Need some advice about my new Rescued Boxie

[ripper7777777]

This Chelsea I adopted her yesterday from her long time owners, they were seeking someone that could care for her properly, they were aware they dropped the ball.


Anyways, I don't have any Boxies nor am I familiar with them, but her nails seem really long and her shell is a bit beat up and what I would say looks dry.

So I need advice on how to properly care for these things, care sheets really only cover healthy new guys.


Here's some pics, Her shell is rough in spots, but I don't see any real wounds, I'm still cleaning her, I don't want to stress her to much she was really dirty from the dry coir she lived in.

 

[Yvonne G]

Chelsea looks just fine. You can trim the toe nails yourself. Do it in a very bright light or the direct sun and you will be able to see the line of blood inside the nail. You don't want to cut up into that line. Once she starts digging around in her new, moist substrate, those dry spots will go away.

 

[jojodesca]

I have 2 ttbt's...1 I have had for many many years and the other I just got about 6 weeks ago. this is what i do for the new girl...
give a warm soak and use a soft toothbrush to lightly scrub the shell...this will remove dirt and buff out any flakes. do it gently..may take a while to get it..i scrub maybe 2 times a weeks..this will take some time
{for the nails} I let them take their course with this by giving them substrate and dirt to dig in and also logs to climb over..you could take your turtle to the vet for a trim and them maintain it by light buff with a emery board...but if given the right stuff inside their enclosure they can do it themselves
{for the beak} feed on a flat stone similar to slate, I use a sandstone steeping stone from Home Depot. also I provide a cuttlebone for them to chomp on...also i have used an emery board to lightly swipe along the beak. I don't do this alot, after a while they can maintain it with proper nutrition.

Three toes like to eat bugs!..nightcrawlers mealworms, snails, slugs, crickets, butter worms, wax worms, pill bugs, basically if it moves they will eat it. AND most prefer to just eat the "meat"
veggies and fruits like. zucchini, tomatoes, greenbeans, sweet potato, yams, bananas, all types of berries, kiwi, grapes, leafy greens, (NO ICEBERG), apples, pears, nectarines, peaches, squash, etc.

Hope this helps...

 

[turtlemann2]

yeah her nails look a bit long but her shell is sound and she looks good i would definatly give her nails a trim though and then allow for your proper enclosure to maintain their length, enjoy her

 

[ripper7777777]

Thanks all, it's gonna be a long road I'm sure, truthfully I'm surprised she made it, from what little I got before the storms moved in, Austin floods easily, the first owners fed her mainly or only iceburg for 6 years, the second owner fed her the rep-cal (fruity pebbles) and I'm not sure what else, I doubt any bugs or other type animal protein, so I'm hoping the rep cal has been enough to keep her balanced out at least minimal. She lived it what appeared to be the driest setup I've ever seen, it was a typical pet store sulcata setup, bone dry. I think she probably stayed in her water bowl a lot and than when seh left she picked up the dry coir and that got packed on her.

Well they figure she is 15 to 20 years old, so it may take a bit to get her eating right but she sure does seem to like her new moist moss hide and I placed a flat sandstone type rock in front of it so she has to cross it.

I am a bit worried about her rear legs they don't seem to be as strong as they should be, she uses them, but she doesn't stand up all the way. As soon as it's warm, tuesday I think, I plan to let her outside and monitor her from a distance and see if she walks ok when nobody is spooking her.


.

 

[jojodesca]

mine lay low on their back legs..unless they are in a wide open space...then watch out!..whoever said turtles are slow obviously never owned any!..they are fast in the open when they are exploring. But also i would imagine she didn't get much exercise in that small enclosure. so add that and poor nutrition and that equals muscle loss...she should regain it in time..just let her roam around. I fashioned a turtle play area in my living room..I let them roam around in there, so if they have an accident it wipes up and not on my carpet!..lol then I fold it away until next time....

 

[pryncesssc]

I also just adopted a TT boxie and she shell also has some not so perfect areas . The vet said that they are ok because they are not open or anything, they will just never be fully smooth again. Mine also seemed dehydrated and dry when she came home so I let her soak in a tupperware with warm water for about 30 min and I changed the water a few times to keep it warm.

I complied a food list from all the books and internet sources I have read on what to feed boxies .. if u want to PM me , I would be glad to share it (its an excel sheet) . From what I have gathered , greens are the best thing for them along with animal matter and that variety is key !! I try to give mine something different everyday with a little Rep-Cal food mixed in for vitamins and minerals .. hope that helps a little. Good luck

 

[ripper7777777]

mine lay low on their back legs..unless they are in a wide open space...then watch out!..whoever said turtles are slow obviously never owned any!..they are fast in the open when they are exploring. But also i would imagine she didn't get much exercise in that small enclosure. so add that and poor nutrition and that equals muscle loss...she should regain it in time..just let her roam around. I fashioned a turtle play area in my living room..I let them roam around in there, so if they have an accident it wipes up and not on my carpet!..lol then I fold it away until next time....

Yea, at first I was real worried but than I noticed she was using them, it's hard to tell if it's just those really long nails in the way.

We were doing that with a kiddie pool, but that has become a temp redfoot outdoor hangout until I get them a proper enclosure built also.

I also just adopted a TT boxie and she shell also has some not so perfect areas . The vet said that they are ok because they are not open or anything, they will just never be fully smooth again. Mine also seemed dehydrated and dry when she came home so I let her soak in a tupperware with warm water for about 30 min and I changed the water a few times to keep it warm.

I complied a food list from all the books and internet sources I have read on what to feed boxies .. if u want to PM me , I would be glad to share it (its an excel sheet) . From what I have gathered , greens are the best thing for them along with animal matter and that variety is key !! I try to give mine something different everyday with a little Rep-Cal food mixed in for vitamins and minerals .. hope that helps a little. Good luck

Yea, I soaked her for a long while and than as soon as she went in the tank she got in her new paint pan swimming pool and soaked for another 20 minutes.

Yea a food list would be great, i plan to try every type of food and do what I can to get her off the Rep Cal, at least it's not iceburg.

 

[zesty_17]

From what I have read, the pitting that a lot of box turtles get is normal (well, common) and not harmful to the turtle, and occurs in both captive species and wild turtles.

 

[turtlemann2]

it is pretty common indeed but nothing to really worry about