Rescue with many issues...advice needed.

[VenusSmurf]

A few years ago (two? three?), a friend showed up at my door with a young female Russian he'd rescued. There's a story to her rescue, but I don't know most of the details. All I know is that the previous owner had not cared for her properly, lost her outside for a few years, and then found her again only after an animal attacked and nearly killed her. The owner decided she wasn't worth the effort of saving and handed her over to my friend.

My friend thankfully has a soul, took her to a vet, and dealt with the life-threatening injuries. After she'd healed enough that she was expected to live, he brought her to me. She was skinny and scarred, her shell was damaged, her legs were so thin I wasn't sure they'd hold her weight, and her eyes were sunken from what I assume was chronic dehydration and a woefully inadequate diet. I've dealt with that in other rescues, though, so I just got her into a suitable enclosure, fixed her diet, and started taking care of her properly.

I honestly don't know if I've had her for two years or three, but she's the exact same size, still has spindly legs, and isn't what anyone would call an active creature (that part doesn't concern me--I have two other Russians that are the tortoise equivalents of couch potatoes. They don't move unless I force them). She currently also has the beginnings of an impacted colon, but I'm dealing with that and don't think it has anything to do with her lack of growth and physical weakness. I'm sending her feces in for another fecal, though her last one from about six months ago came back clean. She's also eating normally.

I don't think this is a case of "Russians grow slowly sometimes, so just be patient". I took in two others about the same size around that time, and though they didn't have the same issues, they've all doubled her size. I've also had enough Russians over the years to know that this isn't just slow growth.

I don't have a good herp vet in my area (and local geography means that I can't just drive to another area, or I would), but the vet I do have couldn't find anything wrong with her.

Any thoughts?

 

[wellington]

First thank you and your friend for caring for this little shelled one.
Are your Russians housed alone or as a group of pairs? Pairs is not good and a group can work if in a very large are with lots of sight barriers.
With this one, I think she needs to be by herself. Make sure the temps, day, night, basking, ambient are all what they should be. Please read the caresheet. Tortoises do everything slow. If nothing has been found to be wrong, and all housing perimeters are correct then I think it's just time you will need.
I rescued a leopard that took a lot of time to catch up to the size he should have been when I tescued him. He couldn't walk right when I got him and that too took longer then I would have thought.
Proper housing, diet and room to exercise along with time will do wonders. She might also just going to be on the skinny side.
@Yvonne G rehabs and rescues a lot of torts. See what she has too say.
A pic of her might help too.