Rescued this tortoise from being set free in the wilderness, and was hoping for some good advise. Made a nice wooden habitat but waiting till next paycheck for the lights and substrate. All they have been doing is burrowing and not eating. The beak is overgrown, and shell is chipped and bumpy. What are things I can do to help her out?
please make sure you go to a tortoise specialist vet, and check their credentials, a regular cat and dog or even general "exotic" vet usually will not do...
Ofc! I'm familiar with a vet who saw my beardie a few years ago! Called and they are booked for a few weeks. Reaching out to local tortoise rescue to help me deal with the beak, and go from there once I can actually see a doctor!
Would you by chance have a light recommendation for me? I'm seeing a few chicken coop lights but unsure if there is a specific brand people use. I already have a UV strip that's 4 feet long and that will be fine till I get a 7 foot long one. (Just need the light for the UV strip).
Seconding the beak comment. Once it’s back to normal, cuttle bones in her cage + feeding her on a rough surface will help her keep it at the right length. You also probably want more support for the enclosure bottom, substrate is very heavy. Thank you for saving her!!
I got that down already! I only took it out of the food bowl to get her outside. I was suspicious of the weight of the substrate as well but I will get more planks to make it a solid bottom. Thanks for the advise! Left a message for a tortoise rescue with an inhouse vet to see if they can help with the beak.
Looks like there’s spinach in the mix. They shouldn’t eat spinach or other greens high in oxalate (spinach, beet greens, Swiss chard) because it interferes with calcium absorption. Especially if they’re not getting enough UVB. They need UVB to absorb calcium. No UV light and eating spinach is a double-whammy for the ol’ shell & bones.
I have a 20-year old Russian tortoise myself and questions about them come up here often enough that I made a care guide for them:
How can I get my red foot tortoise beak to get trimmed down i have a stone dish for him to eat out of and he hates cuttlebone he doesn't even like it how can I make him try the cuttlebone? Maybe put it in his dish hidden between the greens ? Any advice helps
Have you tried precrushed cuttle bone? I’m attaching a photo of what my guy liked until he got older (he wouldn’t touch the blocks for years). The stone dish is a great idea as well.
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u/maroonneutralino 1d ago
Beak is very overgrown - might need an exotic vet trip for that. Most of the shell chips look like old damage so not much you can do.
Any chance you could have them outside to soak up some UV? They don't do well with long term inside without the correct lamps