Sulcata Hatchling Shell

[dcoolguy68]

I bought 2, 4 month old sulcata hatchlings on Sept 26 so about a week and a half ago. they were healthy one was bigger than the other and their shells were fine... Today in the morning i checked on them and the smaller tortoise's shell is a little dented on one side.... they have lighting/heating and they eat pretty pets tortoise food, however they haven't had calcium for a week because i barely received it from the seller... is there a possibility of his shell going back to normal?

 

[egyptiandan]

Hi,
We would need an in focus picture of the tortoise to know whats going on.
What are your temperatures in your set-up? What kind of lighting do you have and how long is it on?
If you search the food and diet section you will find some much better choices to feed your sulcata than the pelleted food your feeding now.

Danny

 

[Maggie Cummings]

I bought 2, 4 month old sulcata hatchlings on Sept 26 so about a week and a half ago. they were healthy one was bigger than the other and their shells were fine... Today in the morning i checked on them and the smaller tortoise's shell is a little dented on one side.... they have lighting/heating and they eat pretty pets tortoise food, however they haven't had calcium for a week because i barely received it from the seller... is there a possibility of his shell going back to normal?

Please feed those babies some better food; lettuces, grasses, weeds, those are much better for them. Are you soaking them? You need to soak them in warm water at least every other day. Place them in warm water up to their bridge for 15 minutes or so...
Have you seen him eat?
When I have small tortoises like yours I feed them Spring Mix from the produce section, collard, kale, mustard, red and green leaf lettuce and different greens like those. Then I cut all that up into small easier to eat pieces. I soak the animal first, then I put the warm just soaked tortoise right in the food. If you do that everyday your animals will be strong and healthy...I personally don't think that commercially pelleted food products are good for hatchling anythings...HTH

 

[dcoolguy68]

Thank you so much for your replies... I've seen the list of edible plants that are best for the tortoises, but are they available in regular flower and plant shops? I will get pictures of his shell as soon as possible.

---

The temperature in the temporary glass aquarium(currently building a new home) ranges from 75-90 degrees because its really warm in Los Angeles, CA right now. Their UV light is a 10.0 repti glow.

---

Oh and the UV light is kept on for 10 hours which is what I've read online. from 7:30am-5:30

 

[dcoolguy68]

View attachment 1664
Look at the right side of his shell, it looks lopsided.
View attachment 1665
Look at the left side of his shell... i wasnt able to get a picture of the top because its really hard to tell its a little dented.

 

[janiedough]

those pictures are not clear at all - they could be of a pile of mud - can you get some light on the tortoise before you take the picture?

you can get a regular disposable camera and develop it with the cd to get good pictures if you don't have a digital camera

i know this sounds like a lot of trouble - but you could always go to the vet

you can buy plants at the regular plant stores/nurseries for your sulcatas, but you HAVE to make sure they haven't been treated with anything - pesticides, etc. I think even some fertilizer isn't all that great for them to ingest.

You can probably pick some weeds (identify them as edible first) out of your yard and feed it to them if you really are against going to buy the spring mix as the previous posters have suggested.

 

[dcoolguy68]

I was talking about the outline of the shell in general but ill try to get another camera because the other one is broken.

 

[dcoolguy68]

compare the scutes at the bottom to the ones on top.

This was the clearest picture i was able to get w/out moving it but you should be able to tell that his shell is lopsided.

 

[K9KidsLove]

Hi...Walmart usually has collard, mustard, & turnip greens, romaine lettuce & fresh green beans. Also they have summer, zucchini & butternut squash. Cut these up small for him to eat. The butternut squash needs to be peeled & seeds removed. You can put the extra squashes in baggies in the freezer to be thawed as needed. it will be full of good moisture when thawed this winter when you can't buy them fresh.
After your baby is 6 months old you can feed it Mazuri commercial food. Don't feed any now. And don't use it as the staple food. Take him out to graze.
You really need to take him to a reptile vet...puppy & kitty vets won't know what to do.
If you don't use a temp gun or a digital thermometer with a probe at the end of a wire, you need to get one. The digital probe is at Walmart for $12...AccuRite brand...in our store it is in the right back near the ladders. Leave the probe under the basking light 45 minutes to get an accurate reading. You will want 85-90.
The ReptiGlow 10 bulb is one of the worst UVB's on the market. You need to turn it off til you can replace it. It has a history of causing eye problems as well as other health problems. The ReptiSun 10 is fine , with a heat/basking bulb right beside it so he gets benefit from both at the same time. In the meantime take him out in the natural sun...not in a glass tank. Get a baby swimming pool & put dirt in it and a couple of hiding places. Set it so part of it is in the shade. Make sure he will be safe from other animals & birds if you walk away. If someone can watch him, let him walk in the grass so maybe he will graze.
Good luck
Patsy

 

[dcoolguy68]

Thank you all for responding to my situation it was greatly appreciated. Stay awesome!

 

[DozersMom]

Thank you all for responding to my situation it was greatly appreciated. Stay awesome!

Try to stay away from the store produce as it is insufficiant in nutrition. The grasses and flowers are available at most nurserys and i buy my non coated seed special order from home depot.
It costs less per year and is much better for them.

You can give produce occasionally but try not more than once a week. I live 2 hours from you by P.S. so its way hotter here. Home Depot should be able to order your flowers and grasses. I got my hibiscus from lowes for 9.00 each. I bought three of them 3 years ago and now they are HUGE.

We have dandilions growing every where down here so grab some seeds off a few you find grow them and take those seeds and grow them. Throw out the origional seeds ( now plants) and feed generation #3 to ensure that there are no pesticides etc.
Thats what i did it took a month.

Walmart also sells prickly pear cactus with the thorny things already removed.

I see the dent, Is the injured one the smaller one?
If so his sibling may have rammed him or bouldered past him and damaged his shell!

 

[dcoolguy68]

Thanx for the tip I was thinking of seed mix from some website I forgot which one.... Don't those plants from Lowes and Home Depot have pesticides though? Would it be possible if you can mail me some dandelion seeds? Yeah the injured one is the smaller one... the bigger one is about half an inch to an inch bigger but from what i observed they dont fight the big one just keeps walking until the small gets out of the way but he doesn't use a lot of force, he does it in a gentle way cause he knows i'll separate him lol... The thing is that i actually dropped the bigger one twice(from a short distance) and his shell is perfect. And I don't have enough money to take them to the vet yet cause I'm still getting their supplies and stuff to build them a huge home. Thank you so much for your response! feel free to message me @dcoolguy68 on AIM.

 

[DozersMom]

I am so lame. I dont have AIM. I need to down load it. My e-mail is [email protected]. If you want to send me your address i would be hapy to mail some to you.

They do have pesticides. But when i got my hibiscus 3 years ago i didnt know that. i washed them off with water ( from a spray bottle) and planted them in new soil. They have had no pesticides since They were purchased or fertilizers. The seed i buy is special ordered, Because i need it without That stupid extra coating for less water. I dont know if it can hurt them but im not taking the chance.

 

[dcoolguy68]

Thank you so much I'm going to home depot soon to find plexi glass for their new home that's under construction lol.