Help! My tortoise has serious shell problems.

Hello. I'm a little bit embarrassed to be posting this because I have had my tortoise for well over 10 years. I got her (him?) when I was 12 and have done lots of moving around, going to college, and my parents have been very helpful taking her in every now and then. Over the past five years or so, I've noticed irregularities in her shell patterns and brought her into the vet. They said she was OK and told me to vary her diet, feed her approximately her shell size in various lettuces daily, and add some calcium powder to her diet. I've tried to do so but her shell just appears more irregular and now I am afraid I might be over feeding her and there could potentially be shell rot starting?! I just don't know! Here are some images:


I'm sorry the image is blurry, but do you see the small whiteish spot near the right edge of her shell? Is that the beginning of shell rot?
Here is an image of her irregular shell patterns:



I feel absolutely awful. I know it's my fault for not giving her the proper living conditions. My boyfriend and I are currently planning to make her a new indoor pen, because the one she is in right now is not big enough. What is the best substance to put in the bottom of the pen? I've got this fake dirt type stuff now, but it is very dry and dusty.
Since I live in a rented apartment, I cannot build her an outdoor pen. Sometimes I'll let her roam outside in the summertime but I always have to be outside with her, so it's never more than 15-30 minutes. I will be moving in a few months and I plan to build her an outdoor pen as soon as possible.
She eats daily and appears very active most of the time. Some days she is sluggish but it varies frequently. I am looking for any advice to help her shell problems.
I am going to start paying attention to the humidity in the pen. I haven't done that in the past. I know I need to vary her diet more. In the summertime I give her mostly dandelions and pigweed. In the winter I am forced to give her red/green lettuce, sometimes carrots or peppers. I used to give her romaine because I thought it was nutrient-rich but I've heard from different sources that it is either too nutrient rich or just has too much water? So now I've stopped giving it to her.
I love my tortoise and I feel absolutely terrible for letting this happen. I want to do everything possible to improve her future.

Hello and welcome to the forum!!
First off, what is your humidity at?
Now I would not feed them to much lettuce because it has NO Nutritional value at all. It's pretty much just water and fills up his stomach to where he doesn't have any room for the more beneficial food. Now the white specks could just mean he's really dry. Do you have a water bowl in there? I recommend not feeding him much fruits or vegetables. Russians really do love their weeds!!!
Now I never seen a Russian have she'll rot before so I don't think it's possible for him to have it. Is your enclosure soaking wet like a swamp?
Let's see if any experts can chime in @Yvonne G
@Tom
Now the substrate I recommend coco coir, which you can buy at your local Home Depot or Lowes, it's more cheaper there then going to the pet store and buying Eco Earth or Cypress mulch. Both of those substrates are also good if your gonna go to the pet store. Now never get sand or that awful carpet stuff because it won't hold humidity at all.
Hope I could help and if you have anymore questions just ask
-Austin

The shell is a bit pyramided, but it doesn't look awful to me. Others may see something. I prefer orchids bark or coco husk fiber for adult Russians. For mine I provide a humid hide. When I had them inside I attached a large storage bin. I cut a hole in the side, and put 8 inches or more of coco Coir in it. Keep it moist and warm.
Also do you soak him?

Welcome to the forum by the way. Don't be embarrassed. A lot of us made mistakes. The important thing is you're going to fix it. The care guides in the Russian section are great.

If you are talking about a the yellow on its shell that's new growth . So don't worry it's good .

I see the White spot I don't think it's rot . To be safe clean her shell with betadyne one good time rinse with water then apply athletes foot cream everyday for a week or two .

Hi, and welcome to the forum! (Is your name Skyler?)

You're beating yourself up over the wrong thing. There's nothing wrong with that shell that real sunshine wouldn't cure. The tortoise has been doing a whole lot of growing (the lighter color) without the proper UVB.

Russian tortoises are browsers. They eat broad-leaf weeds and plants. You should be picking clean (no pesticides) weeds and edible plants for the tortoise, and get her out into the sun for at least 3 or 4 hours a week.

Do you have a UVB light? And how old is it? The lights only put out UVB for about 6 months. After that they still put out light, but not much or no UVB.

Please take a look at the food for Russian tortoises in Tom's care sheet shown at the top of our Russian tortoise section, and change your tortoise's diet accordingly. And take it easy on yourself. The tortoise looks pretty darned good to me.

Thank you all so much! I feel a lot better now. We are checking the humidity in the pen currently and I definitely need to change her UVB light (It's super old). I do soak her sometimes but tend to forget. Should I be doing that several times a week? I'll change her diet and will work towards making her home larger and more comfortable. I just cleaned out all the old Eco Earth that I was using and put a towel down, only temporarily. The Eco Earth was ruining the bottom of the pen because her water would spill and then it would clump and start to rot the wood on the bottom of the pen.. But of course I didn't notice because it was covered in Eco Earth, so I finally got rid of it all. I'm going to replace the entire thing and make it twice as big, hopefully within the week. How do you clean the pen? Do you just replace all the substrate every few months? Again, thank you thank you!

Yvonne did you see the white spot in the first picture? Its between the scute by her finger . Looks like something is going on there .

Yes, but I didn't know what it was. Shell rot usually doesn't start on top of the tortoise.

If you're building something out of wood, you need to line it with plastic or somehow protect the wood because you actually WANT water on the substrate, and not just from spills. You add water to it to keep it moist. Think about it - tortoises dig down into the earth and bury themselves. What is the consistency of the dirt under the top layer? Moist or humid. So even though your tortoise is a full grown animal, she can still benefit from a slightly moist substrate.

Yeah I know it doesn't usually ,but they do dig down and sleep half buried in dirt .

Yes, my name is Skyler. And my tortoise's name is Georgia. Here is another photo of that spot:

View attachment 127529 View attachment 127529

It won't hurt anything to treat it for shell rot (even if it isn't). Clean the area well with Betadine, then dab on some athlete foot cream. Don't use the Betadine again, but use the cream daily until you see the spot going away.

Skler said:

Yes, my name is Skyler. And my tortoise's name is Georgia. Here is another photo of that spot:

View attachment 127528 View attachment 127529 View attachment 127529

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He needs UVB for sure. Now any of you guys see that little spot there?

That's what me and Yvonne is talking about . I say doctor it up as if it is something ,Yvonne said it will not hurt to doctor it up even if it is nothing .

welcome to the forum.

Skler said:

Thank you all so much! I feel a lot better now. We are checking the humidity in the pen currently and I definitely need to change her UVB light (It's super old). I do soak her sometimes but tend to forget. Should I be doing that several times a week? I'll change her diet and will work towards making her home larger and more comfortable. I just cleaned out all the old Eco Earth that I was using and put a towel down, only temporarily. The Eco Earth was ruining the bottom of the pen because her water would spill and then it would clump and start to rot the wood on the bottom of the pen.. But of course I didn't notice because it was covered in Eco Earth, so I finally got rid of it all. I'm going to replace the entire thing and make it twice as big, hopefully within the week. How do you clean the pen? Do you just replace all the substrate every few months? Again, thank you thank you!

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I am with Yvonne on this.... also, "lettuce" sure gets a bad wrap and it simply is not correct...while yes, a varied diet is essential..."lettuce" is also a food with benefits....there are a variety of lettuce and if you research each one, you will find that it is a good add to your diet....

http://www.bltrobotics.com/users/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=6

and for example;

http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrientprofile&dbid=42

Alright, I got the betadine and athletes foot cream, applied both those today on that spot. I replaced her water dish with a much larger, terracota-like dish. The color is dark grey. Does it matter if it is not made of the actual terracotta clay?
We are monitoring the heat and humidity in her pen. I replaced the UVB bulb and stocked the fridge with a larger variety of greens including carrot tops, radiccio, and cilantro. I pick weeds from the yard so I will mix those in as well, but I will also continue to add larger variety to her diet. Now we just have to build her a larger pen!
I am going to see if that spot on her shell goes away in a week or two. If not, I will schedule a vet appointment right away.
Again, thank you all so much for your help!