Shell Shedding?

Caseyaceae

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There is a lot that needs to change with your enclosure. It looks like you’ve been given a lot of outdated information. Your tortoise actually requires a much larger enclosure. Something closer to 4ft x 8ft and if you can go even bigger, that would be preferable. In the wild tortoises walk miles in a day to help aid in the digestion of their food. It also helps keep muscle tone in their legs, keeps their nails trim, amongst other things. The CHE being so close to the aspen (aspen isn’t recommended for tortoise substrate) is a fire waiting to happen. Clamp lamps will all fail eventually. We’ve seen it many times on the forum, killing tortoises and causing fires. It would be best to find another way to secure the fixture asap. As for the height on the CHE, you really need to let your thermometer be your guide. Use digital thermometers in place of the little dial ones. They’re known to be wildly inaccurate. For the UV, the height you need it at will depend on what bulb you’re using. If it’s a T5 HO (10.0 or 12%) then you’ll want to have it closer to 16-18” above ground level.

Here is an excellent care sheet that will explain more about the requirements for your tortoise. If you have any specific questions or are unclear about anything after you read it, don’t hesitate to ask.

Omg ! Thank you so much! This is a huge help. I didn’t realize those issues with the enclosure. So glad I was able to get such speedy input from great experts
 

ZenHerper

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This species does not shed scutes unless they have been seriously damaged full-thickness down to the bone.

How big is s/he? Does s/he fit in the palm of your hand? Or fill your hand? Put a ruler down against a wall, then set her on the ruler and look straight down...how long is s/he from back-to-front of the shell only?

S/he's being kept far too dry if s/he's only a juvenile (and you probably won't know the sex for some time yet). The bumpy appearance of the carapace? That is from being too dry and hot while basking.

But the cracked appearance is quite concerning - has s/he fallen or been dropped or stepped on? If there is no history of physical trauma, then the habitat features are the cause. (Blazing hot CHE too close to the surface burning through the keratin; no dampness in the substrate to create humidity at the surface and keep the growing keratin from hardening too fast.)

CHEs are meant to give environmental warmth, not basking heat. You need an incandescent flood bulb that mimics the sun's light for safe basking.

Follow @Krista S 's info.
 

Diane771

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Hello,

we have an adopted Russian tortoise, from a previous owner, who is 1.75 years old. For a while it looks like her shell was shedding. Something about her shell seemed off as I was looking at it. If anyone can tell me if this looks like it’s shedding or something else (hopefully not shell rot, etc) that would be great.

Her temps are 90-95 in the basking, 75 in the cool, 75 at night with humidity between 40-50. She has aspen, forest floor and coco fiber for her substrate.
Any info would be great. Thanks
No not shedding but growing. I thought like you when Sally appeared that way. The line grows bigger and the fills in with shell She must be having a growing spirt
 

Diane771

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This species does not shed scutes unless they have been seriously damaged full-thickness down to the bone.

How big is s/he? Does s/he fit in the palm of your hand? Or fill your hand? Put a ruler down against a wall, then set her on the ruler and look straight down...how long is s/he from back-to-front of the shell only?

S/he's being kept far too dry if s/he's only a juvenile (and you probably won't know the sex for some time yet). The bumpy appearance of the carapace? That is from being too dry and hot while basking.

But the cracked appearance is quite concerning - has s/he fallen or been dropped or stepped on? If there is no history of physical trauma, then the habitat features are the cause. (Blazing hot CHE too close to the surface burning through the keratin; no dampness in the substrate to create humidity at the surface and keep the growing keratin from hardening too fast.)

CHEs are meant to give environmental warmth, not basking heat. You need an incandescent flood bulb that mimics the sun's light for safe basking.

Follow @Krista S 's info.
You shouldn't tell people that, it's not true. soaking is great but from my experience but the Russian Tortoise is just growing
 

Yvonne G

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You shouldn't tell people that, it's not true. soaking is great but from my experience but the Russian Tortoise is just growing
Diane: the new growth is cracked and very dry. This is environmental. Something is or has in the past burned the new growth.
 

Diane771

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If in doubt take her to a vet. That's what I do since I had Sally
 

Diane771

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Hello,

we have an adopted Russian tortoise, from a previous owner, who is 1.75 years old. For a while it looks like her shell was shedding. Something about her shell seemed off as I was looking at it. If anyone can tell me if this looks like it’s shedding or something else (hopefully not shell rot, etc) that would be great.

Her temps are 90-95 in the basking, 75 in the cool, 75 at night with humidity between 40-50. She has aspen, forest floor and coco fiber for her substrate.
Any info would be great. Thanks
This is Sally and she had a bigger line around her shell but it filled in and she grew, she still has a line to grow some more
 

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biochemnerd808

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Ok, it looks like you have already gotten a lot of good advice, some from keepers who have had tortoises for longer than I've been alive. I'm glad you syre open to advice.
I concur with others that your tortoise is at least 8-10 years old. It was wild-caught. See the ridges in it's shell? Tortoises usually grow 1-2 per year of their life, depending on food availability and weather conditions. A 2 year old Russian tortoise weighs about 200g and is maybe 3-4" long, depending on whether it was raised humid and warm or dry dry.
If your two vets are claiming a year or two of age, they have never seen a hatchling or yearling tortoise in their life, which would make me concerned about their comptetency concerning treating your tortoise. I DO commend you on seeking vet help. That's great that you are willing to, and you clearly want the best for your baby. It's hard to sort through all the info provided online and even in books (to date there are zero US-published RT books that are truly good...I have a couple German ones I like!)

Here is a link to a list that has been compiled on here of vets known to be tortoise competent. Look for your State, or if you are near a State boarder, also look on the other side. https://www.tortoiseforum.org/forums/tortoise-vet-list.126/ ask how often they treat tortoises, ask how often they attend continuing education events specific to tortoise and reptile care.... Many vets (according to several vet friends!) only have spent 1 month studying reptiles, and that's all it takes for them to be allowed to treat them. Finding an actual reptile expert is rare...
 

biochemnerd808

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Oh, and here is a photo of a 2 year old Russian tortoise in my hand. My hand is small.
IMG_20200930_192441_942.jpg

And I (badly) drew a little green 2 year old tortoise in comparison to a 8 or 10 year old tortoise. I have both ages here, raised from hatchling. :)

The green circles in the scutes I drew are what size each scute would be at 2 years. The 'baby' hatchling scute portion (with its many little bumps) and then the rings of new growth around that.

Impossible to tell exactly how old a tortoise is unless you know the hatch date. But the growth rings and size do give somewhat of an idea.

Best of luck with your tortoise. There are many really good articles on here outlining how to build a suitable indoor habitat etc. - get a non contact (infrared) temp gun and measure temps on the shell in the basking spot. The cracking will heal in time, if you increase humidity (use slightly moist topsoil as substrate, and mist the tortoise, and ensure daytime basking temps are 95 degrees F.
Oh, and unless the room the tortoise is in drops below 55 degrees, you don't need night heat.
20210924_153954.jpg
 
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