New Mexico Leo Tort

AbbyLee22

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Oct 27, 2014
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98
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New Mexico
Hello all! I just wanted to give a quick intro to myself and my Leopard Tortoise, Jesse. I am a 29 year old mother of 3 (skin-kids, many fur and scaled kids too) living here in sunny New Mexico. I have had critters my entire life, as most of us avid animal lovers do I am sure. Jesse, however, is my first tortoise. My husband and I have had many aquatic turtles throughout the years and as a child we kept a box turtle or two as 'pets' as well. I got Jesse as a birthday gift from my husband from an online source about 4 years ago. He was a tiny hatchling, likely just a few weeks (MAYBE days...) old.
This was Jessie his first day home (on the paper for scale):

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I try to be the best pet owner I can be (ie we feed our ferrets and dogs a pure raw diet) and did as much research as possible before bringing home this little guy. I tried to educate myself on the proper lighting, humidity (however this seems to be varied info...) and proper grasses and supplements and everything. We built him a 2ft wide x 7ft long x 2 ft tall tort table that housed him comfortably, for the time being of course.
This is Jesse in his 'new home' at the time (we also feed hays, this was just kale day)
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When Jesse was about a year old he had a run in with our Labrador. I know, BIG no-no, but things happen. He was rushed to our local herp vet and kept for 2 days to clean and monitor his two punctures on the top of his shell and one underneath. He was sent home with a white cream (I THINK it was an antibiotic..) to apply after cleaning with a sterile solution 3 times a day. Luckily he pulled through and you can barely tell there was an injury. I can, because I know where it is and it hurts my heart when I see it. Poor guy.

As he grew, I noticed a year or so in that his shell wasn't as flat as it was as a small baby. I tried adjusting the humidity, tried adding more supplements, tried varying his diet to more grasses rather than leafy greens. This is a pic taken about a year ago, so he would have been about 3ish:

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These photos were taken about 6 months ago:

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We knew he was growing out of his tort table, so the last thing I can think of is he is not getting enough exercise. I have read that can cause pyramiding also. Luckily, about 9 months ago we purchased out own home and about a month ago were approved to build Jess's new enclosure. We decided on a approx. 10 ft x 20 ft enclosure for him that appears to be secure (I know that will get tested) that I hope to keep him in for another few years. We are bringing him in at night now that it's dropping into the 60s, but our daytime temps are still a nice 80-90ish. I planted a mixture I purchased from carolinapetsupply that is filled with great kales, grasses, dandelions etc (it is the grazing Tortoise mix). I also use her TNT supplement (sorry, not trying to advertise, just making sure it's ok...) that I add to his 'dinner' portions that he gets at evenings. Here are some shots (I heard you all like photos :0) )
This is just a week or so after planting
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Here is what it looks like today, about a month in (sorry for the ferret, no torts were harmed by the meat eatsing ferrets. Jesse was tucked away in his inside enclosure, but the ferts must check out the new space, spoiled as they are)
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Any more suggestions or comments on how he looks are always appreciated. I, just like you all, just want what is best for him. Could the dog bite injuries be related to the pyramiding, especially in those particular areas? Also, how can you tell if they are too thin/overweight?

I belong to an AMAZING ferret forum that helped me transition my ferrets over to a healthier raw diet and I hope to gain the same knowledge and understanding of my shelled friend as well. Thank you all.
 

wellington

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Hello,and Welcome:). Your leopard dis oyramided due to not a high enough humidity. It needed to be 80% all the time or higher with temps no lower then 80. Now, you can help him with giving him a humid hide to sleep in. Read Toms,threads below in my post for the info,you wished you had found years ago. Don't worry, there are many of us that wish we had found it sooner. He is still a beautiful leopard.
 

Yvonne G

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Hi, Abby, and welcome to the Forum!

Like Barb said, the pyramiding is due to not enough moisture in his habitat and this was needed mostly in the first year of his life. The sulcatas and leopards hatch in Africa during the monsoon season...the ground is wet, plenty of greenery growing and the weather is hot! His pyramiding will never smooth out, but like Barb said, he can benefit from having a humid hiding place to retreat to.
 

AbbyLee22

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Oct 27, 2014
Messages
98
Location (City and/or State)
New Mexico
It's too bad you can't reverse the damage. I will look into humid enclosures and get something built very soon. It is frustrating all the conflicting info. I remember reading that humidity is BAD because it caused respiratory issues. Soaking was really the only thing I could find everywhere. Jesse loves his soaks :0)
 

Levi the Leopard

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Welcome!

Humidity isn't "bad"..temps that drop into the 70sF while it's humid is bad. Unfortunately all that info out there is a bit off...

If you do decide to offer Jesse a humid retreat, make sure it's warm.

My leopard has free roam of the whole backyard. He has his own heated tort house that is kept moderately humid. I also have the heater run on a thermostat to make sure the temp inside never drops below 77F... don't want him getting sick!
 
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AbbyLee22

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5 Year Member
Joined
Oct 27, 2014
Messages
98
Location (City and/or State)
New Mexico
I stayed up WAY too late reading about all these turtle boxes for outdoors. I have some really great ideas. Luckily he is small enough to bring indoors at night now that it's colder, but I know that won't always be.
 

Alaskamike

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Jul 2, 2014
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Welcome. Don't fret over the shell now. You are doing the important thing in changing his care now. :).
Husbandry of tortoises has improved by leaps and bounds the past few years. Allot of sites are way outdated.
I've found this forum to be on the leading edge
 
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