Scute Splitting

[NadineBruce]

Aloha! Looking for some insight!

We have had Bruce for 2 years next month. Hes anywhere between 7 and 12 yrs old, we arent really sure how old he is. The first year we had him he gained 18 pounds and went from 18 lb to 36 lbs and 8" around his middle. We aren't sure how much from last April until now, but could be another 15-20 pounds.

As you can see his shell has split since we first got him and hes grown so much. Last April I took out a small wood splinter from the crack and it had been there a long time. Almost like he got injured along time ago and it had healed over. Vet didn't say anything about the crack last year, and said it's hard and not soft spot.

It's still hard, but I'm wondering is this bone? Will this fix itself at all? Anyone have experience with this? Our plan is to take him to a wellness visit every year so he's due to go soon.

Thanks if you've gotten this far!

 

[TammyJ]

Calling in @Yvonne G @wellington

 

[wellington]

That's something @Yvonne G may have dealt with before
If it's an old wound and healed then it will likely improve and fill in over time but will take quite awhile. It may have been from being burned in the years past from a basking bulb or dropped or something dropped on him or a dog bite, hard to say. The splinter may have played a part in slitting it even further
See what Yvonne says or maybe @Tom.
I wouldn't recommend a yearly vet visit though. If the tortoise is doing fine and all seems normal they really don't need to see a vet that might do more harm then good.

 

[Tom]

Aloha! Looking for some insight!

We have had Bruce for 2 years next month. Hes anywhere between 7 and 12 yrs old, we arent really sure how old he is. The first year we had him he gained 18 pounds and went from 18 lb to 36 lbs and 8" around his middle. We aren't sure how much from last April until now, but could be another 15-20 pounds.

As you can see his shell has split since we first got him and hes grown so much. Last April I took out a small wood splinter from the crack and it had been there a long time. Almost like he got injured along time ago and it had healed over. Vet didn't say anything about the crack last year, and said it's hard and not soft spot.

It's still hard, but I'm wondering is this bone? Will this fix itself at all? Anyone have experience with this? Our plan is to take him to a wellness visit every year so he's due to go soon.

Thanks if you've gotten this far!

What you have there is two scutes that are "stuck" together with no growth happening between them. I don't know why its cracking like that. Looks like the kind of thing you see in extremely dry climates like mine. I wouldn't expect that in HI.

 

[vladimir]

What kind of heat lamps are you using? Is the tortoise basking under a CHE or anything that might be drying out the scutes?