Wear and tear or shell damage?

[kungfood]

My Greek tortoise lives in an underground burrow and is getting a lot of wear and tear on his scutes from going in and out of his burrow, it seemed like he had at least some pyramiding when I got him from a prior owner and I'm wondering if those scutes were just less robust and prone to wear? I am taking him to the vet today to get it checked out but wouldn't mind a second opinion...

 

[zovick]

My Greek tortoise lives in an underground burrow and is getting a lot of wear and tear on his scutes from going in and out of his burrow, it seemed like he had at least some pyramiding when I got him from a prior owner and I'm wondering if those scutes were just less robust and prone to wear? I am taking him to the vet today to get it checked out but wouldn't mind a second opinion...


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How damp is the burrow? The spots almost look as though they could be fungal infections.

 

[kungfood]

How damp is the burrow? The spots almost look as though they could be fungal infections.

I live in central Arizona so seems like it should be pretty dry - it goes at least 6-10 feet back. But he hibernates down there and when he comes out in the spring he always had some dirt crusted on his shell that I have to rinse away. So maybe he comes out when it rains sometimes and goes back home a bit damp? I took this photo after washing him off, he came out much later this year than in other years but we also had a dry winter and not much weeds growing in the yard this year.

 

[kungfood]

A couple more pictures of his dry shell today.

 

[zovick]

A couple more pictures of his dry shell today.

OK, the shell is more easy to see when dry. Thanks!

So as of now, I think what you are seeing is just normal wear and tear rather than any type of fungal problem.

 

[kungfood]

OK, the shell is more easy to see when dry. Thanks!

So as of now, I think what you are seeing is just normal wear and tear rather than any type of fungal problem.

Thanks for taking a look and weighing in - the vet agreed with your assessment and gave him a clean bill of health

 

[TylerStewart]

We have had excessive wear when we tried using some curved roof tiles to start off a hide. As they dug around and moved dirt around, they were getting closer and closer to the top, which was basically concrete tile, and we started to see wear from that. We swapped it for wood which is safer to use above them. A dirt (ceiling) burrow would give normal/natural wear and should be safe.

 

[Sarah2020]

Maybe part of the burrow is tight for the tortoise as it has grown and causing it to scrape? Ensure the diet has calcium for strong bones, shell, claws and beak. i use coconut oil on the shell to help moisturise.

 

[kungfood]

Thanks for the tips and shared experience!