Leith
New Member
Hello everyone! I am brand new to the forum, and joined because I need some advice for my Russian Tortoise.
I got him a few years ago. We got him from a pet store. Under the advice of the pet store, unfortunately I didn’t know any better but to feed him a diet of just plain romaine lettuce. He ate happily, so I thought he was fine. As he got older, I started to notice some problems on his shell such as cracks between his scutes and the top layer of his shell chipping away. I did some research and found out this was due to malnutrition, which made sense. I now supplement his food with calcium (I am going to try a cuttlebone soon) and give him weekly soaks, but his shell doesn’t seem to be getting better. Another problem is that he refuses to eat anything but lettuce or cauliflower, which are both very low in nutrients. I have tried feeding him dandelions and a variety of greens, but he won’t eat. I posted some pictures below, and please tell me anything else you see wrong with him. Thank you and please help!!
I got him a few years ago. We got him from a pet store. Under the advice of the pet store, unfortunately I didn’t know any better but to feed him a diet of just plain romaine lettuce. He ate happily, so I thought he was fine. As he got older, I started to notice some problems on his shell such as cracks between his scutes and the top layer of his shell chipping away. I did some research and found out this was due to malnutrition, which made sense. I now supplement his food with calcium (I am going to try a cuttlebone soon) and give him weekly soaks, but his shell doesn’t seem to be getting better. Another problem is that he refuses to eat anything but lettuce or cauliflower, which are both very low in nutrients. I have tried feeding him dandelions and a variety of greens, but he won’t eat. I posted some pictures below, and please tell me anything else you see wrong with him. Thank you and please help!!