New Addition- Never had a Russian

[badkitty]

Here is the last of our new additions
This one seems too small,shell doesn't look that great.
Looks like it's beak is overgrown but not sure I've never had a Russian but always wanted one.
Husband's friend housed it with 2 large sulcatas and 1 redfoot, the temps were kept high and housed on hay, no natural light ,only store greens and never soaked.Not sure on age I think friend had it for 3 years.
I feel bad for this one and want to get it back in better shape.
I've heard of carrot soaks would that help?
Also what vitamin supplements dos anyone recommend?
Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks Grace

 

[kanalomele]

You have a little male there, with some beak issues for sure. He really could use a trim, his shell looks rather quilted, which is a Russians way of showing MBD. They are not prone to pyramidal scute development. So lots of space outside and an improved diet with as much variety as possible is what he needs. I encourage Russian keepers to think of them as tiny Sulcatas in personality. Males in particular are tiny tanks with loads of sass. Get this guy feeling better with some regular soaking and sunshine and you'll experience for yourself what I mean.

 

[badkitty]

You have a little male there, with some beak issues for sure. He really could use a trim, his shell looks rather quilted, which is a Russians way of showing MBD. They are not prone to pyramidal scute development. So lots of space outside and an improved diet with as much variety as possible is what he needs. I encourage Russian keepers to think of them as tiny Sulcatas in personality. Males in particular are tiny tanks with loads of sass. Get this guy feeling better with some regular soaking and sunshine and you'll experience for yourself what I mean.

Thank you, yeah I knew right away something was wrong. He is a tuff lil guy would hardly stay still for a pic! Would filing the beak down with a emery board work or should I just take it to the vet and have them do it?

 

[kanalomele]

Once it goes past the lower jaw I usually recommend a trim. If you have never done it before I recommend going to the vet and having them SHOW YOU how to do it. Maintenance with an emery board is great.

 

[lynnedit]

Amazingly tough little guys. Good for you!

Agree with above. Might as well have a fecal done and treat if it is a high load.

Your tortoise is lucky; he is going to have a lot of outside time in your area.

 

[biochemnerd808]

Congrats on your new RT, they are loads of fun! So much personality in such a small package! I am glad he is in good hands now... housing RTs with sulcatas AND redfoots, nooooooo. Not sure what the old owner was thinking. The 'quilting' of his shell was likely caused by a mix of not enough humidity, not enough calcium, and not enough UVB.

I agree with kanalomele, your tortoise is definitely past the emery board stage of beak care... we have a wonderful reptile rescue here in our area that trims beaks for free. Is there something like that near you? A turtle club? Sometimes reptile-specific pet stores will give beak trims for a small fee ($8 here) too. Once your vet (or someone else) has shown you how to trim his beak, I have a tutorial with pics on my blog (link in my signature)... but please don't attempt this yourself until you are confident you know how. Once the beak is shorter, you can file it with an emery board every now and then for maintenance.

You may already be familiar with RT care, but here is a great website with extensive info (but user friendly and not overwhelming): www.russiantortoise.net - there is a good care sheet on there, as well as a list of edible plants. I also really like this printable booklet of edible plants, because there are pics right next to the description: http://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/site/files/Booklet 2nd edition_March 2012.pdf

You probably don't need to do babyfood soaks, unless he doesn't start eating after a week. Just do regular warm water soaks for 15 mins daily, offer dark leafy greens daily, and with proper temps and enough space (and not having to compete for food with giant tortoises), he'll likely start eating on his own. For vitamin supplementation, I would recommend using TNT by Carolina Pet Supply. If you sprinkle this on the greens 3x or so per week, and offer cuttlefish bone (although at first you may want to actually sprinkle some calcium, or scrape some cuttlefish bone onto his greens, since he obviously is lacking calcium), you won't need to use any other vitamin supplements.

I agree with Lynne that it wouldn't hurt to have a fecal sample tested for parasites. Having to compete with larger tortoises is stressful, and stress can cause parasite populations to bloom.

Once it goes past the lower jaw I usually recommend a trim. If you have never done it before I recommend going to the vet and having them SHOW YOU how to do it. Maintenance with an emery board is great.

 

[Talka]

To maintain the beak once it's trimmed, I've found ceramic flowerpot bases work REALLY well as plates. They scrape their beak on almost every bite. Carrots once a month also help.

Don't worry about him being small. My RT is only 4" and fully grown. He's totally healthy. Probably had a rough past, but he's fine now.