Please help!! Soft shell

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murdocjunior

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My littlest sully is about 3 months old and his shell is super soft and his belly is super soft too i dont know what to do i dust his food everyday he gets sunlight everyday and he has his uva/uvb bulb on as well whag should i do? Someone please help me im scared.
 

DeanS

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The quickest (and safest) way to a hard shell is CACTUS (and aloe)...fresh cut...not that VALLARTA-stored-for-a-year-****...cut it into small chunks and run it through the food processor once to get it small enough for it to bite. 3 months is still young enough that there could be some softness...and the bellybutton hasn't closed all that long ago...be patient and don't be scared...soak it every coupla days...everyday if you have a good high temp on him (90+)...and keep the dust to twice-a-week or so.
 

DeanS

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That should be fine...but as their diet becomes more varied (and lighting/heat/humidity are good) then you can eventually cut the calcium altogether, especially if they take to the cactus quickly. Keep us posted.
 

DeanS

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murdocjunior said:
He hasnt eaten the cactus but he does eat the spring mix

That's an excellent start
 

murdocjunior

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Up hes eating and active its just scary because i never had a super soft shell. My other sullys were never never soft like this one.
 

Tom

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Sunshine! Everyday if possible. Use a Mercury Vapor Bulb for indoors if its too cold to go outdoors. This coupled with proper diet should get you squared away.
 

Yvonne G

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Lots of sunshine along with veggies rich in calcium: arugula, bok choy, broccoli, carrots, collards, corn, cucumber, dandelion greens, endive, hearts of palm, Lemon grass (citronella), Lettuce, butterhead (Boston, bibb), romaine, green leaf, mustard greens, okra, peppers, pumpkin, squash, sweet potato, turnip greens. Of course, there are a few listed here that you wouldn't want to feed too much of, but you're trying to get calcium into your baby. Calcium plus sunshine plus heat.
 

Meg90

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I would not stop giving Calcium every day. Calcium is not stored in the body except in the bones and shell. If the daily blood Ca levels are not high enough, the body begins to leach it from the bones and shell. With a baby that is already soft, its only going to make it worse.

I dust the food of my younger torts with PURE Ca every feeding, and will until they are 3 yrs old. All of mine have hard, healthy shells.

What are you using for a bulb? If it is infact UVB I will be stumped, because soft shell is generally and usually caused by a lack of UVB and Ca.

Please post pictures of your tortoises, and their setup, and detail your care regime.
 

Tom

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Uhg! What to say. If he was only 3 months and getting sun, calcium, proper heat and good food, there must have been something wrong with him internally. This happens sometimes.

Very sorry for your loss.
 

Yvonne G

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I'm so very sorry that happened, Paul. Once you notice a soft shell, its almost already too late to do anything about it. Maggie and I have gone through many, many rescued hatchlings with soft shells and we haven't been able to save them. In fact, I can't remember one single success story.
 
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Maggie Cummings

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I am so sorry for your loss. I agree with Yvonne and Tom, she must have had something wrong that you couldn't fix.
In the wild only 1% of all the eggs laid hatch and then only 1% of those actually live to adulthood. Your baby wasn't meant to live...Hatchlings are very fragile...I am so sorry...
 
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