Tanker has bumps on bottom of shell

[Kolorbl1nd]

Hi,
I noticed Tanker has two bumps on the bottom of his shell, the color has warn off and it feels hard not soft. just wanted someones opinion.

 

[RianSeeking]

Hard to tell but could be scrapes? What's he been climbing on?

 

[pdrobber]

have they always been there? It seems most wild caughts have them...could be from wear and tear in the wild, or during transport to the US.

 

[Kolorbl1nd]

have they always been there? It seems most wild caughts have them...could be from wear and tear in the wild, or during transport to the US.

im pretty sure hes always had them it seems like they have gotten worse though. he climbs on and over everything. hes my little dare devil

 

[ascott]

Are you sure they are new bumps? Or perhaps you have been drawn to noticing them due to they now are being worn down from your tortoise activity?? I think they appear finely worn down...maybe there is a rough spot right in the pathway of your tortoise walking path? I would not be concerned but rather would check about the enclosure and maybe arrange so that the pathway is clear (like a piece of slate that is not sunk flat into the soil can create a scrape zone up/off the slate, etc)...

 

[Kolorbl1nd]

Are you sure they are new bumps? Or perhaps you have been drawn to noticing them due to they now are being worn down from your tortoise activity?? I think they appear finely worn down...maybe there is a rough spot right in the pathway of your tortoise walking path? I would not be concerned but rather would check about the enclosure and maybe arrange so that the pathway is clear (like a piece of slate that is not sunk flat into the soil can create a scrape zone up/off the slate, etc)...

ok thank you very much, i will make sure anything rough is out of his way.

 

[ascott]

Just give a peek to make sure that anything that you have in his pathway creates a smooth transition....slate and rocks and the such are also important in the filing of their nails ....so I just want to make sure that my suggestion is received in this way....not get rid of the rough items but rather be sure they are positioned to not offer sharp abrupt edges...

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

have they always been there? It seems most wild caughts have them...could be from wear and tear in the wild, or during transport to the US.

Agreed. Probably from being stacked in crates in transport from Central Asia to the USA. Seems like most wild-caught tortoises have this. Usually heals over, though, unless kept in poor conditions. Looks like yours healed up nicely.

 

[Kolorbl1nd]

have they always been there? It seems most wild caughts have them...could be from wear and tear in the wild, or during transport to the US.

Agreed. Probably from being stacked in crates in transport from Central Asia to the USA. Seems like most wild-caught tortoises have this. Usually heals over, though, unless kept in poor conditions. Looks like yours healed up nicely.

so I shouldn't worry about it?

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

so I shouldn't worry about it?

Not unless it's not healing or getting worse. For example, wet substrate is bad for tortoises anyway, but a tortoise with plastral abrasions is going to be even more sensitive to that, and could develop fungal or bacterial infections that could get worse over time, and eventually even lead to death if untreated.

However, if you follow proper tortoise husbandry, like keep him on a substrate that retains moisture but is not wet (e.g. coco coir), then his plastron should heal just fine. Might leave scars in the scutes, but then that is no longer a health issue, only a cosmetic issue (and it's on the plastron, which no one is going to see anyway).

Besides, it looks like they're healing nicely. Tortoises may heal slowly, but they do have powerful regeneration abilities. Just provide him with good husbandry and a healthy diet, and he'll do fine. As I said, unfortunately, many wild-caught tortoises have such abrasions, but they get over them as long as they have a good home. Both of my guys had abrasions like that, too, and now those minor injuries are gone.