Sulcata she’ll rot?
- Thread starter Betsy
- Start date
No. Your glass tank is much easier to control temps and humidity than the open-topped zoo med tortoise house.
Those button gauges are notoriously inaccurate, and will never give you the correct temp. Get one of these-
Temp guns are an absolute miracle. This one is 15 dollars at Home Depot.
Temp guns are an absolute miracle. This one is 15 dollars at Home Depot.
I can see a few potential issues, but not something that would cause the shell problem you are seeing.
Your conditions are too dry and desiccating and it is causing pyramiding.
One inch of growth in a year for a sulcata is very slow. It indicates a problem. Where did you get him and how was he started?
Bambam1989
Well-Known Member
I must go for now. You are in great hands though
@Tom has around 30yrs of experience breeding and raising torts and @Yvonne G does rescues and raises torts.
Here is some reading material I think you should check out.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-45180.html
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/sulcata-diet-sheet.64290/
@Tom has around 30yrs of experience breeding and raising torts and @Yvonne G does rescues and raises torts.
Here is some reading material I think you should check out.
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-45180.html
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/sulcata-diet-sheet.64290/
Thank you!
Since we don't know what your basking temp is, I can't recommend raising or lowering it. Your ambient is at the minimum, so I would not lower that.My family got him for me from a breeder in South Carolina, he apparently shipped him to me in a containerand he was cold and upside down when we got him. I was pissed. The soil is moist so should I bring the temp down?
If the top is open, like a screen top, on this tank, then we can almost guarantee that your humidity is and has been too low.
But this still doesn't solve or explain your shell issue. I've not seen that sort of thing myself, so I'm guessing and speculating about what could or might cause that.
What do you recommend for an enclosed cage besides the wire top? I have a dog and will soon have children so I don’t want an open top that could be knocked over. I’m ordering a temp gun as we speak. His shell literally looks like it’s peeling away and is soft in those specific spots, very soft. I give him calcium every other day with his dark leafy greens, organic wheat grass, and sprouts occasionally. He has a water dish he moves easily in and out of and he gets his soaks. I will rectify this temps ASAP but until I saw his shell he’s been complete active, normal poops and eating habits. He’s still roaming like nothing is wrong
The calcium could be the problem.
Calcium should only be given a small pinch once or twice a week, and too much doesn’t allow them to absorb other minerals. I believe I have heard that too much calcium will also make the shell soft. Does anyone know if that’s correct?
How long have you been giving that much calcium?
He stil
A light dusting like that since I’ve had him, a little over a year now. It’s really too much? :/
Yes. Your tortoise should be getting a small dusting once or twice a week maximum. More than that will cause an overdose, and I believe that’s what’s happening. Where is it soft?
It’s soft right over his tail and starting along the bottom sides and soft like a Tupperware lid in the center of his belly. There should be pics at the top of the thread
Since I've never seen this issue first hand, here is what I would do based on what I know:
Immediately:
Longer term:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
Immediately:
- Soak the tortoise and gently scrub the affected areas with a soft bristled tooth brush. Apply some anti-fungal athletes foot cream once or twice a day. If this is not a fungal infection, this will do know harm.
- Get rid of the coir and replace it with fine grade orchid bark. This can be found cheaply in bulk at a nursery instead of a pet store.
- Figure out your temps and humidity and adjust as needed. I think your MVB is way too close, and after a year, it is almost certainly producing no UV while you are in the middle of winter.
Longer term:
- If you want this tortoise to grow up healthy and not pyramiding, you need to buy or build a large closed chamber and get the humidity and heat right. Stopping pyramiding in progress is much harder than preventing it, so you will now need to go all out to stop it and get the new growth coming in better.
- I suspect some outdoor sunshine might help clear this problem up once the weather is warm enough.
- Twice a week should be plenty with the calcium, but this is not the cause of your issue.
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/
Much easier to buy one here:
http://www.apcages.com/home/terrestrial/terrestrial.htm
If you want to build, here are two examples:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/closed-chambers.32333/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/our-new-closed-chamber-for-our-new-group-of-tortoises.138430/
Don't copy the lighting or paint, but:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/2015-growth-experiment.119874/
If you build, I'd go 4x8' and 2' tall. Seal the inside with non-toxic boat paint or Pond Shield. This will last him until he is too big to live inside any more. Then you will have to figure out what you are going to do with a tropical giant when its snowing outside.
http://www.apcages.com/home/terrestrial/terrestrial.htm
If you want to build, here are two examples:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/closed-chambers.32333/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/our-new-closed-chamber-for-our-new-group-of-tortoises.138430/
Don't copy the lighting or paint, but:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/2015-growth-experiment.119874/
If you build, I'd go 4x8' and 2' tall. Seal the inside with non-toxic boat paint or Pond Shield. This will last him until he is too big to live inside any more. Then you will have to figure out what you are going to do with a tropical giant when its snowing outside.
Also, All the tops look solid, they look too short to hang a light inside, what would I do with the basking lamp?
I just bought 3 of the T65s to raise my hatchlings in, and I have been having a heck of a time getting the right bulb to use for basking without making it too hot. In light of this, and for a larger tortoise, I highly recommend the T70. It cost more, but it is worth it and these case are very well made.
They will install florescent and incandescent fixtures for you. I'd get a 48" florescent fixture for a 10.0 bulb in the middle, an incandescent fixture on one end for a basking bulb, and another incandescent fixture on the other end to run a CHE on a thermostat to maintain ambient.
Might seem like a lot of money, but by the time you build one, do all of the sealing, insulating, fitting, door building, painting, etc… it is worth it.
My Russian Tort had a little bit of shell rot when I bought her from the pet store, but it looked different from what seems to be on your sulcata. I put antifungal cream on the bad areas for a couple days and then I put trip me antibiotic ointment on it for about a week until it was gone and healed. I applied everything using q tips.
