The dreaded "is this shell rot" question

[Stephanie]

Before I even begin, I'd like to state that when I noticed this (about 10-20 minutes ago) I took Piglet OUT of the vivarium and put Piglet in a tub (as in Rubbermaid- only a knockoff).

My question is, and I'm posting a picture, what in the heck is this? Is this shell rot? What did I do? I didn't notice anything yesterday, but to be honest, I didn't look at the underside of the shell...I didn't even think to because I was worried about stress...now I'm stressed, and Piglet seems annoyed and stressed.

Could this have developed in 24 hours? My substrate in the viv is NOT soaking. I have top soil for a bottom layer to help the plants, and Zoo Med Forest Floor bedding on the top. Also, not soaking, is the spagnum moss that I have for Piglet to dig into...it's moist, but not soaking. The humidity in the viv is between 70-80% depending on the time of day. Is this too high? I don't want to give Piglet back...I love Piglet, but I'm worried that this is ongoing...

How do I help my tort? Did I do this?

I only took one picture because I didn't want to stress Piglet out be flipping him/her completely over. I wish I had taken a picture when I first saw it (he/she was walking by the front of the viv (where I can look in) and did one of those matrix half-walk on the side) but I wasn't sure what it was so I just scooped Piglet up to get a closer look...

I'm really upset at the idea that I did this. It has only been 24 hours!

 

[Tortoise]

Stephanie
I'm not sure to be honest but I can say that if it is shell rot-its very easy to cure and I don't think it could have got like that in your care-i think it takes time.
I'm thinking I read about Betadine being used on shell rot and very quickly healing too.

I'm sure some others will comment very soon-don't worry!
Piglet won't be hurting if it is shell rot.

 

[Yvonne G]

Its ok to use Betadyne ONCE for the very first treatment. After that, because it inhibits the growth of new cells, you want to use something else. Human athlete's foot cream is ok to use. Keep the tortoise on fairly dry substrate while you are treating it. It clears up nicely.

What type of substrate are you using?

By the way...I love those red dots on the legs!! Very pretty.

 

[Watermelon]

I have no idea about the shell rot but I LOVE the name PIGLET!!!

 

[dmmj]

Shell rot can't develop in 24 hours, as far as I know.

 

[Tortoise]

can tea tree oil be used after the first application of betadine?
I use it for just about everything and its harmless.(externally)

 

[81SHOVELHEAD]

This is not like what i saw on Archie & Edith but it does appear to be some type of fungus As posted earlier don't be stressed out .
Seems to me this happens a lot on red foots kept inside in a viv.
Just follow the instructions of previous post .
I used a betadine mix 50% betadine 50% water and wiped down their bottom shell really well.
Dryed it off and wiped the shell down with lotramin atheletes foot cream.
I just put a couple of layers of paper towels or you can use news paper over the substrale for a couple of weeks .
I continued to wipe down shell with water & applied the lotramin abouut every 3 day's
In 2 weeks no more spreading & the rot healed up nicely .
Hope this helps
Mike D.

 

[yagyujubei]

I would write to the seller and ask them what it is.

 

[Stephanie]

Stephanie
I'm not sure to be honest but I can say that if it is shell rot-its very easy to cure and I don't think it could have got like that in your care-i think it takes time.
I'm thinking I read about Betadine being used on shell rot and very quickly healing too.

I'm sure some others will comment very soon-don't worry!
Piglet won't be hurting if it is shell rot.

I hope, if it is shell rot, that I can help cure Piglet very quickly. I'm going to email the breeder I got Piglet from. I hate that, though. I feel rude.

Its ok to use Betadyne ONCE for the very first treatment. After that, because it inhibits the growth of new cells, you want to use something else. Human athlete's foot cream is ok to use. Keep the tortoise on fairly dry substrate while you are treating it. It clears up nicely.

What type of substrate are you using?

By the way...I love those red dots on the legs!! Very pretty.

I'm emailing the breeder to double check. But Yvonne, I wanted to ask, does shell rot always make the shell soft? Piglet's shell is NOT soft, and so my friend suggested perhaps it was not shell rot?

I'm using top soil with a layer of Forest Flooring bed on top of the top soil (I hope I'm making sense). I have a moist hide that is filled with Spagnum moss...I believe it's called Mosser(I may be spelling that wrong). The brand of Spagnum moss was taken directly from the Turtletary caresheet (which I found immensely helpful- as a quick aside to anyone looking for a great Cherryhead caresheet).

Thank you kindly...I really love Piglet, and I do agree that the dots are pretty...)

I have no idea about the shell rot but I LOVE the name PIGLET!!!

Thank you kindly for the kind words, Sophie.

Shell rot can't develop in 24 hours, as far as I know.

I emailed the breeder just in case...I really hope I didn't do this...I feel awful...

---

This is not like what i saw on Archie & Edith but it does appear to be some type of fungus As posted earlier don't be stressed out .
Seems to me this happens a lot on red foots kept inside in a viv.
Just follow the instructions of previous post .
I used a betadine mix 50% betadine 50% water and wiped down their bottom shell really well.
Dryed it off and wiped the shell down with lotramin atheletes foot cream.
I just put a couple of layers of paper towels or you can use news paper over the substrale for a couple of weeks .
I continued to wipe down shell with water & applied the lotramin abouut every 3 day's
In 2 weeks no more spreading & the rot healed up nicely .
Hope this helps
Mike D.

Mike, do you think I should clean out the viv completely and then do this? I'll wait for the reply to email, and then go to the store for the supplies you suggested. Heck, I'll even go get them regardless because it seems good to have.
Should I just wipe down the bottom of the shell with a dry paper towel? Or should I use a toothbrush (I've been doing some reading and it says to use a soft toothbrush)?

That really did help, Mike. Thank you kindly!

I would write to the seller and ask them what it is.

Did just that. I hope I didn't come off as rude though...=/

---

I got (a super prompt, actually) email reply. It seems that the breeder is not sure what it is, but assured me it was not there before shipping (perhaps happened due to the sphagnum moss during the shipping process).
I have some pretty easy instructions on how to get rid of it, and I think I will follow those and let you guys know if it all turns out well!

 

[killuchen]

aww man I'm so sorry to hear about piglet . I hope every goes ok

 

[Madkins007]

It may just be contact rot from too wet of a surface. In any case, gently scrub any soft stuff off and clean the plastron well before treatment. You can also use a thumbnail to scrape off any soft stuff.

Tea tree oil- it is considered antibiotic and fungicidal, but is also rather harsh in many formulations and may damage human skin (I know the stuff I used once sure bothered mine). I have not seen any studies of it for this sort of thing and I am reluctant to use things on tortoises that are not generally understood to be safe for them.

 

[EricIvins]

Shell Rot - NO

Shell Fungus - YES

Any type of Athletes Foot cream will clear it up..........Betadine or any other topical cleanser will do nothing, and may even make things worse.......

This is from being kept too wet - I use Coconut coir which solves the being too wet problem.........It tends to happen with Cypress or any other "commercial" substrate........Dirt works just as well, and having micro fauna in it to help break down waste helps a whole lot.......

 

[Stephanie]

aww man I'm so sorry to hear about piglet . I hope every goes ok

Thank you kindly! I think everything will turn out alright. I have an updated picture of the progress so far!

It may just be contact rot from too wet of a surface. In any case, gently scrub any soft stuff off and clean the plastron well before treatment. You can also use a thumbnail to scrape off any soft stuff.

Thank you kindly for your reply! I've been treating Piglet, and I think it's helping. I have an updated picture, so please give me advice on if you agree

Shell Rot - NO

Shell Fungus - YES

Any type of Athletes Foot cream will clear it up..........Betadine or any other topical cleanser will do nothing, and may even make things worse.......

This is from being kept too wet - I use Coconut coir which solves the being too wet problem.........It tends to happen with Cypress or any other "commercial" substrate........Dirt works just as well, and having micro fauna in it to help break down waste helps a whole lot.......

Thank you kindly for the reply! I've been treating Piglet with 1% Clotrimazole (an anti fungal for athletes foot/jock itch). I have an updated picture below...tell me if you think it's helping. :shy:

This is the progress that I've had with Piglet. Day three after the initial finding of the fungus...(sorry for the cell phone pic)

 

[xxflowersxx]

The smaller areas of the fungus seem to be clearing up nicely. Just keep it up with the treatments and the rest should go away as well.

I had an issue with shell rot with one of my torts. He had it when I got him. I followed the treatments and the care sheets provided on these forums and haven't had any problems since. It cleared up after about a week.

Good luck.

 

[Stephanie]

The smaller areas of the fungus seem to be clearing up nicely. Just keep it up with the treatments and the rest should go away as well.

I had an issue with shell rot with one of my torts. He had it when I got him. I followed the treatments and the care sheets provided on these forums and haven't had any problems since. It cleared up after about a week.

Good luck.

Thank you kindly! It has cleared up as far as I can tell.

Here is a (long over due!) update on the fungus. This picture was taken yesterday; tell me what you guys think! I pretty much used almost the entire tube of anti-fungal cream on the little guy. I'm hoping you all agree that it paid off big time.
(Piglet is still his happy, grazing, piggy self LOL)

 

[yagyujubei]

perfect

 

[rockyMTNtortoise]

aww man I'm so sorry to hear about piglet . I hope every goes ok

Thank you kindly! I think everything will turn out alright. I have an updated picture of the progress so far!

It may just be contact rot from too wet of a surface. In any case, gently scrub any soft stuff off and clean the plastron well before treatment. You can also use a thumbnail to scrape off any soft stuff.

Thank you kindly for your reply! I've been treating Piglet, and I think it's helping. I have an updated picture, so please give me advice on if you agree

Shell Rot - NO

Shell Fungus - YES

Any type of Athletes Foot cream will clear it up..........Betadine or any other topical cleanser will do nothing, and may even make things worse.......

This is from being kept too wet - I use Coconut coir which solves the being too wet problem.........It tends to happen with Cypress or any other "commercial" substrate........Dirt works just as well, and having micro fauna in it to help break down waste helps a whole lot.......

Thank you kindly for the reply! I've been treating Piglet with 1% Clotrimazole (an anti fungal for athletes foot/jock itch). I have an updated picture below...tell me if you think it's helping. :shy:

This is the progress that I've had with Piglet. Day three after the initial finding of the fungus...(sorry for the cell phone pic)

That is coming along nicely, keep up the good work.

 

[Stephanie]

perfect

I'm glad you agree!

That is coming along nicely, keep up the good work.

Thank you kindly!

 

[dmarcus]

Piglet's plastron looks very good now, very nice work...

 

[Stephanie]

Piglet's plastron looks very good now, very nice work...

Thank you kindly!


And I just wanted to add thank you to everyone here on the forums for helping me out- not just with this, but with any question. You guys are seriously the best! I don't know what I do without this place!