Pyramiding?

[puredevonian]

[/font]
My aquired little man was fed on sausages, tesco wafer biscuits and god knows what else before I got him and I've read a bit about this subject.
Can any of you tell by this picture if he has got slight pyramiding?
I really appreciate all of you help and patience.

 

[jasso2]

its really hard to tell (i say no) but if he does i cant notice it. my red foot have pyramid and the breeder that gave them to me was suppose to be an expert with 15+ yrs yet the baby red foots are quite pyramided . still look awesome.

 

[puredevonian]

its really hard to tell (i say no) but if he does i cant notice it. my red foot have pyramid and the breeder that gave them to me was suppose to be an expert with 15+ yrs yet the baby red foots are quite pyramided . still look awesome.

I have only seen one with it, but I think that if he has that he will possibly grow out of it.
Too be honest i think that it looks lovely, it's a shame that its down to their diet and health that causes it.

 

[streyer]

I think no! Just watch the diet!

 

[Crazy1]

Tracy, your new little shelled baby looks awesome. His shell looks fine.
Please remember once a shell is pyramided it can not be reversed. a tort can not grow out of it. They can however, with proper care develop better shell growth but once pyramided always pyramided; it may be less detectable and because of better growth do less harm. Pyramiding is often blamed on diet or health issues. But it has now come to light that humidity may play an important roll in pyramiding along with diet etc.

 

[puredevonian]

I haven't seen anything about the light situation with regards to the pyramiding, but i'll certainly look.
Thanks for your help.

 

[-EJ]

That's a fantastic looking tortoise. So much for screwed up diets.

Anyway... what were the temperatures at which the tortoise was kept?

Better yet... can you answer these questions...

Nice Looking Tortoise Questions
Enclosure type...
Temperature range...
UV provided...
Substrate...
Humid hide...
Foods Fed...
Frequency of feeding...
Water availability...
Soakings...
And any other insight you think might be important.

Ed

[/font]
My aquired little man was fed on sausages, tesco wafer biscuits and god knows what else before I got him and I've read a bit about this subject.
Can any of you tell by this picture if he has got slight pyramiding?
I really appreciate all of you help and patience.

 

[terrypin]

That's a fantastic looking tortoise. So much for screwed up diets.

Anyway... what were the temperatures at which the tortoise was kept?

Better yet... can you answer these questions...

Nice Looking Tortoise Questions
Enclosure type...
Temperature range...
UV provided...
Substrate...
Humid hide...
Foods Fed...
Frequency of feeding...
Water availability...
Soakings...
And any other insight you think might be important.

Ed

[/font]
My aquired little man was fed on sausages, tesco wafer biscuits and god knows what else before I got him and I've read a bit about this subject.
Can any of you tell by this picture if he has got slight pyramiding?
I really appreciate all of you help and patience.

also was it wc or cb as this may explain why its shape is good even though you mention a diet that is totally inappropriate for a tortoise.if it was on this diet for a short period and now that you are feeding a healthy more natural fare im sure it will continue to thrive.
terry

 

[Jacqui]

He was fed sausages??? Wow, I have known a few pizza eating torts, but not sausages.

Aren't they also thinking pyramiding might also have a factor of not enough exercise along with diet and humidity. It's becoming more obvious that it's an overall balance of things, not just one that causes it.

Your tort looks good, if he has any at all it is slight it appears. Doubt in a few years you would even notice it, if he does indeed have a bit of it now. Like you have been told, it never goes away, but it becomes less noticeable with age. I have a couple of Redfoots with it. I have noticed as they age, it does look better, but of course it is still there.

Hmmm sausages...

 

[puredevonian]

Hi I'll answer as best as I can, here goes
Enclosure is indoors but we are in the process of making him a outside pen so he will be able to have natural light.
Temp is 80c cool end and 100c hot end whilst heat lamp is on.
Uv light is also on.
Humid hide is available.
Food is, broccoli, dandelions, wild rocket, herb cobs and rarely grated carrot and red pepper.
Frequency of food is every morning.
Water availability is 24 hours.
Soakings are every other day.
Substrate??
Wc/Cb ???
I hope this helps.
Please let me know if you think that I'm doing something wrong.

 

[-EJ]

Don't change a thing.

You can add Mazuri or T-Rex tortoise diet once or twice a week and you will be blown away by the results.

Ed

Hi I'll answer as best as I can, here goes
Enclosure is indoors but we are in the process of making him a outside pen so he will be able to have natural light.
Temp is 80c cool end and 100c hot end whilst heat lamp is on.
Uv light is also on.
Humid hide is available.
Food is, broccoli, dandelions, wild rocket, herb cobs and rarely grated carrot and red pepper.
Frequency of food is every morning.
Water availability is 24 hours.
Soakings are every other day.
Substrate??
Wc/Cb ???
I hope this helps.
Please let me know if you think that I'm doing something wrong.

 

[puredevonian]

Hi -Ej
I've just wiped the sweat from my brow,
thats great to know,
where would I get this stuff and what actually is it and how would it help my little man.
Sorry about the questions but I've not heard of it.

 

[-EJ]

Both of the diets mentioned are formulated complete diets. Many keepers are dead set against using the stuff but most if not all of them have either never used it or have used it briefly.

What the use of the diet provides is a complete and balanced nutritional menu.

It takes all of the guesswork out of providing your tortoises nutritional needs.

Are you in the US or elsewhere?

Ed

Hi -Ej
I've just wiped the sweat from my brow,
thats great to know,
where would I get this stuff and what actually is it and how would it help my little man.
Sorry about the questions but I've not heard of it.

 

[Crazy1]

Substrate is what he is crawling and living on like dirt or Aspen.
Wc/Cb Wild caught or Captive Bred. If he is small and he looks like he may be I would say CB.
I would watch the amount of broccoli I fed him as a treat or once in a while is fine but like cabbage and spinach it is not good as a steady diet. Do you have access to cactus or succulents like Jade plant, grape leaves or mulberry leaves, wondering jew those are a few things that are really good for them, as well as geraniums flowers and leaves, rose flowers and leaves, pansies, hibiscus flowers and leaves.
I think you have a fine looking little shelled one and I am sure with your care he will thrive.

 

[puredevonian]

Substrate is what he is crawling and living on like dirt or Aspen.
Wc/Cb Wild caught or Captive Bred. If he is small and he looks like he may be I would say CB.
I would watch the amount of broccoli I fed him as a treat or once in a while is fine but like cabbage and spinach it is not good as a steady diet. Do you have access to cactus or succulents like Jade plant, grape leaves or mulberry leaves, wondering jew those are a few things that are really good for them, as well as geraniums flowers and leaves, rose flowers and leaves, pansies, hibiscus flowers and leaves.
I think you have a fine looking little shelled one and I am sure with your care he will thrive.

Hi, is was cb and the flooring is compressed hay, 100% biodegradable.

 

[puredevonian]

Ill have to ease off the broccoli with your advice, I'm in London (UK).

 

[terrypin]

Ill have to ease off the broccoli with your advice, I'm in London (UK).

hi i think that is a good idea i would also stop the peppers these sort of foods were reccommended over 20 years ago and i used to feed them to my hatchlings i havent used them for at least 15 years and i am seeing a vast improvment in growth and shape with almost zero signs of pyramidding in some species and none at all in others.broccoil and indeed most brassicas are high in oxalic acid which inhibits the absorbpsion of calcium from the diet and peppers have a high phosphoruos to calcium ratio so actually do more harm than good to the growth of a young tortoise.the best diet i have found is a selection of green leafed weeds with a high percentage being coarse fibrous plantain types and then access to natural graze whenever possible.i dont like to talk about artificial diets as i have no experience of them other than seeing the price in shops and the realisation that i couldnt keep over 50 tortoises as the feed bill alone would be higher than the electricity bill,
terry

home bred youngsters from my own collection

 

[-EJ]

Terry, You bring up a couple of points for the reason I highly recommend some manufactured diets.

First... knowing what to feed and in what proportions. Have you always raised good looking tortoises? Probably not. I'll bet your greatest achievements occured only after many years of experience and learning.

Learning all the acceptable available plant material and the proper proportions is very time consuming and almost impossible to convey to the new keeper sufficiently enough to produce the same results you or I or anyone obtains. This is why the catch phrase 'variety is the key to good nutrition'.

As to cost... It costs me $22 for 25 lbs of the Mazuri diet and I only have to feed once a week and twice a week in the summer.

It would cost me 3 or 4 times that for me to feed a green diet for all the plant eaters I keep.

Ed

 

[terrypin]

Terry, You bring up a couple of points for the reason I highly recommend some manufactured diets.

First... knowing what to feed and in what proportions. Have you always raised good looking tortoises? Probably not. I'll bet your greatest achievements occured only after many years of experience and learning.

Learning all the acceptable available plant material and the proper proportions is very time consuming and almost impossible to convey to the new keeper sufficiently enough to produce the same results you or I or anyone obtains. This is why the catch phrase 'variety is the key to good nutrition'.

As to cost... It costs me $22 for 25 lbs of the Mazuri diet and I only have to feed once a week and twice a week in the summer.

It would cost me 3 or 4 times that for me to feed a green diet for all the plant eaters I keep.

Ed

hi Ed im shocked at how cheap your mazuri diet is compared to the pellets in the UK.as you have said its taken a few years of experimentation to get get their diet balanced and i feel encouraging them to be active and exercise is a factor in their general well being i have for many years heard people often suggesting a weeds only diet, with no other information and people have often asked "why am i seeing some pyramidding when i only feed weeds" a weed is just a plant thats in the wrong place, so in theory all plants are weeds depends on were they are growing.i feed sowthistle ,hawksbeard,hawkbit,dandelion,vetch,mallow,and mixed plantain about 30 to 50% of weeds fed being ribwort plantain.in addition to this i have to say all my adults have free range to most of these weeds daily, and during summer i actually feed very little they survive on graze.my juveniles have access to grass for graze most days during the summer months to encourage exercise and muscle development.
terry

 

[-EJ]

Activity level is definetly an important factor... to go further... they are not going to be active unless the temperatures are just right.

Another point in your case is you obviously have the fertile well planted yard. I'll bet you also watch your tortoises and what they eat. You propably collect those same plants for them when the can't get out.

The Mazuri diet here is very cheap and I still don't fully understand why it works so well but as I said in the past... I trust the people who developed it and as far as I cant tell they haven't missed a thing. I'm only more amazed as time goes on.

Ed

Terry, You bring up a couple of points for the reason I highly recommend some manufactured diets.

First... knowing what to feed and in what proportions. Have you always raised good looking tortoises? Probably not. I'll bet your greatest achievements occured only after many years of experience and learning.

Learning all the acceptable available plant material and the proper proportions is very time consuming and almost impossible to convey to the new keeper sufficiently enough to produce the same results you or I or anyone obtains. This is why the catch phrase 'variety is the key to good nutrition'.

As to cost... It costs me $22 for 25 lbs of the Mazuri diet and I only have to feed once a week and twice a week in the summer.

It would cost me 3 or 4 times that for me to feed a green diet for all the plant eaters I keep.

Ed

hi Ed im shocked at how cheap your mazuri diet is compared to the pellets in the UK.as you have said its taken a few years of experimentation to get get their diet balanced and i feel encouraging them to be active and exercise is a factor in their general well being i have for many years heard people often suggesting a weeds only diet, with no other information and people have often asked "why am i seeing some pyramidding when i only feed weeds" a weed is just a plant thats in the wrong place, so in theory all plants are weeds depends on were they are growing.i feed sowthistle ,hawksbeard,hawkbit,dandelion,vetch,mallow,and mixed plantain about 30 to 50% of weeds fed being ribwort plantain.in addition to this i have to say all my adults have free range to most of these weeds daily, and during summer i actually feed very little they survive on graze.my juveniles have access to grass for graze most days during the summer months to encourage exercise and muscle development.
terry