Tortoise upper beak

[dandj]

Our 20 year old Russian tortoise lost part of his beak last year. It has not grown back at all. Should we be concerned?

 

[TaylorTortoise]

Our 20 year old Russian tortoise lost part of his beak last year. It has not grown back at all. Should we be concerned?View attachment 328788

First… this is a Sulcata. Not a Russian. You need to look at the care sheet for a Sulcata and not a Russian for that species. Let me grab some experts

@Yvonne G @Tom

 

[dandj]

First… this is a Sulcata. Not a Russian. You need to look at the care sheet for a Sulcata and not a Russian for that species. Let me grab some experts

@Yvonne G @Tom

My mistake. Sulcata.

 

[TaylorTortoise]

How did it lose part of it’s beak?

My mistake. Sulcata.

how did it lose part of it’s beak?

 

[Warren]

Our 20 year old Russian tortoise lost part of his beak last year. It has not grown back at all. Should we be concerned?View attachment 328788

I'm no expert but from what I'm seeing, your Tortoise needs to see a vet to have his beak trimmed. Looks like this has been a problem for long time, not with the broken beak, the overgrown beak.The piece looks like it broke pretty even, you don’t want the rest of his beak to break or crack higher up into the roof of his mouth. Imagine the infection that would cause.

 

[dandj]

How did it lose part of it’s beak?

how did it lose part of it’s beak?

Most likely from a section of his enclosure that has wrought iron fencing/gate. Since he can see out of it, he occasionally pushes on it with his face.

 

[Tom]

Most likely from a section of his enclosure that has wrought iron fencing/gate. Since he can see out of it, he occasionally pushes on it with his face.

And this is why I constantly tell everyone that they cannot be housed with see-through fencing. Tortoises need a complete visual barrier around the bottom of their enclosure. Line the lower 16" with 8 foot strips of plywood, or something similar before worse damage is done. Having the jagged edges trimmed back will help with comfort and re-growth.