DTCC Team responds: Great question…the underbite could be related to his early MBD, or it may just be genetic – hard to say. You should see a reptile veterinarian so they can determine if your tortoise’s beak can be filed down to help him eat better, or if his underbite is a symptom of a more severe underlying condition. When we have tortoises with significant underbites here at the DTCC, after ruling out other conditions, we feed them mushy tortoise chow and add nutritious treats that are soft enough for them to enjoy. In any case, we find it endearing, so although taking proper care of them is a little more work, it’s totally worth it! Please let us know what your vet says about your tortoise’s condition – we like to learn things from all of our supporters’ experiences as much as we love to share our stories with you!

That’s a great idea! We do file the edge of some tortoise’s shells if the jagged edges pose a risk for injury. The shell is well vascularized, though, meaning it has lots of blood vessels in it, so if we file, it must be done carefully and as superficially as possible. With this tortoise, the jagged parts of the shell were not superficial enough for filing, but now that she is out in a natural enclosure, she is doing great and not re-opening her wounds.

Interestingly, we sometimes need to file not just tortoise’s shells but their nails as well, since tortoises in captivity often do not get to use their nails like they would in the wild. In fact, we had to use a dremel on one tortoise’s nails because they were growing around and into his foot! So those of you who legally have pet desert tortoises, make sure you check their nails and trim them when necessary! And if you have a pet desert tortoise that was not obtained legally, please remember that you can always contact your local U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office to surrender your tortoise, no questions asked, and they will bring it to us here at the DTCC.

Please let your friends know that raising baby desert tortoises, especially in the southeast U.S., may not be a good idea. First and foremost, desert tortoises are a threatened species that by law are not allowed to be transported across state lines or held in captivity outside of Nevada, Arizona, Utah, and California. Secondly, backyard breeding of desert tortoises is usually not successful, even within their natural range, because their light, heat, and nutrient requirements can be hard to meet. We receive hundreds of very sick baby desert tortoises here at the DTCC every year due to these requirements not being met, and more often than not, we are unable to save them. If incubating the eggs is not working, I would bet that the eggs are not viable because the environmental conditions for desert tortoises are not being met: the temperature and humidity in Virginia are not right for desert tortoises, their eggs, or their babies. If your friends live in Virginia, they might be better off raising gopher tortoises, since they are native to the southeast, but again, the temperatures in Virginia may be too cold during winter to allow for proper egg formation in the spring (egg formation begins in the fall and is suspended in winter).

If your friends would like to send us their desert tortoises so we can care for them here at the DTCC, get them back into great desert shape, and have them reproduce here in the Mojave Desert to help us recover the species, please have them contact their local U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They can make all the arrangements with our local FWS here in Las Vegas to transport them here to us (we recently did this with a desert tortoise that was living in Oregon). I could even blog about their adventure and their progress!

Our family has also rescued a desert tortoise. We have had him almost two years now. He is (approx.) four years of age and has a voracious appetite. We have recently tripled the size of his enclosure as he is growing so nicely! His habitat is on our screened-in sun porch as his “doctor” still feels he is too small for a permanent out door habitat (too many hawks and raccoons in our neck of the Southern California boonies). We all have “turns” taking “Michelangelo” for his daily “walk about”. He spends this time under our watchful eye grazing on safe plants and grass and soaking up the sun. He is a joy and the newest addition to our family zoo!

That’s a great picture of the small tortoise! His underbite is, as you said, quite endearing. I wonder if his underbite prevented him from being able to bite off small pieces of hay as he was eating? It’s good to know that he rallied back and is thriving now, thanks to your expert care and nurturing. There are too many instances in the news about neglected and abused animals, so I’m all the more appreciative for what you do and for the fact that you share special stories with us.

I look forward to more tortoise tales!