Lotion for torts?

[erica anne]

Does anybody know if this lotion is okay for torts? it's called Turtle VitaShell for turtles, tortoises, and terrapins. It's made for dry skin. It's very creamy and faintly smells like mint.

 

[Zamric]

GREATY STUFF! I swear by it! but I am only one of a sizable handful that belive this.

You can see the results of why I belive this by looking at my Torts. WalkingRock was raised on it from a hatchling and he is quite smooth for a Sulcata of his age and size, and my Leopard yearlings have ZERO pyramiding!

 

[erica anne]

It says on there that it could also be used for dry skin, is that true?

 

[Zamric]

It says on there that it could also be used for dry skin, is that true?

for your Tort? Certainly! I always rub a little onto their legs and the tops of thier heads when I see dry spots.

Don't "gob" it on, just a little on your fingertips and rub it in evenly.

 

[luvpetz27]

Sounds like good stuff!!

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Erica Anne:

We've had many discussions about this product. Here's a link to just one of them:

http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-62594.html?highlight=vita+shell

Use the "search" feature and you can read all of the discussions.

 

[erica anne]

Thanks so much

 

[RedfootsRule]

Here is the rundown for the product.
It COULD, under certain circumstances, do harm, but its unlikely, and has "never been seen". You won't get any benefit from it. There is no evidence for either. You might as well just be safe and not use it. Rely on humidity and mud wallows for resolve dry skin; slathering them in wax is just not the answer. I can promise you, they will enjoy the humidity and mud wallows a lot more .

 

[marcy4hope]

i use this on a weekly basis for my leo and sulcata. i started using it within the past few months because i was seeing some spots on my sulcata's shell. i soak him everyday, and wasn't sure what the spots were from. i've determined some of it was from rubbing his shell getting out of his enclosure, and some might have been hard water stain from his soaks. once i started using vitashell, all of that cleared up. i use it on my leo to and his shell looks great. but, i only use it as directed. i put a thin coat on only once a week, no more. so far, i really like the results.

 

[Weda737]

I'm still going with the Vitamin E oil on this one. I do have vitashell but never use it on my tortoise (was given to me). Why use something with all those additives anyway when the E oil is simple and safe, that is, if you need to use anything at all. I have noticed that the new growth on my sulcata stays light and supple longer when I brush on just a bit after/during a good soak. Rinse and brush off excess with a soft brush.

 

[Tom]

Here is my go at it:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-27085.html?highlight=Vitashell

 

[mainey34]

I have used vitashell on my sulcata, and am currently using it on my redfoot. I put it on my redfoot once a week. It really helps with the dry spots in his shell..its a good product. My opinion...

 

[Yellow Turtle]

I used to use baby lotion. Not anymore, I find providing a lot of plants in the enclosure and humid hides are enough to make the shell not look any more dry.

I believe vitashell and skin lotion are basically same... I will not hesitate to use it, but I try to be more natural if I can.