Pyrimiding? Help!

[Andy Kizer]

This is Little Henry, he is about 1 1/2 years old. I am concerned that he is pyramiding. He was at the vet maybe 6 months ago and I was told he looks okay, but I'm not so sure. The first 3 photos are from today, the last is from one year ago for comparison. Thanks!!

 

[phebe121]

Well how often are you soaking him and humidity, temps

 

[Kathy Coles]

It does kinda look like he is. The whole humidity thing is so difficult to achieve. There are lots of posts to prove this. If it was easy to get hot with humidy no one would have a problem. Good luck.

 

[Andy Kizer]

I mist him several times a day. The temperature in the hottest spot it about 94. I purchased a Reptifogger (I think that's the name), but I've been afraid to use it too much - the reptile store I got him from said not even to keep a water bowl in the enclosure due to risk of respiratory infection. I don't agree with that (no water bowl), but I am afraid of keeping him too "wet". I live in AZ, so the natural humidity is very low. Is there any way I can stop the pyramiding before it gets worse? Thank you!

 

[phebe121]

Water bowl is ok as long as its not deep where he can drownd,soaking and keeping humidity up will help

 

[tortdad]

The way to stop it is to increase the humidity. You must maintain a constant high humidity level and the is NO way you can do that in AZ without a lot of work or use a closed chamber.

No water bowl, that's just bad advice. You need to offer water for them at all time and increase the humidity. A RI will happen with high humidity only if you let the temps drop too low. What humidity are you holding now?


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

 

[tortdad]

Tell us what your 4 temps are, what your humidity level is, and show us pics of your set up.


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

 

[johnsonnboswell]

You need to change your substrate to something that holds moisture. Not wood chips.

Spraying is inadequate. My hands hurt just thinking about how long that would take to be enough. It puts a little moisture in the air & on the top surface, but it does not penetrate deep enough or add enough volume. The bottom layer of the habitat must be slightly damp, even when the top is dry. Just pour water in as if you're watering a garden bed.

Do not let your tortoise walk around the house. Too dry, too many hazards. You may want to cover the habitat to keep the humidity up if the substrate change and watering are not enough. Air conditioning and heating both dry the air.

An outdoor habitat is wonderful for sun and space. In the warm months you can hose down the outdoor habitat to make rain.

Your pet store gives bad advice. That's very common.

 

[Andy Kizer]

The way to stop it is to increase the humidity. You must maintain a constant high humidity level and the is NO way you can do that in AZ without a lot of work or use a closed chamber.

No water bowl, that's just bad advice. You need to offer water for them at all time and increase the humidity. A RI will happen with high humidity only if you let the temps drop too low. What humidity are you holding now?


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

Thanks. I just checked the humidity this morning and it's only 45%.

 

[Andy Kizer]

Tell us what your 4 temps are, what your humidity level is, and show us pics of your set up.


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

It's 94 under the lamp, not sure everywhere else, but I will check. Here is the set-up:

 

[Andy Kizer]

You need to change your substrate to something that holds moisture. Not wood chips.

Spraying is inadequate. My hands hurt just thinking about how long that would take to be enough. It puts a little moisture in the air & on the top surface, but it does not penetrate deep enough or add enough volume. The bottom layer of the habitat must be slightly damp, even when the top is dry. Just pour water in as if you're watering a garden bed.

Do not let your tortoise walk around the house. Too dry, too many hazards. You may want to cover the habitat to keep the humidity up if the substrate change and watering are not enough. Air conditioning and heating both dry the air.

An outdoor habitat is wonderful for sun and space. In the warm months you can hose down the outdoor habitat to make rain.

Your pet store gives bad advice. That's very common.

Thank you. What substrate do you recommend? The enclosure is made out of wood. Would it still be okay to pour water in? He doesn't walk around the house, I just had him out to take a photo .

 

[tortdad]

Before you go changing anything you need to know your 4 temps and humidity levels. Temps for warm side, cool side, basking area, and night time low. If you increase the humidity and your night time temps are low your tort will get sick. How do you add heat at night?


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

 

[johnsonnboswell]

You might want to water proof or line the wooden enclosure. Many of us use coconut coir or a mixture of it.

 

[Andy Kizer]

Before you go changing anything you need to know your 4 temps and humidity levels. Temps for warm side, cool side, basking area, and night time low. If you increase the humidity and your night time temps are low your tort will get sick. How do you add heat at night?


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

The warm side is 85... so is the cool side . Basking is 93. I will check nighttime tonight. I don't have any heat at night - I didn't think I needed it in AZ. I'm really not trying to be a horrible tortoise parent. I'm just not very educated in tortoise care, but I really want to learn and provide the best care for my little guy.

 

[Andy Kizer]

You might want to water proof or line the wooden enclosure. Many of us use coconut coir or a mixture of it.

Good idea! Will do. Does the coconut settle after a while? I had pure coconut coir in there for a few days, but it made such a horrible mess that I took it out and put the wood chips back in.

 

[tortdad]

The warm side is 85... so is the cool side . Basking is 93. I will check nighttime tonight. I don't have any heat at night - I didn't think I needed it in AZ. I'm really not trying to be a horrible tortoise parent. I'm just not very educated in tortoise care, but I really want to learn and provide the best care for my little guy.

I think your going to be surprised by how low it can drop at night. What do you do for a UV light?


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

 

[Andy Kizer]

I think your going to be surprised by how low it can drop at night. What do you do for a UV light?


0.0.1 Redfoot (Spike)
0.0.1 Cherryhead Redfoot (Bruce Wayne)
1.0 Sulcata (Hal Jordan)

I have the Solar Glo light, which I believe has UV and heat.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

I mix my coconut coir with a compost from my garden, but good soil would also work. I also use a little sand. Many people on this list do not recommend sand. I find that either compost or soil alone is a hot mess indoors. For my box turtles it's more compost than coir, for my tortoises it's more coir.

 

[phebe121]

The warm side is 85... so is the cool side . Basking is 93. I will check nighttime tonight. I don't have any heat at night - I didn't think I needed it in AZ. I'm really not trying to be a horrible tortoise parent. I'm just not very educated in tortoise care, but I really want to learn and provide the best care for my little guy.

Just stick to this site and youll learn alot i even ready about other kinda of tort just incase i get asked .i have learned so much here i knew nothing before i got to this site

 

[Dan]

My Hermann's tortoise was purchased from a website operating out of Las Vegas and when he arrived he also had pyramiding like yours. Being outside in the sun is great, but dehydration and its attendant worries (pyramiding, kidney issues from urate retention) needed to be addressed. Humidity helps because it slows down the drying out process, but the most important moisture is inside your tortoise. Definitely work on getting your humidity up but more importantly do regular soaks. I would recommend soaking every day and again after time spent outside. By all means offer a water bowl for a young one like yours. With proper hydration, new growth will be flatter and smoother and with time you'll see the shell's development correct itself.