Vex- the special tort in my Terrific Trio in AZ

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
IMG_0313.JPG IMG_0321.JPG IMG_0322.JPG IMG_0324.JPG IMG_0328.JPG IMG_0329.JPG IMG_0334.JPG Hello e1-
I mentioned Vex yesterday in my introduction; he is my special 6 weeks old Sulcata tort. I also have two of his siblings, Wanda and Schnoz. All three are from the same 'batch', however, Vex didn't come out of the burrow until s week after the others. Thus, he is much smaller and his shell is misshapen and his underside is very convex or rounded. The trio are my first experience with unfuzzies and I am so excited to be a new fuzzless mom! I never thought there could be unique personalities without fur- and I am enjoying finding out how wrong I was! Of course, Vex has needs the other two do not due to his size and shell etc. . The first thing I did was take Vex to my vet (same wonderful doc for over 40 years) to find out if there were internal issues such as any compressed organs affecting Vex's intake digestion and eliminating due to his abnormal shell shape- thankfully, he got a good bill of health! Little turd was 26 grams three weeks ago and is now 31.4! He is going in for a check up this Friday also.
Luckily, Wanda and Schnoz have accepted Vex and don't prevent him from playing in any Reindeer games per se nor are they aggressive toward him.
I watch my trio a lot and I am having fun learning from them. An issue I noticed with Vex within the past week is his curved belly limits his ability to get food on a flat surface (which is usually where torts eat from). Because of his abnormal shell shape, he isn't able to extend his neck as far a it should. Problem solved! You see, when he goes to take a bite, the food moves away from him flattens out and gets lower; I customized a feeding bowl for him that will keep the food in place! I designed it to also fit into a store bought large reptile dish I have that will allow him to float while he eats- floating seems to take pressure off of his rounded tummy which would make for easier dining for him in theory. I just finished his custom bowl and the paint is drying. I can't wait to see how it goes! I've included pics of my Vex and the creating process of his tailored dining bowl and I will post pics of his maiden feeding tomorrow after the paint dries. Thanks for your time to read about my terrific tantalizing trio!
 

Attachments

  • IMG_0336.JPG
    IMG_0336.JPG
    1.3 MB · Views: 56
Last edited:

LaLaP

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jun 25, 2018
Messages
959
Location (City and/or State)
Portland, OR
Your little runt is extra cute!! What an inventive and dedicated tort mom you are too! What did you make the dish out of? Can't wait to see him using it.
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
Hi LalaP-
Thanks for asking. I started with plain ol' air dry clay then put a couple coats of fiberglass resin and cheesecloth all over the clay, sanded it, soaked it and finished it with non toxic latex paints. I discussed sing these materials and processes with my vet and the gentleman at True Value to get extra assurance that the resin would be safe after it was dry and painted with the latex paint. Feels and looks just like a store bought reptile dish.
 
N

no one

Guest
I think you are pretty Terrific, carring for Vex the way you do!! Hope the designed foodbowl does it for eating. Nicely done...
 

jsheffield

Well-Known Member
Moderator
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 29, 2018
Messages
3,114
Location (City and/or State)
Westmoreland, NH
Thanks for sharing, and especially for helping little Vex!

I worked 20 years as a SPED teacher, and am a strong believer in the value of giving everyone the things they need to get the best possible start in life ... I can't wait to watch Vex grow up with his siblings.

Jamie
 

Cheryl Hills

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jan 1, 2016
Messages
2,334
Location (City and/or State)
Youngstown, Ohio
What a cute little tort Vex is. You are doing a wonderful thing with him. It will be interesting to see if he straightens out as he grows!
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
I really appreciate the feedback and support- thank you!
I've been brainstorming other ideas that could potentially benefit Vex and I came up with this:
Could a small metal (or better yet, Titanium) plate proportioned to fit Vex's belly without obstructing him be secured by medical tape in order to reshape, flatten out the curve and act as a guide to stay flattened as he grows? Kinda like braces align teeth. Of course, as he grows, the plates would change to accommodate him and at some point the flattening would 'set' and stabilize continuing his natural growth process. The progressiveness of this method would also allow for internal adjustments gradually as well. In theory seems possible without causing ANY pain or discomfort to Vex. I will bring up my idea to my vet tomorrow when Vex goes in for his follow up and I would greatly appreciate any and all feedback from all of you. Again, thank you for taking your time to read and comment and care!
 

NorCal tortoise guy

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Nov 16, 2017
Messages
1,217
Location (City and/or State)
Northern California
It's hard to see in your pictures just how misshaped he is but I have had a couple misshaped babies hatch here and with time they has returned to normal shape on there own. hope your guy will to!
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
Customized dish delay-
Vex's new dish won't be used for breakfast due to delays for safety modifications. On each side of the custom dish there are about one inch uneven spaces between insert dish and big dish. Resolution achieved thanks to Quik Set!
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
Today's lesson:
Quik Set mixed with a smidge of LATEX paint for color purpose is NOT so quick to set!
And when Vex found out he would not be dining with his new dish, he went totally "Really Felicia" on me.
So I made a comment about it being de-latex paint and he grimaced, shook his head and walked away.
Touché Vex.
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
Who knew Sulcata's have middle digits? Well, they do; at least Wanda and Schnoz have them. This morning I was greeting with 'a double' from those two- I am guessing it it due to all the Vex oriented posts I've been making. Wanda and Schnoz are at the spa now prepping for THEIR photo shoots that I will post asap. (I didn't think Sulcata's were "green" either! Lol)
 

Yvonne G

Old Timer
TFO Admin
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
93,405
Location (City and/or State)
Clovis, CA
I really appreciate the feedback and support- thank you!
I've been brainstorming other ideas that could potentially benefit Vex and I came up with this:
Could a small metal (or better yet, Titanium) plate proportioned to fit Vex's belly without obstructing him be secured by medical tape in order to reshape, flatten out the curve and act as a guide to stay flattened as he grows? Kinda like braces align teeth. Of course, as he grows, the plates would change to accommodate him and at some point the flattening would 'set' and stabilize continuing his natural growth process. The progressiveness of this method would also allow for internal adjustments gradually as well. In theory seems possible without causing ANY pain or discomfort to Vex. I will bring up my idea to my vet tomorrow when Vex goes in for his follow up and I would greatly appreciate any and all feedback from all of you. Again, thank you for taking your time to read and comment and care!
I would be afraid that the way you attach it might interfere more with the carapace (if that's how it's attached) than with the plastron. I think the slight roundness his plastron has will flatten out as he grows.
 

Yvonne G

Old Timer
TFO Admin
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
93,405
Location (City and/or State)
Clovis, CA
Looking at your pictures again, I would rather have seen you attach the fiberglass thing-a-ma-bob to a feeding tile than one of those reptile dishes. The sides on reptile dishes are hard for little tortoises to navigate.
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
I would be afraid that the way you attach it might interfere more with the carapace (if that's how it's attached) than with the plastron. I think the slight roundness his plastron has will flatten out as he grows.
Hi Yvonne and thank you for your input.
I was hoping and thinking that his plastron (thanks) would flatten out over time; however, as he has gotten bigger , he has become more rounded causing gradual decline in his ability for his neck to adequately reach food and water. Have you dealt with a curvy tort before ? How did you handle the feeding etc.?
 

Tim Carlisle

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Nov 13, 2017
Messages
2,560
Location (City and/or State)
Cincinnati, OH
I'll tell you what....you get all this down-pat and you've certainly got something that would be marketable to other tort owners facing similar situations. Could be lucrative for you!
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
IMG_0339.JPG
Looking at your pictures again, I would rather have seen you attach the fiberglass thing-a-ma-bob to a feeding tile than one of those reptile dishes. The sides on reptile dishes are hard for little tortoises to navigate.
Not to mention imposing a greater possibility of the ol' *** over teakettles!
So, having these concerns, I filled in the sides and made a ramp to attach to his dish. It looks like a train wreck in these pics, but after I'm finished, well, I'm aiming for borderline epic. Again, I designed it to include the float while you gloat option and I think this idea will work.

IMG_0339.JPG IMG_0340.JPG
 

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
IMG_0348.JPG IMG_0348.JPG IMG_0349.JPG Hello E1-
Human (F) here - missed babbling at you all this past week ; mom was in the hospital and well, you know...
Schnoz and Wanda's spa sessions will be continued soon and then we will do their photo shoots and post their "glam" shots.
I was able to finish Vex's gloat and float custom dining dish and I am heading in to see what happens...
I am actually nervous about his reaction - I know I need a life. (sigh)
 

Attachments

  • IMG_0350.JPG
    IMG_0350.JPG
    2.2 MB · Views: 12

PharSytid

Member
Joined
Oct 22, 2018
Messages
23
Location (City and/or State)
Glendale Arizona
IMG_0387.JPG IMG_0388.JPG IMG_0389.JPG Wow I miss this place! Mom has needed a lot more help with a lot more things and this new "role " is tricky. My terrific trio are doing great and little Vex is now 41.3 grams! I finally finished his customized feeding dish and he tried it out and I noticed I need to make a couple more modifications but definitely on the right track.
 
Top