Groth line abnormalities

[Hippytort]

Hi all . Out of curiosity, my 18 yr old Sal has these strange "defects" between the shell plates. He's around 200 lbs . Any ideas what causes this? And is this an indicator of dietary insufficiency?. He eats mostly orchard hay and squash and grass from the yard. He seems VERY healthy, his house is kept a steady 83 degrees. He eats like a horse!
I should also clarify, if you zoonm in on the scoots you will see kind of deep grooves thT seem to grow out over time. Are these just normal growth rings?

 

[TammyJ]

@Tom @zovick

 

[zovick]

Hi all . Out of curiosity, my 18 yr old Sal has these strange "defects" between the shell plates. He's around 200 lbs . Any ideas what causes this? And is this an indicator of dietary insufficiency?. He eats mostly orchard hay and squash and grass from the yard. He seems VERY healthy, his house is kept a steady 83 degrees. He eats like a horse!
I should also clarify, if you zoonm in on the scoots you will see kind of deep grooves thT seem to grow out over time. Are these just normal growth rings?

Your tortoise looks pretty much normal for one which is close to 20 years old. The growth lines do not look unusual to me. Some tortoises just seem to get "creases" in their scutes and some don't.

The only idea I would have is to try supplementing its food by sprinkling it with Rep-Cal 2-3 times weekly to see if the new growth starts to increase and become more smooth.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

I’ve seen a few with these strange creases but I don’t think it’s anything to worry about! Here’s one someone posted on my fb group today with a little crease, still a happy healthy Tort with some nice growth coming in

 

[Tom]

Hi all . Out of curiosity, my 18 yr old Sal has these strange "defects" between the shell plates. He's around 200 lbs . Any ideas what causes this? And is this an indicator of dietary insufficiency?. He eats mostly orchard hay and squash and grass from the yard. He seems VERY healthy, his house is kept a steady 83 degrees. He eats like a horse!
I should also clarify, if you zoonm in on the scoots you will see kind of deep grooves thT seem to grow out over time. Are these just normal growth rings?

How are you heating him? Where does he sleep at night?

Have you had him on a scale, or is 200 pounds an estimation?