Tortoise weird shell?
- Thread starter Tortt0ts
- Start date
- Joined
- Jul 8, 2017
- Messages
- 5,750
- Location (City and/or State)
- Low desert 50 mi SE of Palm Springs CA
Hi, and welcome to the forum!
If you are talking about how the scutes are raised up instead of a smooth shell...it is not normal, but is extremely common.
It is called pyramiding, and is the result of living in conditions that are too dry. Most people think of tortoises as being desert creatures, and therefore dry. But in actuality, redfoot live in the tropical rainforests of South America, where it is very hot, lots of rain, and very high humidity.
The pyramiding that is already there will never go away, but with effort on your part, new growth can be smooth.
Here are 2 care sheets for redfoot. Read them and pay special attention to heat and humidity requirements. Come back and ask questions and ask about any concerns you have. Make changes to your enclosure if needed. Note that it is impossible to maintain the heat and humidity needed by redfoot in an open top enclosure.
www.tortoiseforum.org
www.tortoiseforum.org
If you are talking about how the scutes are raised up instead of a smooth shell...it is not normal, but is extremely common.
It is called pyramiding, and is the result of living in conditions that are too dry. Most people think of tortoises as being desert creatures, and therefore dry. But in actuality, redfoot live in the tropical rainforests of South America, where it is very hot, lots of rain, and very high humidity.
The pyramiding that is already there will never go away, but with effort on your part, new growth can be smooth.
Here are 2 care sheets for redfoot. Read them and pay special attention to heat and humidity requirements. Come back and ask questions and ask about any concerns you have. Make changes to your enclosure if needed. Note that it is impossible to maintain the heat and humidity needed by redfoot in an open top enclosure.
Redfoot Tortoise Care Sheet
NOTE: I do not keep redfoots, and I only have one tortoise in total. With this in mind, remember that I am in no way an expert, and this should not be used as cold hard proof of how to raise a redfoot. I used information from great keepers on this forum to put everything together. This care...
www.tortoiseforum.org
Redfoot and yellowfoot tortoises
www.tortoiseforum.org
Hello and welcome. Karen answered your question with her usual perfection, but I notice another tortoise in your picture. Is that the only one? They should never live in pairs. That almost always ends badly. Groups can sometimes work, but never pairs.
Besides the raised scutes, the shell is very dry, with no luster at all. Think of it as you fingernails. Your nails don't look dry, they have a bit of a luster to them. You can help this tortoise by feeding it a good diet (shown in the care sheet), keeping it in a warm, humid environment, and maybe an initial treatment of warm coconut oil rubbed into the shell. Cold pressed coconut oil, heated a little then rubbed in. AFter about 15 minutes, polish it off with an absorbent cloth.
