tortadise said:Could you post a picture for us. NO the shell should not be flaking off. Could be either too dry(dry rot) or too wet (wet rot) both are fungal issues. So a little more information on the husbandry you have for this guy.
Redari said:They will keep their color patterns, but if you want it to look more shiny you can use a little bit of oil every once in awhile. This is kind of a controversial practice, and some tortoise keepers think it's a bad idea, just so you know.
I use a little bit of virgin coconut oil on my star's shell about once a month, because I think it makes him look nice and I hope it helps keep him moisturized. Just don't do it too often and wipe it off after so it's not goopy.
Also make sure you feed him a very healthy diet and keep him from being dehydrated, that will help keep his shell nice. Lots of variety of greens, succulents, weeds, etc., soaks every day (if a baby), every few days if an adult.
arotester said:i thought torts are beautiful anyway without any oils and lotions.........good food+hyderation=beautiful tort(i don't see any oil in that equation )
Redari said:I'm not sure if anyone has used aloe vera or not. I know people have used olive oil, argon oil and coconut oil, as well as Vita Shell.
Here is Tom's Vita Shell experiment. http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-27085.html#axzz1OkqZ1aQx
Lots of people talk about their experiences with oils of various types in that thread. It seems that lots of people have had really good results by using a small amount every few weeks or so.
Preet917 said:@Arotester and Shanu303
Kindly read and understand my questions properly before posting a question to an already existing question.
Is there a way to improve the coloration of the indian star tort's shell? Or if not, at least maintain the existing coloration?
If there isn't a plausible solution to the first question, kindly provide a solution to the second, if any exist.
And just fyi, indian star tort's display different coloration, some darker and duller and some brighter, hence the question whether improvement in coloration would be possible for the former type of shell. If not, is it possible to maintain the existing coloration?
Redari said:Some of the forum members that I consider the most reliable and most experienced are okay with it in moderation, so I trust them. There has been a lot of progress in tortoise care in the last few decades, and lots of the things that people thought were right or wrong are changing as owners try new things.
And I have actually found that doing the oil once a month or so keeps his shell looking moisturized. Even at the end of the month it still looks nice. Before I did it it looked dry, despite my attempts to keep humidity up.
Also, I have no issues with making my pets look pretty, as long as it doesn't make them uncomfortable or impact their health. If it just improves the look and causes no ill effects, I say go for it. We get pets because we want to give them a good life, but also because we enjoy them.
shanu303 said:Ok let's just not argue further on this..... i've seen threads which have this long spanning argument which ended to no possible EQUAL conclusion for all......
@Preet and Redari you wish to achieve a shine on you torts shell.... well go for it.... it's your call and they're your torts so it's just personal preference.....)
while me and arotester will stick to our belief and we're good with untreated shell.....again its just personal preference
so are we cool on this ???
![]()
Preet917 said:shanu303 said:Ok let's just not argue further on this..... i've seen threads which have this long spanning argument which ended to no possible EQUAL conclusion for all......
@Preet and Redari you wish to achieve a shine on you torts shell.... well go for it.... it's your call and they're your torts so it's just personal preference.....)
while me and arotester will stick to our belief and we're good with untreated shell.....again its just personal preference
so are we cool on this ???
![]()
I don't believe there was any "argument" here on the pros/cons of applying shell "enhancing" substances to a tort's shell.
I look at it as a meaningful debate wherein we can hear out both sides and have practical experiments performed on the same, the results of which may vary depending upon location.
My question was aimed at primarily encouraging a debate or rather a discussion on the topic and I wish for it to continue.
This thread is not to hear out a choice based on personal preference or perception but rather to generate the pros and cons of the topic based on personal experience or even reliable sources.
shanu303 said:Preet917 said:shanu303 said:Ok let's just not argue further on this..... i've seen threads which have this long spanning argument which ended to no possible EQUAL conclusion for all......
@Preet and Redari you wish to achieve a shine on you torts shell.... well go for it.... it's your call and they're your torts so it's just personal preference.....)
while me and arotester will stick to our belief and we're good with untreated shell.....again its just personal preference
so are we cool on this ???
![]()
I don't believe there was any "argument" here on the pros/cons of applying shell "enhancing" substances to a tort's shell.
I look at it as a meaningful debate wherein we can hear out both sides and have practical experiments performed on the same, the results of which may vary depending upon location.
My question was aimed at primarily encouraging a debate or rather a discussion on the topic and I wish for it to continue.
This thread is not to hear out a choice based on personal preference or perception but rather to generate the pros and cons of the topic based on personal experience or even reliable sources.
there is no sense in rekindling a topic which has been left unanswered by the experts for the very reason that the topic in actuality has no end..... again as i said it's personal preference because the oil or ointment does not do anything beneficial to the tort other than improving the look of the shell...... please do read Tom's thread that Redari mentioned.... Tom has "experimentally" proven that there is no such difference in shells treated with vita shell and the ones without it. again it's all cosmetic...... and about this being a debate..... we all are correct in our places because we want something better for our tort.... be it the shine on the shell that you want or the natural "Breathing Shell" look which i and arotester want to be untouched....... so i think there is no further use of discussing what better the oil will do to the tort........ honestly what i want to say is that if the Oil was any good or beneficial... then the torts somehow would have received it on their shell .... nature could have implemented a way to do so.......
but if you still want to debate on this ..... then count me inbut again as i said there is no end to this
![]()
first of all I DIDN'T cage Max........ I RESCUED him....... he was in very horrible condition to be fed tomatoes and cucumber only i have no intention to keep MAX as "PET" forever..... i intended to leave him in the wild,where he came from... but he got used to the feeding "tame " behaviour and couldn't have survived or could become a PREY to other humans... here i leave him and there someone else catches him for pet... i believe in providing as natural as possible environment for the tort...... and for your information tortoises get BETTER nourishment in the wild then in captivity with you or me or anybody....... its nature's balance and mechanism which is way above our HUMAN BRAINS.......indian star tortoises are meant to pyramid to some extent..... that's why they are pyramided in the wild now and always have been....... and have you seen pics of wild sulcata and red foot torts??? they are smooth shelled in the wild.... so how do you justify your statement with that????nature has every living creature's back covered.... those are meant to be smooth by nature and so they are smooth shelled in wild......Stars are meant to pyramid .... the pyramiding helps them turn themselves up if they tip off ...well thats just a theory....... and the oil and ointment does not do any benefit to your tort... it just fulfils your content of seeing the shell shiny........ and Tom is one of the most experienced member around on this forum and he has studied and worked on torts for more than 20 years.... his experimentation and proof isn't flawed and it is completely justified.... although a few months is not that enough but it is sufficient to tell or prove that oil and ointment don't do any better than normal water sprays on shell................ seeing your last statements it seems you haven't read all the pages of Tom's thread mentioned by Redari..... the proof is in front of your eyes..........Preet917 said:shanu303 said:Preet917 said:shanu303 said:Ok let's just not argue further on this..... i've seen threads which have this long spanning argument which ended to no possible EQUAL conclusion for all......
@Preet and Redari you wish to achieve a shine on you torts shell.... well go for it.... it's your call and they're your torts so it's just personal preference.....)
while me and arotester will stick to our belief and we're good with untreated shell.....again its just personal preference
so are we cool on this ???
![]()
I don't believe there was any "argument" here on the pros/cons of applying shell "enhancing" substances to a tort's shell.
I look at it as a meaningful debate wherein we can hear out both sides and have practical experiments performed on the same, the results of which may vary depending upon location.
My question was aimed at primarily encouraging a debate or rather a discussion on the topic and I wish for it to continue.
This thread is not to hear out a choice based on personal preference or perception but rather to generate the pros and cons of the topic based on personal experience or even reliable sources.
there is no sense in rekindling a topic which has been left unanswered by the experts for the very reason that the topic in actuality has no end..... again as i said it's personal preference because the oil or ointment does not do anything beneficial to the tort other than improving the look of the shell...... please do read Tom's thread that Redari mentioned.... Tom has "experimentally" proven that there is no such difference in shells treated with vita shell and the ones without it. again it's all cosmetic...... and about this being a debate..... we all are correct in our places because we want something better for our tort.... be it the shine on the shell that you want or the natural "Breathing Shell" look which i and arotester want to be untouched....... so i think there is no further use of discussing what better the oil will do to the tort........ honestly what i want to say is that if the Oil was any good or beneficial... then the torts somehow would have received it on their shell .... nature could have implemented a way to do so.......
but if you still want to debate on this ..... then count me inbut again as i said there is no end to this
![]()
If you have to make comparisons on an "in the wild" basis for such a topic then it would be prudent to leave your tortoise to fend for itself in the wild. All it's needs would be taken care of by "nature".
Do you know why torts tend to live longer lives in captivity than in the wild? Because many benefits and comforts which they do not enjoy readily or at all in the wild are available to them in captivity.
You can't cage an animal and then justify it's care with an "in the wild" phrase all the time.
For example, pyramiding in the Indian star occurs naturally in the wild whereas it may not occur at all in captivity due to the adequate nourishment which it readily receives. If the "in the wild" argument was always the utmost justification or reason, then one would tend to feed the tort less just so that it's shell would pyramid just like "in the wild".
Sufficient experimentation is required before a solid conclusion can be arrived at. You cannot simply carry out an experiment for a short duration of a couple of weeks or months and then expect conclusive results.