Help! Crusty underside

[bignasty]

Hi everyone!

I just noticed today that the underside of my leopard tortoise is somehow crusty and cracked. I bought him/her just yesterday and failed to notice the underside.. should I be concerned?

Here are some pictures:

Looks real nasty, but apart from the underside, he/she seems well.

Please help!

 

[Annieski]

I'm sure someone more familiar will answer soon--I only have experience with Sulcata's. I would do a nice, warm soak---most of what I can see appears to be dried "poo" and maybe some substrate. After the soak---dry the shell and if the "crusties" stay there [after rubbing dry] it may be some shell rot---at which time an antiseptic solution and regular cleaning may be needed. Cute baby!

 

[Kristina]

I see the crusties but not any cracks. The lines are just natural lines between the scutes and growth rings.

Warm soak, soft toothbrush. It is just dried on poop and substrate and food, as ATC said. Just wash it off, no biggie.

 

[bignasty]

Thanks for the replies I'll work on cleaning 'em up asap.

 

[Yvonne G]

It looks like shell rot to me. Hard to tell if its old or something that's going on right now.

That's a really nice-looking leopard tortoise. Whoever you bought it from did very well by it and grew it nice and smooth. Probably a bit too much water, and that's why the shell rot. Its fairly easy to get rid of. I wouldn't give it back to the seller.

First of all, soak the tortoise in warmish water for about 15 minutes. Then take a soft-bristle brush and clean all those spots very well, including the one on her carapace. After its nice and clean, smear some human foot fungus cream all over the spots. This will kill anything that is currently living in there. It won't make the shell back to normal-looking, but will kill the fungus. Do this for about a week and you shouldn't smell anything after that.

 

[Tom]

I'm with Kristina on this one. I don't see any rot either, but my screen is tiny and Yvonne has more experience than me. Why don't you do a nice long soak and scrub it off with the toothbrush several times and then post some more pics for us. In all of my years, I've never seen shell rot on a leopard, but as I said, this forum is full of people more experienced than me.

 

[bignasty]

Thanks again for the replies guys.

Here are some updated pics:

I was hoping it wasn't shell rot but upon closer inspection, it looks like it because of the grey craters formed around the underside (i think). Also, the underside smells like "bad breath".

I'm currently applying the betadine + canesten (1% Clotrimazole). Hopefully in a week or two his/her condition will improve.