn't eat it the soaked pellet, despite my attempts).

What is your opinion?

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You have such a beautiful tortoise! And I'm sorry but I'm kinda new to sulcata tortoises too! So i can't help.

 

[zovick]

Hi everyone,
I recently acquired a Jan. 2022 Sulcata hatchling from Arizona Tortoise Compound. She's (gender unknown but it's a she for us), very active, eats abundantly. Recently I noticed some whitish dots on her scute and plastron, but given the multiple reasons for them, I'd rather show you and get a group opinion.

I attached 3 images, 2 top, 1 bottom.

The tortoise is soaked every day for at least 15 minutes, has a ceramic pool in her enclosure with water changed once-twice a day. The water hardness where I live is 16 AVG Hardness PPM / mg/L. ZooMed 80W power sun kept on for 12hrs a day approx. at the recommended distance. Temperature is c.a. 80-85F away from the lamp and 95-100F under the lamp. Nighttime temps are 75-80F, from normal apartment temperature. After some adjustments, humidity is approx. 60-65% with basking light ON in the less exposed part, and during night time it goes up to 75% at least. Soil is 4-5 inch thick layer of 100% cypress munch (Zoo Med Forest Floor). Diet is mix of greens sprinkled with dust of Zoo Med Grassland all over (I blended it because she wouldn't eat it the soaked pellet, despite my attempts).

What is your opinion?

View attachment 340191 View attachment 340192 View attachment 340193

Not sure exactly what whitish spots you mean. I don't really see anything abnormal on your tortoise other than the fact that it is missing one of its 5 central scutes. Your tortoise has four central scutes where there should be five. Did Andrew inform you of that fact before you bought the tortoise?

 

[Alessandro Previero]

Not sure exactly what whitish spots you mean. I don't really see anything abnormal on your tortoise other than the fact that it is missing one of its 5 central scutes. Your tortoise has four central scutes where there should be five. Did Andrew inform you of that fact before you bought the tortoise?

Hi, thanks for your quick reply. Yes Andrew informed me before purchase that the tortoise was mis-scute. I actually chose to get one mis-scute. The spots are very light but can be seen on the scute. I tried a gentle brushing with a toothbrush but didn't change much. I added red circles where the spots are.

 

[zovick]

Hi, thanks for your quick reply. Yes Andrew informed me before purchase that the tortoise was mis-scute. I actually chose to get one mis-scute. The spots are very light but can be seen on the scute. I tried a gentle brushing with a toothbrush but didn't change much. I added red circles where the spots are.

It looks as though the spots are actually UNDER the keratin layer of the shell rather than being ON its surface. If that is the case, they will not scrub off no matter what you try. They appear normal to me.

Some young tortoises get thin, squiggly, white lines under the keratin layer which look like little white worms. Your tortoise has white spots. I don't see anything abnormal or of concern there.

 

[Markw84]

Hi everyone,
I recently acquired a Jan. 2022 Sulcata hatchling from Arizona Tortoise Compound. She's (gender unknown but it's a she for us), very active, eats abundantly. Recently I noticed some whitish dots on her scute and plastron, but given the multiple reasons for them, I'd rather show you and get a group opinion.

I attached 3 images, 2 top, 1 bottom.

The tortoise is soaked every day for at least 15 minutes, has a ceramic pool in her enclosure with water changed once-twice a day. The water hardness where I live is 16 AVG Hardness PPM / mg/L. ZooMed 80W power sun kept on for 12hrs a day approx. at the recommended distance. Temperature is c.a. 80-85F away from the lamp and 95-100F under the lamp. Nighttime temps are 75-80F, from normal apartment temperature. After some adjustments, humidity is approx. 60-65% with basking light ON in the less exposed part, and during night time it goes up to 75% at least. Soil is 4-5 inch thick layer of 100% cypress munch (Zoo Med Forest Floor). Diet is mix of greens sprinkled with dust of Zoo Med Grassland all over (I blended it because she wouldn't eat it the soaked pellet, despite my attempts).

What is your opinion?

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Welcome to the forum.

Have you seen the care sheet we have here for Sulcata?

The Best Way To Raise A Sulcata, Leopard, Or Star Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. Babies hatch during the...

www.tortoiseforum.org

Please take the time to read through that. It is by far the best care info you can find anywhere to properly raise a sulcata. From your post I see a few things that are not what we would recommend. You also have an extremely young sulcata. Just about 4 weeks old. I would not sell a tortoise that young, so the care is really critical. 75° is too cold for a sulcata, and especially a hatchling. 65% humidity is not good either and the Power Sun bulb is too harsh for a baby tortoise. I don't mean to sound harsh, but there are some red flags that at this early stage you can fix to ensure your tortoise will thrive.

Please read the care sheet carefully and come back with more questions. Post a picture of the enclosure you have and we can also make some suggestions for you.

 

[Yvonne G]

It sort of looks like little air bubbles under the top layer of keratin, doesn't it? I doubt it's anything to worry about, but I'm interested in following along with this beauty's growth. The aberrant scute tortoises have always been my favorite.

 

[Tim Carlisle]

Almost looks like a sulcata / leopard hybrid to me, but I digress. Certainly a beautiful little fella!

 

[Alessandro Previero]

Hi everyone,
Thanks for all your replies!
My small hygrometer broke very recently, so was thinking to buy a digital thermometer + hygrometer to leave inside the closed enclosure. Any recommended ones? There are plenty good ones on Amazon but some reviews suggest the humidity is often inaccurate. Have you used any reliable ones that last a long time?

 

[Amoeba]

I don't know if this available in your country, but I used Xiaomi Mijia bluetooth thermometer and hygrometer. Its accurate and can record temperature and humidity for 24h.

 

[Tom]

Hi everyone,
Thanks for all your replies!
My small hygrometer broke very recently, so was thinking to buy a digital thermometer + hygrometer to leave inside the closed enclosure. Any recommended ones? There are plenty good ones on Amazon but some reviews suggest the humidity is often inaccurate. Have you used any reliable ones that last a long time?

I agree with the others that everything looks normal and good. I also agree with Mark's comments about the changes that need to be made if you want to grow your tortoise smooth and healthy.

You'd better start planning for the future now. Housing this beauty in Boston is going to be a big expensive challenge starting next winter and every winter after that.

Welcome to the forum. Questions and conversation are welcome.

 

[Mrs.Jennifer]

Hi everyone,
Thanks for all your replies!
My small hygrometer broke very recently, so was thinking to buy a digital thermometer + hygrometer to leave inside the closed enclosure. Any recommended ones? There are plenty good ones on Amazon but some reviews suggest the humidity is often inaccurate. Have you used any reliable ones that last a long time?

Hello!
This is the thermometer/hygrometer that I use:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01H1R0K68/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20

Good luck!

 

[Alessandro Previero]

Hi everyone,
Last update for now, on the closed enclosure that I recently built - what an effort..
The dimensions are 4ft L 2ft W and 2ft H. Substrate is 100% cypress munch and added some fake plants + stones for fun and shades. Added the digital thermometer + hygrometer (left corner), which has been constantly reading 82F with 85% humidity.
The tall water bowl under the lamp is to facilitate constant humidity and is much taller than the tortoise so she cannot climb into it. The lamp is still the Powersun 80W and is hanging at about 12inch from substrate. BUT I've added support for (future) up to 3 lamps, which would replace the current one with UV and incandescent bulbs separately.
The aluminum foil in the front is because the plexiglass in front is somewhat flexible so there's a gap between itself and the ceiling. By shifting it I can increase/decrease temperature or humidity.
In the back of the ceiling there are some small gaps to favor a bit of air circulation.

I'm trying to balance the food well because as you know Boston in winter is covered in snow so grass is not so simple to find. However, in the next year or so, the plan is to relocate somewhere warmer so should be able to give the tortoise outdoor time yearlong.

NOTES for NEWBIES like me: If you wonder if this is too big of an enclosure, I guarantee it's not - my tortoise is at most 2inch long, and dang she walks all over the place and loves to explore! Also, the closed enclosure makes keeping humidity and temperature a breeze: I simply spray water on the soil in the morning, during her bath time, turn the lamp on and it stays very constant.

Currently, the enclosure is on the floor, but I'm on the 2nd floor of an old condo, so the floor is warm from indirect heating. Additionally, I've placed it away from windows since it may cause unwanted temperature spikes during sunny days.

Please let me know your feedback + suggestions!

 

[Tom]

I'm glad our suggestions were able to help.

Be careful with the plastic plants. All of my baby tortoises try to eat them. They can cause an impaction.