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musicgurl asked in PetsReptiles · 7 years ago

Do my Russian Tortoises shells look healthy?

I have 2 Russian Tortoises and the large tortoise's shell (on the left side of picture) is getting soft in the middle but it almost looks as if her shell is just growing bigger, and it might be a natural thing. The smaller male tortoise has a ring around the top of the shell the black spots are starting to fade and look really dry. Here are the pictures of both of my Russian Tortoises. They have the proper UVB lighting and they have a UVA basking spot lamp. I give them Reptile Calcium with Vitamin D3 powder on their food. They eat a variety of vegetables and fruit, including carrots, kale, romaine lettuce, cabbage, strawberries, tomatoes, spinach, bananas sometimes. The fruit is not given to them every week. They are fed every day and I put them in water every other day to soak and to stay hydrated. I've taken them to vet a few years ago and she said that it was from the shell growing larger, and it was normal. Just wanted to see if anyone had any input. Thanks!

Sorry about the pictures, these are the best ones that I could get to fit together.

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  • 7 years ago
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    From what I see in the photos, they really don't look very good. By looking at them and hearing the fact that one carapace is soft, I would have tendency to think in two areas. One, as you mentioned, calcium deficiency, the other in terms of too much protein. I would suggest that you switch to a different calcium supplement and ADD MORE than you are using now. You may also have the UV light too far away from them for it to have any effect for calcium absorption or you aren't leaving it on long enough. It should be no more than 18" away from them and left on for a minimum of 8 - 10 hours daily. You also need to change the bulb on a regular basis. As they are used a lot, the lose effectiveness. The lifespan of a UV bulb may only be 1 1/2 - 2 years.

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