hello everyone this is my sully alley.

[Sulcatalover21]

Im very worried shes starting to pyramid and I feel extremely awful because of it. If she is pyramiding how bad is it and how can I stop it from getting worse?

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Yes, she's pyramiding, but it's not bad yet. She needs about 80% humidity. You can stop the pyramiding now but what is there won't ever go away. Feed her dark leafy greens, weeds, grasses and create more humidity. We would need pictures of her habitat to see what needs changing. Is her UVB light less then 6 months old? Does she ever go outside? I believe her problem stems from a lack of enough humidity.

 

[Sulcatalover21]

Thanks for the reply, her uvb lamp is less than 6 months old. I cant post pictures at the time as im not home. I take her outside almost everyday for at least an hour.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Does she get the humidity I talked about?

 

[Blakem]

Is she indoors most of the time, or out? Your sulcata looks young, so the pyramiding can be completely stopped and altered. I followed the three H's I read from a Veteran forum member, Hot, Humid, and Hydrated. If it's indoors, it'll be really easy to keep up the humidity. Explain more what the living environment is like, indoor/outdoor, heat/how you're causing humidity, hydration, soaking, and diet! Be as specific as possible.


Here's some great plant identification websites I use.

http://www.tlady.clara.net/TortGuide/diet.htm#plantlist

http://africantortoise.com/edible_landscaping.htm

http://m.thetortoisetable.org.uk/m/plants_19.asp

 

[Sulcatalover21]

Indoors I often let her soak and always provide water. Her substrate is coco coir and is damp. In one area she has a heat lamp for her to bask in. She is feed lettuce, kale, and carrot every now and then.

Outside: I live in Arizona and latley its been very dry and very hot. I sealed off my garden with bricks, made sure the plants are safe, made her a hiding area, wet down the dirt to soften it up and damped it. Oh and Ive never seen only seen her drink a few times, she just runs in her little pool and gets it all muddy XD

 

[txturtledude]

The pyramiding could be the result of poor husbandry practices by the breeder prior to you owning the tort. Just maintain constant humidity (80% or greater), keep the tort warm, soak daily, and provide a balanced diet.

Also, you may want to limit its time outdoors until it gets bigger. It needs some sunshine, but little torts can dehydrate very quickly in the hot sun.

 

[Yourlocalpoet]

What a pretty little face.

 

[Sulcatalover21]

Haha yes she is a cutie pie but shes sassy! When I try and take her back inside she kicks squirms and trys to bite me! XD