Pyramiding?

[heathercrossland]

I have two sulcata. They've been growing like little weeds.

I think one is starting to pyramid and I thought I was doing everything right. She's smooth except these two areas on top.

Is it pyramiding?

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

I only see very slight pyramiding. Are you soaking them everyday in warm water and keeping their enclosures humid?

 

[heathercrossland]

They self soak and I do have a reptifogger for humidity. It stays pretty high in there.

What can I do to stop this so it doesn't progress?

 

[xMario]

They self soak and I do have a reptifogger for humidity. It stays pretty high in there.

What can I do to stop this so it doesn't progress?

What heat lamp do u use? Most people use a spot lamp... but a spot lamp produces to much heat in a too small area causing the carapace to dry out. Since it is mostly happening on top I suggest changing the heat lamp

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

They self soak and I do have a reptifogger for humidity. It stays pretty high in there.

What can I do to stop this so it doesn't progress?

You can force soak them, some torts love bath time while other may spend the time trying to get out of the tub. Soak in warm water for about 20 minutes. Another thing you can do is pour water directly onto the substrate so it’s is wet.

 

[heathercrossland]

I keep my house very cold. I do have their heat lamps/lights secured inside about 3-4" off the substrate, otherwise the temps inside get into the 50s and they won't move. They love their light and stay under it most of the day. For night I have an emitter.

I suppose that's the problem. They are getting dried out even with soaks. I'll look at another way to do their lamps and start spraying their shells.

 

[Toddrickfl1]

I keep my house very cold. I do have their heat lamps/lights secured inside about 3-4" off the substrate, otherwise the temps inside get into the 50s and they won't move. They love their light and stay under it most of the day. For night I have an emitter.

I suppose that's the problem. They are getting dried out even with soaks. I'll look at another way to do their lamps and start spraying their shells.

3-4" is WAY too close. The best thing you could do to maintain heat and humidity is to find a way to cover your enclosure air tight. Then setup your CHE on a thermostat to the temperature you want the enclosure to be at. Your lights and CHE should be about 12" from the top of the Tortoise.

 

[Tom]

You need a pair of large closed chambers. One for each tortoise. There is no way to maintain the correct temperatures and humidity with an open top in a 50-60 degree room. By contrast, it will be easy to do with a closed chamber.

Have you seen these:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/