Questions

[franeich]

My nephew sent me some photos of his russian tort for advise on a seperating shell and a broken beak. Photos below

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Any suggestions would be great. Thanks

 

[dmmj]

the beak needs to be trimmed. If you have a dremel tool you can do it yourself, or you can take it to a vet though it will probably cost quite a lot of money, it is to fdr gone IMHO to work on it naturally.

 

[Laura]

cant really see the shell..did it get dropped and crack? but it needs a toe nail trim too.
his beak needs a trim..

 

[Nay]

I usually always use a dremel tool for these beaks, but if you can get a very rough emery board it can work also. You have to grab his head between your 2 fingers and put your thumb under the bottom jaw. A few straight swipes can remove a good amount. Try to be very careful of hitting that bottom jaw. Same thing for the nails too, but I usually use a dog clipper first then smooth it out.
Good luck
Nay

 

[lynnedit]

all of the above are true. he may find it harder to eat with an overgrown beak. also, it would help some of the more experienced members of the forum if you provided some information about how he is kept: access to water and cuttlebone, does he get soaked once per week, light source, substrate, diet, etc.?

 

[Maggie Cummings]

He's not in very good shape but you can fix all that stuff yourself using a dremmel tool and some toe nail clippers. It must be getting hard for him to eat with the beak. Be careful in trimming his beak as there's a blood vein running down in it so you want to trim it slowly and carefully.

 

[bikerchicspain]

Ohh!! That beak is long,
I had a customer with the same problem, I trimmed it with some dog nail cutters, work a treat.
Shell doesn't look that bad in the pic, but it is difficult to see what actually is happening.

 

[Starjelly]

Hi I'm his nephew and he has access to a cuttle bone,water,a uva UVB and red lamps and his diet has greens like red leaf lettuce, collards and timothy plant. But he was rescued, he used to be fed iceberg lettuce and never got any uv exercise or access to a cuttle bone.

 

[franeich]

Read around a bit. You might learn some stuff.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi I'm his nephew and he has access to a cuttle bone,water,a uva UVB and red lamps and his diet has greens like red leaf lettuce, collards and timothy plant. But he was rescued, he used to be fed iceberg lettuce and never got any uv exercise or access to a cuttle bone.

Hi Starjelly:

Welcome to the forum!!

May we know your name and where you are?

It sounds like you are on the right track now. Just file that beak and then start feeding him on a rough rock or cement. Also, don't cut up his food...make him bite it. It would be helpful if he could be outside and allowed to graze.

I don't think the shell is cracked. That's just where it grows. But seeing a better picture of that area would be helpful.

 

[Starjelly]

my names shea and i live in southern California and my gets out and grazes on the dandelions about once a week.

 

[pdrobber]

welcome. that sounds good how you're keeping him now. outdoor time is great, just make sure you keep an eye on him then.

 

[Starjelly]

my dad and i trimmed his nails and dremmel tooled his beak he looks great now.

 

[dmmj]

my dad and i trimmed his nails and dremmel tooled his beak he looks great now.

He probably also feels better now