Brown mark on box turtle's head!!??

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jennise77

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my baby box turtle has a brown almost leathery spot on his head. It has not been there before. I thought at first it was dirt but it won't come off. I mist him four to six times a day and the temp is between 85 and 90 on the warm side and 75 to 80 on the cool side. He does not bury himself except at night and is very social. He responds to my voice and lets me pet his head and shell. He is eating well, mostly worms and crickets, and his eyes are clear and bright. He has also started to spread his legs out , like he is basking and just stays there. Is this normal turtle behavior or is there something wrong. His light is about a little less than two feet of the substrate. Is he being burned by the light? I am a little concerned so any help would be great.
 
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Maggie Cummings

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I'm just guessing, but as box turtles get older they start to develop color. One of mine has just started getting spots, and another is getting a red flush under his chin...so it's quite possible your baby is simply growing up and getting color. He sounds like a well socialized beautiful box turtle...:)
I just noticed one of mine has developed a brown triangle on the top of his head...
 

Yvonne G

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I get in a lot of rescued box turtles and one thing I have noticed with the ones kept indoors and with MBD is that they have a "flake" of really tough skin on the top of their head.

Yvonne
 

jennise77

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emysemys said:
I get in a lot of rescued box turtles and one thing I have noticed with the ones kept indoors and with MBD is that they have a "flake" of really tough skin on the top of their head.

Yvonne

What is mbd, and can I stop it or prevent it?
 

Yvonne G

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MBD=metabolic bone disease. Usually exhibits as slightly deformed shell, long, curly toenails and a really short deformed tail (talking about box turtles here, folks). If that's the case, he needs some Vit. d and calcium in his diet.

Yvonne

Can you show us a picture of it?

Yvonne
 

tortoisenerd

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Any chance you can post a picture?

I'm hoping that he's just growing up. Make sure to take photos and track his growth! It's an awesome experience to watch a little tort grow up.

What kind of light do you have?
 
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