His Royal Lumpiness (for Stephanie, and well, anyone else who would like to see)

[Chewbecca]

As stated in another post, humidity has been REALLY difficult to keep up this winter. I *think* I have it figured out, though, after Stag and I have gone rounds with his shell this winter. Also, Stag is on a bit of a diet, as I explained in the Reptiles Magazine thread.
I think the combo will help his carapace smooth out over time as he grows (he's only a year old).
He's not happy about this new diet, but he's adjusting. Mushrooms are his vice, though.
hahahaha.

Anyway, here's Your Royal Lumpiness, Stagger Lee.
Steph had requested pictures of him.
"NOM NOM NOM TEH MUSHROOMS NOM"

"MORE NOM NOM NOM NOM" (it was his breakfast/feeding time so he didn't go off his diet)

"I head buttz mai nomz."
(No, I do not hand feed him anymore, this was done for the sake of the photoshoot)

I don't care HOW lumpy he is, I still think he's adorable.

He still prefers that I hand feed and move his food to his mouth for him, but working for his food is part of the new Stagger Lee diet!

"But this MAI mushroom, hooman!"

MOSSHEAD!

---

He was getting too big for his groovy jacuzzi, so I replaced it with a black plastic folgers lid.

I love watching him climb out of it. He "gets" this more than he ever "got" his groovy jacuzzi.

 

[terracolson]

I dont know the story of this guy, i guess i need to find out

 

[Chewbecca]

Oh, it's just that Stag was 2 1/2" at 6 months and not really growing. He was healthy (always has been), but he was just small.
I was advised to up his food intake, SLIGHTLY.
I took that advice and ran with it, upping his food intake probably a bit more than I was advised.
I was told that it probably caused him to grow too much too fast.
Which caused him to be "lumpy".

Humidity is also hard for me to keep up. I *think* I have it figured out now, but before recently, it was not easy for me. It's hard to get humidity right without SOAKING things, you know?

 

[Stephanie Logan]

FINALLY!!!

Photos of my favorite young redfoot. Isn't he cute? Isn't his coloring awesome? Don't you just love the "looks" he gives the camera? Can't you just hear his thoughts through the captions?

He makes me think of a Harley rider. Even the name fits--Stagger Lee.

He's getting so big! Absolutely as irresistable as he's always been.

Thanks for the Stagger fix.

 

[Chewbecca]

Aw, thanks, Steph!

His mother is actually a Brazilian, but Stagger does not show it. His plasteron is not marbled AT ALL.
But, imo, he inherited the beautiful coloring.
Well, I guess he appears more "orange" than "red", but I've always admired his coloring.
When I was looking for a redfoot, I didn't care about coloring or locale, all I cared about was getting a CUTE, healthy little tortoise.
And then I got my Stagger Lee the Tortimus (one of his many titles), and I couldn't be happier. He's got more personality than any reptile I've ever owned.
He's a COMPLETE ham for the camera or any interaction.

BUT! He will hiss spit at me. It's not exactly a hiss, it's like when a cat hisses at you, and they do that hiss/spit sound? That's what it sounds like.
He'll do it if I have to pick him up, and I just grab him instead of saying his name and letting him know I'm coming in for him. Or if I drop his food in front of him and it startles him.
He's getting older, and becoming more courageous because when he's startled, instead of sucking into his shell, he'll hiss/spit. Let me see if I can come up with a spelling for the sound:
fffftttt!

It's really cute. He sasses me now. As if my dog talking smack to me wasn't enough, now the tortoise does it.

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Hmmm...before recently, that's a new one on me. I think Stagger Lee is still adorable and is not *too* lumpy.
When I have a humidity problem I moisten the soil and put a sheet of foil over the habitat. That holds the moisture in...worked for me...

 

[Chewbecca]

Hmmm...before recently, that's a new one on me. I think Stagger Lee is still adorable and is not *too* lumpy.
When I have a humidity problem I moisten the soil and put a sheet of foil over the habitat. That holds the moisture in...worked for me...

Thanks, Maggie.
Well, I have his enclosure with his heat emitter screwed into a board that acts as a half lid to his enclosure, the other half I use a piece of cut plexi glass.
In the spring my husband will be building Stagger his big boy tort table!
I'm TOTALLY excited about it because it'll look nice since we're going to be putting Stag in the livingroom "on display".

I just had to up the mistings and toss his moss more to even out the humidity without it getting to dry and too wet.
Does that make sense?
His top layer of moss would dry out, and instead of tossing it as often as I should have, I would just mist that layer down which was only SOAKING the substrate, but not doing much for the ambient humidity of his enclosure.

 

[dreadyA]

Hahaha,I was new to the forum when I first saw threads on this lil' Guy. Quite a character. I missed his little scenarios.
Welcome back staggie!

---

Have you tried cypress mulch? This did me wonders with my redfoot

 

[Chewbecca]

hehehehe, thanks!
He has the best tortoise personality ever. SUCH spunk and sass. So cute.

I know his breeder (RedfootNerd aka Terry K.) uses cypress mulch for his guys, but I *think* when they are as young as Stagger, he uses sphagnum moss. I think. Maybe he'll chime in and correct me if I'm wrong?

Does cypress mulch hold moisture better?
I don't want it to hold TOOOO much moisture because then we'll get into shell rot territory, and I've already been there and done that, and don't wish to return.

 

[dreadyA]

Nah, the top layer dries out kinda fast but retains moisture within very well

 

[Stephanie Logan]

OK, I know some of you may have seen this, but I saw it just after I joined the Forum, and I almost fell off my chair laughing. It's called "Stagger eats mushrooms and poop." It really is a TFO classic, almost a "Bob" level!

I got totally hooked on Stagger Lee as a result of this thread, so if you're a relative newbie here, take a look:

http://tortoiseforum.org/thread-8678.html

 

[Chewbecca]

OK, I know some of you may have seen this, but I saw it just after I joined the Forum, and I almost fell off my chair laughing. It's called "Stagger eats mushrooms and poop." It really is a TFO classic, almost a "Bob" level!

I got totally hooked on Stagger Lee as a result of this thread, so if you're a relative newbie here, take a look:

http://tortoiseforum.org/thread-8678.html

ohmygod. You dug up the MUSHROOM and POO thread! hahahaha! oh man.
Stagger and his poo.
I always catch him eating it, too, when I don't have my camera handy.
He viciously went after his feces the other day. I said to him, "What the heck has gotten into you that you need to rabidly rip into your turds, Stagger???"

AND OH MY! My little guy has gotten SOOO BIG!
He was SOOOO tiny there!
He's all bigger now.
He barely fits into that groovy jacuzzi, and I had to replace it with a bigger lid
I just hope he stays cute forever!

 

[Meg90]

Do you have a picture from the side? He's a beautiful guy--but that doesn't look like pyramiding to me. He looks like his shell is going concave, the opposite of pyramiding.

Did Terry say it was from humidity and his diet? My kids eat up a storm, but that hasn't caused any shell problems. My youngest looks like she drinks miracle grow--she puts on SCL so fast.

You got UVB on him? I know the Nerd doesn't recommend it in his care sheet.

I'm glad to see you're back! A bit OT but would you care to do a thread on ya chewie for me (with pics of course)? I've put a downpayment on a girl of my own--and I'm having chahoua with-draws because I'm waiting for nicer weather. I'd love to see his enclosure as well, if you don't mind.

 

[terryo]

I can't see any pyramiding, if that's what you mean. Maybe you can post a side view. Of course he's just as cute as ever. I was looking at the old thread and he has grown a lot. He's always been so colorful.
I've always used a 10.0 UVB since Pio was a month old. Terry K. recommends a plant light, but I figured it couldn't hurt.
Meg...you're getting a Redfoot? A Cherry? What?

 

[DoctorCosmonaut]

What a cutie ^.^ He is looking good to me!

 

[Meg90]

I can't see any pyramiding, if that's what you mean. Maybe you can post a side view. Of course he's just as cute as ever. I was looking at the old thread and he has grown a lot. He's always been so colorful.
I've always used a 10.0 UVB since Pio was a month old. Terry K. recommends a plant light, but I figured it couldn't hurt.
Meg...you're getting a Redfoot? A Cherry? What?

A chahoua gecko. Its another Rhac species, like my cresties.

But I have such an appreciation for redfoots now, that someday, I will get my own little baby! Almost bit the bullet at the Tinley show a few months ago! I'm just short on space at the moment

 

[Chewbecca]

Do you have a picture from the side? He's a beautiful guy--but that doesn't look like pyramiding to me. He looks like his shell is going concave, the opposite of pyramiding.

Did Terry say it was from humidity and his diet? My kids eat up a storm, but that hasn't caused any shell problems. My youngest looks like she drinks miracle grow--she puts on SCL so fast.

You got UVB on him? I know the Nerd doesn't recommend it in his care sheet.

I'm glad to see you're back! A bit OT but would you care to do a thread on ya chewie for me (with pics of course)? I've put a downpayment on a girl of my own--and I'm having chahoua with-draws because I'm waiting for nicer weather. I'd love to see his enclosure as well, if you don't mind.

You know, Meg, you are right. It does appear as though his scutes (more the inside area of them) are going concave, I just the edges were growing up.
And that's what was explained to me.
Not that he's pyramiding, but that he his a growth spurt too quickly (like, I kid you not, I swear he grew 1" in a week), causing his edges to grow up.
But I was told that if I cut back on his food intake, the rest of him would catch up.
Humidity was also spoken about, though.
It's very small, and most don't notice, in fact, only you tortoise people would notice it (and me, too, because I look at him so many times a day).
But he is healthy. Very healthy.
He's never had eye discharge, he eats and drinks just fine, and he moves just fine.

No, no UVB. I'm scared to put UVB on him, and I have been directed not to.
Stagger is my first tortoise, so I kind of do as Terry says (for the most part), since he knows more about redfoots than I do.
I mean, not to sound like I just mindlessly do things people tell me to, but this shell issue has just recently popped up.
And if it IS a D3/calcium issue, then perhaps it is just now showing up because I brought him outside so much during the summer? And maybe now I'm just seeing what it's doing to his shell? I don't know?
I just don't want pyramiding. I want my red foot to be smooth and pretty.

I will post some pictures of Pablo Honey (chahoua) in a different thread for you.
I haven't taken pics of him in a couple months, though, because I moved him to a big enclosure downstairs.
And he's the DEVIL, so I take him out as little as possible.

 

[Meg90]

IMO I'd get a tube light for UVB on him, unless he's going out in the summer every day or so. I don't think its his diet, and I don't think that's pyramiding. It looks like a sign of MBD. Squashed shells are usually the fore-running symptom. Its a tortoise's shape that can really broadcast their ailments, as we've all seen on here with all the sullies.

See on the front of him in those pictures, how it looks like he has a "fold" in his scutes? That's usually a baby thing--from being squashed in an egg, but he's no teeny baby anymore. Is his shell hard when you press on it? Does the carapace have some give to it?

And thanks for the thread on Pablo! I can't wait to see it.

 

[Chewbecca]

But if he had MBD...would he have grown in size as much as he is in the short amount of time he has? He's grown over an 1" since he was 8 months old. So, in 4 months, he grew over an inch.
Or does MBD not affect growth? I'm asking because I honestly do not know.

Wouldn't he be sluggish or not as active if he had MBD?
Because he's pretty active right now and gets along just fine.
Again, I'm asking because I've never dealt with ANY creature that has had MBD before.
He's VERY strong, too.
VERY. Stronger than I'd ever imagine a tortoise of his size being.

---

And that's a "no" on any softness on his carapace or plastron.

 

[Meg90]

Good. If he's not soft--that's good. And if he's active, maybe its just a fluke.

There's no hard and fast rules in the reptile world. Can you post some side pics? I don't think he has MBD--it was just a thought. But I use UVB on all my torts, so I recommend it to others.