Hello and identification help

Maybelline

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Hello this is my first time posting but I am a long time lurker. I once had a sulcata and have longed for a new friend. Well today someone just handed over a little fella to me and I'm not sure what species it is! They weren't much help and did not know what they were doing. Please help with identification so I can do right by her...

IMG_20201121_155612379.jpgIMG_20201121_155550859.jpgIMG_20201121_155529120.jpgIMG_20201121_155353313.jpg
 

Yvonne G

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It takes some pretty wrong care to make a desert tortoise pyramid. This tortoise is lucky he found you!

Set him up indoors this winter and move him outside in the Spring.

He'll need a nice big enclosure with a radiant heat panel or ceramic heat emitter on a thermostat, and a good, bright UVB light.

I said a big enclosure because it's impossible to get a good temperature gradient, hot to warm to room temperature, in a small set up.

Covering the enclosure makes it easier to maintain the temperatures you're going for.
 

Maybelline

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Thank you thank you thank you! Now I know where to start. I wonder if they plucked her from the wild. Yes her shell is awful. Gave her a good soak and vitamins when we got home. She had a uvb but only a bare light bulb for heat. No gauges at all. Off to do research!
 

KarenSoCal

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Here's the care sheet for DT's. If there's anything you're not sure about, come back and ask.


I doubt that this tortoise came from the wild unless it was a tiny baby at the time. Pyramided torts happen in human care. In the wild they grow smooth.
 
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Sarah2020

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Good luck with your new tortoise and ask questions on here.
 

Yvonne G

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Thank you thank you thank you! Now I know where to start. I wonder if they plucked her from the wild. Yes her shell is awful. Gave her a good soak and vitamins when we got home. She had a uvb but only a bare light bulb for heat. No gauges at all. Off to do research!
No, it's not wild caught. A wild caught desert tortoise NEVER has a shell like that.
 

zolasmum

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Thank you thank you thank you! Now I know where to start. I wonder if they plucked her from the wild. Yes her shell is awful. Gave her a good soak and vitamins when we got home. She had a uvb but only a bare light bulb for heat. No gauges at all. Off to do research!
Hello Maybelline - despite the pyramiding, he/she looks quite beautiful - like a sculpture !
 

Maybelline

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Thank you for all the responses. She has gone through 2 owners already. Both with really bad care. She is lethargic a bit to me. Gave her a electrolyte soak this morning and she has perked up a bit. Eating well.
The reason I thought she might of been taken as a hatchling is because they are illegal to breed and sell in AZ. I've never seen anyone have one that hasn't adopted from our state regulated agency.
 

Maybelline

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Thank you for all the responses. She has gone through 2 owners already. Both with really bad care. She is lethargic a bit to me. Gave her a electrolyte soak this morning and she has perked up a bit. Eating well.
The reason I thought she might of been taken as a hatchling is because they are illegal to breed and sell in AZ. I've never seen anyone have one that hasn't adopted from our state regulated agency.
L
 

Yvonne G

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It was probably hard urates from being so dehydrated. Long warm soaks daily will aid.
 

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