Help (soft, flexible shell)

Popcorns17

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ImageUploadedByTortoise Forum1462020822.245120.jpgwhat is wrong with his shell it also feel soft. He is a year old he is in a 20 gallon tank 75 cool side and around 90 in basking with a 40to 50 % humidity his bulb is a 125 watt mercury vapor bulb
 

keepergale

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In a tank that small it is pretty hard to create a true basking area, cool side, warm side. The shell looks good. Is the shell soft? If so what is its calcium source?
 

keepergale

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I intended to ask if the shell is softer than it was. Some flex is normal for some time but it gets increasingly firm.
 

Popcorns17

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Its soft but not super soft like you can push on it and it has a little give but not a lot
 

Yvonne G

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Just a note for your understanding - you may already know this - calcium can't do its job inside the tortoise (making strong bones and shell) without either the real sun or an expensive UVB light. The UVB from either the sun or the UVB light, causes vitamin d3 to be made. Calcium needs that vitamin d3 in order to do its job. Without it, the calcium just gets excreted in the urine.
 

Popcorns17

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The mercury vapor bulb has all those types of light in it and he goes outside
 

Popcorns17

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But thank you so it isn't extremely bad just need to fix a few things and he doesn't require a vet visit
 

tglazie

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Keepergale and Yvonne are both correct. A 20 gallon long is not big enough. A baby that age needs a two foot by four foot enclosure indoors, three by six (at least) outdoors. Other than that, though, your animal looks to be in perfectly fine shape. Babies have some give in their shell well into the three year range. Once they pass that point, the keratin layers tend to increase exponentially, lending to the hardness that is typical of adults.

T.G.
 

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