baby leopard shell rot

[lovebugaphid]

We have two baby leopard tortoises with shell concerns. The first seems to be shell rot. It is a dark/black pit with whitish growth. Our question is can we treat at home or is it bad enough to require immediate vet attention?

The second tortoise has some type of growth/bump on its plastron & we aren't quite sure what it is.

We are currently keeping our leopards in a high humid environment. Temperatures stay around 85 to 95F with humidity in the high 80s to 90s. Substrate is cypress mulch with sphagnum moss in their humid hides. We read that leopards were not prone to shell rot & would also like advice to keep this from happening again

 

[Yvonne G]

I don't know what the bump is. Have you tried to gently pick it off?

You can treat shell rot, but you have to remedy the situation or it will just start to grow again. You can have a humid environment without a soggy substrate, and wet substrate is your problem with the shell rot.

Clean the area first with Betadine (one time only, as it inhibits the growth of white cells). Then apply athlete foot cream. The next day and all subsequent days, clean with Chlorhexidine (brand name Nolvesan) then apply the foot cream.

We have talked quite a bit about shell rot. If you'd like to read more, do a 'search' for "shell rot". You will get many, many hits.

 

[Tom]

I see no sign of any problem on the first one. Looks like a totally healthy normal plastron.

The second one looks like it has a remnant of the yolk sac still lingering. You could probably try to gently pick it off with your thumbnail, or better yet just leave it alone and it will eventually fall off on its own.

 

[Yvonne G]

@Tom : I think the worrisome spot is on the left side of the picture near the tail and above the leg.

 

[lovebugaphid]

I'll try and get a better picture of our first tort. There seems to be a flaky crack/hole in the black area that @Yvonne G mentioned that isn't showing up on the picture. We are going to separate the tort & treat it for shell rot for now.

 

[Tom]

That just looks like some debris to me. Does it not rub off under running water with your finger or a tooth brush? How wet is your substrate?

 

[lovebugaphid]

Our substrate is damp but not soggy. We usually keep it around 80 to 90% humidity. Attached are better pictures of the area of concern

 

[lovebugaphid]

As for the bump on the other tortoise, I tried removing it with warm water and a toothbrush but it didn't come off right away. I just checked on him and it seems to have fallen off now.