Tortoise's beak is loooong

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Chase

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So I've had a Russian Tortoise since 2002, his name is Sampson. Sampson's beak is really long and it definitely wasn't like that when I first got him. Is there anything I can do?

2zdrjg4.jpg
 

Yvonne G

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Hi Chase: I answered your beak question on the "welcome" thread before I saw that you had posted here, so I cut it out and I'll paste it here:

In the wild, tortoises usually don't have to worry about over grown beaks because the food they eat has to be bitten off of something...a stem, a blade, a branch, etc. In captivity, we cut it up for them, or place a pile of it in front of them and they don't have to "bite." One way to counteract this is to feed him on something rough. I made myself some cement feeders. I nailed together some 1"x1" boards in the shape of a 12" square and filled them with prepared Ready-Mix. As it dries I rough up the surface. When cured, I allow them to sit in the sun for a couple weeks to cure further, watering them down and washing them off 2 or 3 times a day. Then I remove the wooden forms and place them in the tortoise pens. When the tortoise rubs his beak on the rough surface while grabbing at the food, it keeps the beak worn down. In some tortoises, the rough cement is a little too abrasive and can't be used. You have to be the judge of whether or not your tortoise's beak can handle it.

Best thing for Sampson is to live outside during the good weather. Just being allowed to be a wild tortoise will do wonders for his mental and physical well-being. But build him a safe pen. If you allow free run of the yard, you will lose him for sure. They are very good diggers and climbers.

Thanks for including a picture of Sampson! He's a fine looking tortoise. You can either file, or Dremmel or clip the beak, but on a small tortoise like that its pretty hard to keep the head still for you to do your work. Try feeding on a rough surface for a while, and don't cut up the food so small.

Yvonne
 

Chase

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Thanks! I would love Sampson to live outside, but I currently live in an apartment and I live in Texas. We only have a few months out of the year with nice weather". Our winters (ha, if you can call them that) and summers are very very humid. It's very common for it to be 95% humidity and 100F outside during the summer, I was always under the impression that humidity is a Russian's worst enemy.
 

Yvonne G

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Chase said:
Thanks! I would love Sampson to live outside, but I currently live in an apartment and I live in Texas. We only have a few months out of the year with nice weather". Our winters (ha, if you can call them that) and summers are very very humid. It's very common for it to be 95% humidity and 100F outside during the summer, I was always under the impression that humidity is a Russian's worst enemy.

Just remember this old adage: "cold/wet = BAD!! warm or hot/wet=OK"

Many people keep desert-type tortoises (sulcatas, gopherus, russians, etc) in Texas. The tortoise will acclimate as long as you provide a dry hide.

Yvonne
 

tortoisenerd

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Chase-I feed my russian on a piece of slate tile to hopefully prevent overgrown beak and nails. It seems to work better than a bowl for us as well because he tends to push his food around, and it keeps the food out of the substrate and gives him space to do so. I have half a tile because my guy is still tiny. They are about $2 at Home Depot. Cute tort!

Yvonne-That's an awesome idea. You sound very handy. :)
 

TKCARDANDCOIN

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I had same problem not to long ago.i used a dremmel tool with the help of a friend.One to hold the tort and the other to use the dremmel to lightly shave the beak!If you have never done this before I suggest taking your tort to the vet to have it done.they will probably take care of any long nails too.Also, once it is done you can place a cuttlebone in the enclosure and start feeding him on a rough surface like a flat rock or something similar.By the way, Sampson is a Great looking Russian Tort, thanks, tom.
 

Chase

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Wow.. that tort is so big! I wish I had room for a Sulcata :(

tortoisenerd said:
Chase-I feed my russian on a piece of slate tile to hopefully prevent overgrown beak and nails. It seems to work better than a bowl for us as well because he tends to push his food around, and it keeps the food out of the substrate and gives him space to do so. I have half a tile because my guy is still tiny. They are about $2 at Home Depot. Cute tort!

Yvonne-That's an awesome idea. You sound very handy. :)

So I went to Home Depot, sure enough... they had a bazillion different types of rock tile I could choose from! I bought a big square tile that is pretty rough so Sampson can eat off of. It fits perfectly in his enclosure and hopefully it will help with the beak. Oh, and it was only $1.49! :D
 

Chase

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The only issue I see having with this tile is keeping it clean. Sampson has already peed all over it, and I see urates on it too.. d'oh!
 

Yvonne G

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Chase said:
The only issue I see having with this tile is keeping it clean. Sampson has already peed all over it, and I see urates on it too.. d'oh!

That's why you buy a couple tiles. One is in the dishwasher while the other is in the habitat!

Yvonne
 

tortoisenerd

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My little guy also loves to pee while eating. I end up washing his tile almost every day by hand.
 

Greg T

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Chase,

Where in Texas do you live? I'm in the Houston area. And no kidding about our lack of winter. Had mine back outside today with sunny and 70 degree weather. :D
 

tortoisenerd

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No fair...we've been in the 30s and 40s here. Even in summer it's rare it'll be warm enough to take my little guy outside for too long. I've joked I'll take his little grazing box with seedlings and get it warm in the sun, and then let him enjoy lunch outside. Not too long after that I'd probably have to take him in.
 

Meg90

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40's would be great....I think the highest its been in the last two weeks is like 5 degrees.....

One day we had a "high" of -3
 

Chase

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Greg T said:
Chase,

Where in Texas do you live? I'm in the Houston area. And no kidding about our lack of winter. Had mine back outside today with sunny and 70 degree weather. :D

Hey Greg! I live in New Braunfels (Between San Antonio and Austin). I live in an apartment, so there's no place to put Sampson :(
 

tortoise_addict

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Chase said:
Greg T said:
Chase,

Where in Texas do you live? I'm in the Houston area. And no kidding about our lack of winter. Had mine back outside today with sunny and 70 degree weather. :D

Hey Greg! I live in New Braunfels (Between San Antonio and Austin). I live in an apartment, so there's no place to put Sampson :(

Hello, I live in San Antonio. There is a feed store in New Braunfels that has these huge metal (or rubber) things to feed horses in and they would work great for an apartment patio to sun your tortoise. They have one that is oval and over 6 ft long and 3 feet wide that I am going to put outside for my torts. They are not as expensive as you would think. They have drains in the bottom and with a make shift top, my dogs can not get to the torts.:D
Gotta love this Texas weather (not):p
 
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