Rosie125
New Member
Hi everyone,
Couple of things, firstly I am new to this site. Please be kind in your replies, I am feeling rather sensitive today, haha.
Secondly I am aware of (mostly) everything I've done and not done. I am aware he is stunted, and I feel terrible for that. I am very aware that I have not been the most knowledgeable owner and I take full responsibility. In fact, I am actually really embarrassed to even post this because I am so ashamed.
I have a Mediterranean spur thighed tortoise, his name is Marble and he is roughly 20 years old.
I noticed today he has a weird random hole above his nostrils. I've never seen this before. A specialist advised it could be "fly strike" ? Any suggestions to get rid of this?
For years he lived with me at my parents house, my elder siblings eventually moved out and he became 'mine', so to speak. Then I moved out and he moved in with me.
In Feb this year I took him to a reptile specialist near me, and we were told he is very small for his age due to incorrect lighting, etc. We all felt bad for what we have and haven't done for him.
He has UVB lighting and his diet consists of:
Dandelions, carrot (he doesn't eat this very often though), kale, red pepper (his favourite), wild flowers (but my knowledge of these is poor), and I sprinkle calcium powder on his food once a week as advised by the specialist.
His lamp is 80W and is UVA and UVB. At the moment he lives in my house as I live in the UK and the weather is never particularly hot here.
He has an outside brick shed which monitored, at the moment, stays around 18 degrees which I know is too cold, so he doesn't stay in there at all at the moment.
I've attached some pictures of him. I've been told he's developed metabolic bone disease a "while ago", and has slight pyramiding.
I just want the best for him because obviously he can't talk or express how he's feeling. I feel beyond terrible and guilty. I know he is very small for his age due to my ignorance in the past. His tail is free of faeces, and his eyes are bright and shiny. His shell and plastron are hard. I took him to the vets recently who said he was healthy, but I'm still a bit concerned.
Any help on diet (he won't eat dried flowers), weeds to give him (any specifics? "Weeds" is pretty broad), and any other tips would be really appreciated. See pictures attached of him today.
Please be kind. I am very aware I have contributed massively to his potentially poor health and I feel awful.
Thank you very much.
Rosie
Couple of things, firstly I am new to this site. Please be kind in your replies, I am feeling rather sensitive today, haha.
Secondly I am aware of (mostly) everything I've done and not done. I am aware he is stunted, and I feel terrible for that. I am very aware that I have not been the most knowledgeable owner and I take full responsibility. In fact, I am actually really embarrassed to even post this because I am so ashamed.
I have a Mediterranean spur thighed tortoise, his name is Marble and he is roughly 20 years old.
I noticed today he has a weird random hole above his nostrils. I've never seen this before. A specialist advised it could be "fly strike" ? Any suggestions to get rid of this?
For years he lived with me at my parents house, my elder siblings eventually moved out and he became 'mine', so to speak. Then I moved out and he moved in with me.
In Feb this year I took him to a reptile specialist near me, and we were told he is very small for his age due to incorrect lighting, etc. We all felt bad for what we have and haven't done for him.
He has UVB lighting and his diet consists of:
Dandelions, carrot (he doesn't eat this very often though), kale, red pepper (his favourite), wild flowers (but my knowledge of these is poor), and I sprinkle calcium powder on his food once a week as advised by the specialist.
His lamp is 80W and is UVA and UVB. At the moment he lives in my house as I live in the UK and the weather is never particularly hot here.
He has an outside brick shed which monitored, at the moment, stays around 18 degrees which I know is too cold, so he doesn't stay in there at all at the moment.
I've attached some pictures of him. I've been told he's developed metabolic bone disease a "while ago", and has slight pyramiding.
I just want the best for him because obviously he can't talk or express how he's feeling. I feel beyond terrible and guilty. I know he is very small for his age due to my ignorance in the past. His tail is free of faeces, and his eyes are bright and shiny. His shell and plastron are hard. I took him to the vets recently who said he was healthy, but I'm still a bit concerned.
Any help on diet (he won't eat dried flowers), weeds to give him (any specifics? "Weeds" is pretty broad), and any other tips would be really appreciated. See pictures attached of him today.
Please be kind. I am very aware I have contributed massively to his potentially poor health and I feel awful.
Thank you very much.
Rosie