Tortoise-world Forum

this is jesster's tortoise
looks in a really bad way poor thing good thing you got her now she will be looked after, any questions please fire away, that's what we're here for
she is goin to need a lot of tlc




looks like a huge lack of vitamins, minerals, calcium and d3 to me?

Oh no the poor little thing, well done for looking after her now she will have a good home with someone who knows how to look after her.

I was talking to her old owners gardener today and he used to keep reptiles and kept trying to tell them over the years that she needed a UV bulb and a heat lamp. He also reckons that if he hadnt been feeding her leaves from the kitchen garden over the years then she wouldnt have been fed at all!

She lived out 24hours in the summer and in 24 hours in a cardboard box with newspaper over the winter. no heat, no light, scarcely any food, nothing. Oh god it makes me so mad!!!

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By the way, a big thank you to all you guys who played chinese whispers with these pics to get them up here!! lol I'll give you a shout if i need any more advice!!

another pic taken this afternoon


her beak is looking quite long, make sure you've got slate to feed her on, it helps keep the beak in trim, also if you could create an area with some stones especially when she goes outside to keep the claws trim too

By the way, a big thank you to all you guys who played chinese whispers with these pics to get them up here!! lol I'll give you a shout if i need any more advice!!
lol your welcome Jess
i was thinking that maybe a little trip to a specialist reptile vet would be in order just to determine the severity of her mbd
any chance of a plastron and tail shot so we can try id sex :rolleye:

Yep, she has slate in her table and rocks and stones and logs to climb over. It's a pretty big table! She's sleeping now so I'll take some more pics tomorrow. My car is in the garage in the moment but as soon as it's out (come on you part from Sweden!) we'll take a trip to a local reptile specialist vet. I'm afraid that I live miles and miles from anywhere in deepest darkest Cornwall!! Will the vet be able to trim her beak a little or is it best done naturally?

Yes the vet will be able to do it for you.

(02-11-2010 07:50 PM)jesster Wrote: [ -> ]I was talking to her old owners gardener today and he used to keep reptiles and kept trying to tell them over the years that she needed a UV bulb and a heat lamp. He also reckons that if he hadnt been feeding her leaves from the kitchen garden over the years then she wouldnt have been fed at all!

She lived out 24hours in the summer and in 24 hours in a cardboard box with newspaper over the winter. no heat, no light, scarcely any food, nothing. Oh god it makes me so mad!!!

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By the way, a big thank you to all you guys who played chinese whispers with these pics to get them up here!! lol I'll give you a shout if i need any more advice!!

I didn't get the pics by phone, so glad you got these up here. Are you sure your friends gardener has the same tort - outdoors a tortoise woudl not have developed MBD to that extent. I would certainly advise x-rays by a vet who knows exactly what they are looking for. Yes, the vet will be able to trim the beak, it needs doing manually and with a lot of care as the hinge will doubtless be weak due to MBD

I agree this tort needs to see a vet. It make you mad because her first owners could have prevented this with a little research. Sadly we keep seeing this. It's best to see a vet to see where you stand health wise.