Russian Tortoise Shell Health

[Zack and Kora]

I'll post some pictures of my Russian Tortoise's shell just to make sure I'm taking good care of her and things are okay. She has wide whiteish growth rings and some weird peely places on her plastron.

 

[martaemha]

Hi Zack and Kora! This may be just me being oversensitive, but for a Russian I think she is experiencing a too rapid growth. The second plate on her carapace (the middle row) looks almost displaced, the third one has a visible fragment peeling. I can't tell by the picture but on her plastron, close to the head and next to the middle line there is a whitish part that looks a bit like a fungal infection but it may be just her scratching against the stones in her enclosure. What do you feed her? To me it seems it may be a diet that is too high in proteins. But on the other hand, little torts tend to grow very fast and the pearly rings develop normal pigmentation with time, making the carapace look fine again. What is the humidity in her enclosure? Russians prefer low ranges.

 

[Yvonne G]

There certainly is a whole lot of new growth. What does the tortoise eat?

 

[Tom]

How long have you had the tortoise and where did you get it?

 

[Zack and Kora]

How long have you had the tortoise and where did you get it?

I've had her for a little over a year and I got her at PetSmart

 

[Zack and Kora]

There certainly is a whole lot of new growth. What does the tortoise eat?

I feed her spring mix from the grocery store which has a mix of different romaine lettuce and collard greens along with some other greens. I also feed her some tortoise formula that comes in little pellets every once in a while

 

[Zack and Kora]

Hi Zack and Kora! This may be just me being oversensitive, but for a Russian I think she is experiencing a too rapid growth. The second plate on her carapace (the middle row) looks almost displaced, the third one has a visible fragment peeling. I can't tell by the picture but on her plastron, close to the head and next to the middle line there is a whitish part that looks a bit like a fungal infection but it may be just her scratching against the stones in her enclosure. What do you feed her? To me it seems it may be a diet that is too high in proteins. But on the other hand, little torts tend to grow very fast and the pearly rings develop normal pigmentation with time, making the carapace look fine again. What is the humidity in her enclosure? Russians prefer low ranges.

I stated in a previous reply what I feed her and the humidity is usually in na range of around 30-40 with high points up to about 60 when I spray in there every once in a while

 

[Tom]

I've had her for a little over a year and I got her at PetSmart

The white rings are new growth. This is a sign that things are going well. The rough appearance and shell damage are from your tortoises former life in the wild and from the long arduous process to get it over here for sale.

Your tortoise needs a higher fiber diet and more variety than what you are offering. In the long term this could cause you some problems. Weeds, leaves, succulents and flowers are best, but if you are unable to provide that because its winter and you are unable to grow your own, then you ought to supplement the lettuce and grocery store greens with some blended grass hay, herbal hay, soaked and mixed in ZooMed Grassland tortoise food or even the little organic grass plots from the grocery or pet store. Also, Asian markets will some times sell other greens too. Like squash leaves and blossoms.