Is this pyramiding?

[V4286]

I'm working on creating a safe outdoor enclosure for my little guy (my dogs are a little too curious to be trusted on their own), so in the meantime I still have him housed inside. I've been trying to keep a close eye on his growth and lately I'm more and more concerned he's pyramiding. I confess, I haven't kept him on as much of a grass-based diet as I mean to. His tank humidity is always at least 50%. I soak him a couple of times a week. I used to work with few adult Sulcatas, but I confess myself to be a little less confident on my knowledge of the little ones.

Help, please?

I've already read through a few of the other threads with wonderful tips on diets and humidity chambers, but any additional advise and opinions on whether this is pyramiding or not would be greatly appreciated!

 

[SarahChelonoidis]

Yes, that is pyramiding. It isn't particularly severe, but you can ensure future growth is smoother by getting your humidity up higher - think 70% and up (so long as your low temperatures aren't less than 80F).

 

[Tom]

Hello and welcome.

Yes. That is pyramiding.

Pyramiding is caused by growth in conditions that are too dry. Not by diet. These babies hatch in the monsoon season in the wild. Hot, rainy, wet, humid. Think New Orleans or South FL in summer. NOT a desert species. We've been doing it all wrong for decades. Babies should be soaked daily.

You should know that stopping pyramiding in progress is a lot harder than preventing pyramiding in the first place. You will need a closed chamber with high humidity, warm temps, daily soaks and frequent shell spraying to bring this to a halt and begin to get smooth growth. It will take many months to see improvement.

Check these out:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/