Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have adopted a Sulcata that is about 17 inches, ( Already have one that is about 12 inches).
After his arrival I have found that he had a VERY soft shell.
I have been looking on the net trying to find information on rehabing.. All I could find was plenty of sun and Calcium which is something I was already gonna do.

Is there any more information I can gather on this? Anyone ever go through this and how long does it take to rehab a soft shell on a Sulcata? I know it is all a variable but just a round about idea.

Thanks for any information !

how soft are we talkin here? the plastron or the carapace or both? and to what extent? is it pyramided badly? do you know of the previous conditions ect?
more info would be helpful.

How do you gauge the softness.. I would rate it on a scale of 1 - 10 with 10 being the bad end.. about a 7.

Do not know anything at all of how he was kept before.
There is some pyrmiding going on, but I have seen MUCH worse..

Does this help at all?

plastron and the carapace

wow never seen one as an adult with a soft shell
top or bottom?
mazuri has d3 in it
cuttlebone in the yard helps for calcium also
i might bring that one in if you actually have a vet that knows anything about tortoises
be specific or post a picture to make things easy
i will ask my vet to check out your post if you put a pic
he is a friend and shops in my store 3 times a week
we always try to help if we can
He has worked with herps for years .
one of the few around here
was this something that just occured or has this always been a problem that has gotten worse?
hope he is okay
jeff
planet reptiles

Sunlight & calcium supplementation are good starts but if your large sulcata has a soft shell he probably also has other health problems.

Best advice: see a qualified reptile vet ASAP.

The important thing is not to try and fix the problem too quickly.

The suggestion of using Mazuri, cuttle bone/calcium carbonate and a good outdoor grazing area is a good one.

It is most likely going to take a long time to correct the problem of the soft shell but if the tortoise is active and healthy I'll bet you can turn it around.

The suggestion of seeing a vet is a good one because it can take a bunch of unknowns out of the equation.

What you'd like to do is get blood work done (about $30) and an xray (about another $30)to rule out stones along with a fecal (again $30) to rule parasites. The visit shouldn't be more than $150 total and it's probably less than that.

With this info a good herp vet can give you a good nutritional course of action although the above general info should be enough.

The main reason for the vet visit is to reveal any more serious problems which might be present which is likley as another person mentioned.
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Ed @ Tortoise Keepers
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

i'm with Ed
i talk to the vet this morning he said to take that one in
it could be multiple problems and really it is just not worth waiting
i believe in preventative maintenance with torts
mazuri and other calcium supplements with the sun and a quality diet seem to prevent most problems.
but we must go the extra step with the diet
i even grow most of my own veggies and greens to ensure they are healthy
they are grazers that must be fed a quality varied diet similar to what they would find in there natural habitats
hope it works out for you
jeff

Thanks for the info...
Got app for Vet tomorrow at 3.

He is highly mobile which is good and is eating well. I was concerned about over doing it with Calcuim.