Shell rot getting worse

[hunterk997]

When I first got my Russian (from PetSmart) he had the exact same thing. I gave him a daily soak and used a soft toothbrush to gently scrub the areas. I freaked out at first, but after daily examinations, soaks, and gentle scrubs, the spots went away. I think the antibiotics/ointments might be hurting more than helping. It's not allowing the shell to get air. It's smothering the shell. My tort's shell is beautiful now and I never used any type of ointment on his shell. Honestly, I think it was dirt impacted into the small bumpy areas on his shell.

Were they kind of flaky, soft, and brown? I want to make sure that I'm doing the right thing.


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[hunterk997]

So I think I am going to try the daily soaking and scrubbing, then if that doesn't work I'll get the betadine and start to treat it as shell rot.


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[RussTort]

Does it look like the keratin at the edge of the carapace? Is it possible that it is the shell growing?

I'm not a tortoise expert, just a thought.

 

[hunterk997]

I didn't think of that. It is kind of brownish though. I will supplement more calcium and do sone daily soaks with scrubbing. I'll check back in within the next week or so.


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When I first got my Russian (from PetSmart) he had the exact same thing. I gave him a daily soak and used a soft toothbrush to gently scrub the areas. I freaked out at first, but after daily examinations, soaks, and gentle scrubs, the spots went away. I think the antibiotics/ointments might be hurting more than helping. It's not allowing the shell to get air. It's smothering the shell. My tort's shell is beautiful now and I never used any type of ointment on his shell. Honestly, I think it was dirt impacted into the small bumpy areas on his shell.

How long did it take to notice the shell healing after the daily soaks?


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[hunterk997]

So today was her second consecutive bath, and the spots now seem to be lighter in color. So I think they are clearing up.


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[Madkins007]

Shell rot in general is a major pain to deal with. https://sites.google.com/site/tortoiselibrary/health-and-medical/shell-rot

Your first step is to give it a good cleaning- good soak, soft toothbrush, Betadine or similar product (not the soap version, though) used full strength. (Avoid using Betadine after healing starts, though- it can interfere with healthy cell growth.)

According to Dr. Mader's "Reptile Medicine and Surgery", most shell rots are bacterial in origin, so you should start with a good antibiotic. Unfortunately, Neosporin and other over the counter antibiotic ointments are pretty much worthless- use plain petroleum jelly and save your money. Good antibiotics for this are silver sulfadiazine ointment or 2% mupirocin ointment.

If you do not begin to see improvement in a week or so, switch to a good anti-fungal ointment.

With ANY medical condition, take some time to make sure the habitat is very clean, and your cares and diet are right on target. You MAY need to use a 'hospital tank' to help- https://sites.google.com/site/tortoiselibrary/health-and-medical/basic-nursing-care

 

[hunterk997]

So I have an update. I was doing daily soaks, and it got better. Then I reduced it down to every other day soaks and is getting much better! The spots have reduced in number, and looking at previous photos, they have lightened up a lot. Thank you guys for helping me determine whether or not this was shell rot.