Hi - I have a 6 month old baby Redfoot and her bottom shell is getting a bit soft. When we got her, it was harder than it is now. We've upped the calcium intake & UVB light time...is there anything else I can do?
Soft bottom shell
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So sorry this one got missed! I'll respond and then it will get bumped back up and others will chime in too I hope.
Any way you can get her outside for real sunshine? Even if only a few minutes a day, it's helpful. I also like a product called Calcionate syrup. It's a liquid calcium you can add to the soaking water.
Any way you can get her outside for real sunshine? Even if only a few minutes a day, it's helpful. I also like a product called Calcionate syrup. It's a liquid calcium you can add to the soaking water.
We've always taken her outside for some sun, but she's gotten less active, so I've just put her under the UVB bulb the past few days. I have a Calcium/D3 combo powder, and a breeder said to soak her in it - so I have the past couple days, and she even drinks it. Now I noticed her top sell near the back is getting a bit soft. I'm soooo worried!!!! How long before she shows improvement???
Hello and Welcome. Be sure to keep her warm. Good luck. Sorry I can't help you any further.
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Could you provide the temperatures and living conditions?
Are you sure this isn't just your imagine? At 6 months old, they're shells are not that hard yet. And by "in the back of her shell" do you mean right above her legs? The pieces of keratin there are very thin and rather "bendy" which would give you the impression of being soft. I just don't see how with a UVB bulb, or sunshine, anything like this would happen.
Could you detail your diet/temps/humidity?
Could you detail your diet/temps/humidity?
I LOVE how you've all jumped in to give your thoughts. Ok, her environment...she's in a zoo med tortoise habitat. I have a heat emitter set at almost 90 in the basking area. The ground is sphagnum moss, and before this week I did not provide a UVB bulb. I would take her outside (we live in Florida) daily, but sometimes it was only an hour or so. We mist the substrate several times a day. For food, we'd give her greens (turnip, mustard, kale), and a couple times a week I'd give fruit (pineapple, strawberry, and once in a while banana slice). I hear what you're saying about it being my imagination...and I sure hope so (read soo much about the danger of soft shell) but my one fall-back is that it's softer than before. When I got her, a breeder said to check right away to be sure we didn't get a sick one, so I know it's softer than when we got her. I can't thank you all enough!
If you just started providing the UVB this week, then you are likely seeing an after-effect. I wouldn't quite call it MBD, but its likely going there. Without UVB (even an hour of sunshine a day is really not enough) they can't metabolize calcium, and the shell will get soft like your saying. If you start providing UVB (and keep taking him out in sunshine as much as possible) it should get better. Just keep an eye on him...
So we're just watching closely and truly appreciating your input - one last question - she' being fairly "inactive" this past week...not walking around much - would this be due to her just "recuping" somewhat?
Could be, could be she is getting weaker too. 
I just know if it were mine I would be having the UVB light on, taking her outside even for those small amounts of time, feeding her high calcium foods, dusting the food, plus using the liquid calcium. If she is really getting softer then for me time is important because it seems very few come back after losing calcium and becoming soft. It takes time for the calcium to get reworked and into the system, meanwhile a soft shell adds weight stress and is hard on the inside body systems with the loss of structural support. Be very careful how you handle her, too. Once she gets better then cut back on the calcium, as that too could end up leading to danger.
Another question... she is on moss and you mist often, does she also have an area where she can go and dry off if she wishes?
I just know if it were mine I would be having the UVB light on, taking her outside even for those small amounts of time, feeding her high calcium foods, dusting the food, plus using the liquid calcium. If she is really getting softer then for me time is important because it seems very few come back after losing calcium and becoming soft. It takes time for the calcium to get reworked and into the system, meanwhile a soft shell adds weight stress and is hard on the inside body systems with the loss of structural support. Be very careful how you handle her, too. Once she gets better then cut back on the calcium, as that too could end up leading to danger.
Another question... she is on moss and you mist often, does she also have an area where she can go and dry off if she wishes?
Sadly, she's not walking much to get out of the wet moss - and yes I mist it often...A breeder also said to mix the Calcium/D3 powder in her water and soak her in that. I've been doing that daily, and she's even drinking the water mix. She's still eating & drinking so I have hope. What high calcium foods do you recommend? I can't find prickly pear, dandelion greens, or grape leaves (what was recommended) so I've been giving her turnip greens mostly lately.
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