Hey everyone, the tortoise in the photos below is Barney. One of my large male sulcatas. He weighs in at around 35-40lbs and is almost 9 years old.
I acquired him a few years back and he was much smaller, with some terrible pyramiding from what I assume could have been poor housing, and low humidity - generally bad care.
My concern is these "broken" pieces of shell along his side, which were there when I obtained him, and are still there. Barney appears to be growing at a nice rate these days, he mows my lawn very well and feeds on quite a varied diet. I'll post the little photos I have on my phone now, and hopefully you all can help me figure out what could have caused this damage to his shell in the past, and if there even is a possible treatment. He, along with all my sulcatas, is vet checked 1-2 times a year as check up fees are only $45, and he seems to be fine every single time according to the vet.
He has over an acre of yard space as his home, and retreats to one of my handful of pens at night.
Sorry for the long post, hope you all can help. I'll post more photos later in the day.
I acquired him a few years back and he was much smaller, with some terrible pyramiding from what I assume could have been poor housing, and low humidity - generally bad care.
My concern is these "broken" pieces of shell along his side, which were there when I obtained him, and are still there. Barney appears to be growing at a nice rate these days, he mows my lawn very well and feeds on quite a varied diet. I'll post the little photos I have on my phone now, and hopefully you all can help me figure out what could have caused this damage to his shell in the past, and if there even is a possible treatment. He, along with all my sulcatas, is vet checked 1-2 times a year as check up fees are only $45, and he seems to be fine every single time according to the vet.
He has over an acre of yard space as his home, and retreats to one of my handful of pens at night.
Sorry for the long post, hope you all can help. I'll post more photos later in the day.