Tortoise Shell Peeling (Why It Happens + What to Do)

Tortoise shell peeling is a natural process that all tortoises go through at some point. But, it can also be a sign that there is something wrong, so let’s see why shell peeling could happen.

A tortoise’s shell can peel due to daily wear and tear, injuries, lack of calcium or vitamin D3, pyramiding, or a shell infection. If the tortoise’s shell isn’t peeling excessively the cause is probably harmless like daily wear and tear, if the peeling is excessive it could be due to an injury or an improper diet.

So, there are quite a few things to look at, but don’t let that intimidate you, it’s actually quite easy to figure out what the problem is, you just have to take a look at a few things.

Why Your Tortoise’s Shell Is Peeling

Let’s start with the most common and less worrying possible reason, daily wear and tear.

Daily Wear and Tear

Tortoises like to climb, hide in thigh spaces and dig, and while doing all of those things they will naturally hit and scratch their shells, and this will over time cause very small scratches to the shell.

While those scratches are completely harmless, over time they will affect the shell. And as a result, the shell will look like it started peeling.

Unlike turtles that regularly shed their shells, tortoises don’t, and most of those scratches will stay with them for a while. But after a while, they will disappear.

The reason why most tortoises don’t look like they are peeling their shells off constantly is that the same thing that caused that small scratch will cause another one and another one, and so on until everything is even.

So, basically, tortoises go through a natural sanding process all the time, sometimes they might hit something a little tougher that will leave a mark, but over time, that mark will fade away, so there is no reason to worry.

Injury

Sometimes, instead of a small scratch, they can end up with a big one. And depending on how deep the injury is, you might need to go and see a vet.

If the scratch is big but not deep you can simply ignore it and wait for it to go away on its own, but if it’s more of a cut or crack than a scratch, then you need to go to a vet as soon as possible.

While tortoise shells get sanded over time and have a natural ability to heal themselves, there is a limit. 

So, make sure to check the area that is peeling and see if it’s not actually hiding a crack or a cut, sometimes they can be hard to spot.

Lack of Calcium

Calcium is what makes a shell hard, without enough calcium a shell will become fragile, and the usual wear and tear will start to damage the shell until it looks like it’s peeling off completely.

Tortoises get their calcium from their food, more precisely from vegetables. But not all vegetables are good for them, some vegetables will actually inhibit the absorption of calcium. And those vegetables that you want to avoid are the ones with phosphorus.

Phosphorus is what gives tortoises shells flexibility, which is great because this little extra flexibility makes them more resistant to bites and other types of impact. But too much phosphorus can also make the shell a lot softer, and fragile.

Most vegetables have a calcium to phosphorus ratio, this ratio can be 1:1, 2:1, 5:1, 1:2, etc.

A 1:1 ratio means that the amount of calcium is equal, or almost equal to the amount of phosphorus. So a vegetable with this ratio is not that great for tortoises, but it’s not harmful either. But if possible such a vegetable should be avoided.

A 1:2 calcium to phosphorus ratio is really bad, there are not many vegetables with this ratio, so don’t worry too much about them. Just remember that if a vegetable has more potassium than calcium you should keep it away from your tortoise.

A 2:1 ratio is great, and this is what you should be aiming for, if the ratio goes higher it’s ok, but ideally this is the ratio that you are looking for.

At the end of the article, I will post a table with some of the most common vegetables that you will find in a supermarket and their calcium to phosphorus ratio.

In case your tortoise seems to lack calcium in its diet, then you might also want to consider some calcium supplements, more exactly calcium powder.

The best way that I’ve found to use calcium powder is to take a plastic bag, put some calcium powder in it, add some food, and then some water, so the calcium will stick to the food. If you just sprinkle it on top of the food most of it will go to waste.

If you look for calcium powder for reptiles you will notice that there are two types, one with vitamin D3 and one without D3.

Vitamin D3 allows your tortoise to assimilate and make use of the calcium that you are giving it. Without D3 all that calcium won’t do anything. D3 usually comes from the sun, or from the basking area, in the case of pet tortoises.

So even if you get calcium powder with D3, you still need to make sure that your tortoise has a proper basking area from where it will get all the D3 that it needs.

Lack of Vitamin D3

Tortoises get their D3 from the basking area, which should be equipped with two light bulbs, one that provides heat, and one that provides UVB light.

The UVB bulb is the one that replicates the effects of the sun and provides vitamin D3 for your tortoise.

Both bulbs are very important for the health of your tortoiseand need to be placed in a certain way in order to be effective. If the bulb is too far, its effects will be diminished. If the bulb is too close it can lead to burns or other health problems.

In the article Best Tortoise Light Bulb (Illustrated Buyers Guide) I have an in-depth guide on how to choose the correct wattage and how far you should place it from your tortoise. Here is a short extract about the UVB bulb, the one that is responsible for vitamin D3.

When it comes to choosing UVB bulbs things are a little more complicated due to the huge variety of wattages, in which UVB bulbs can be found. And then there is the fact that most manufacturers have a different rating system, and some of them have no instructions at all.

So, for UVB bulbs, I am going to give you the exact distance for a few bulbs that I’ve used before that come from a reputable manufacturer, and I will provide links to Amazon, where you can get them

And in case you have something between the UVB bulb, like a net, or a grill, you want to move the bulb closer by one inch, as anything in between the tortoise and the bulb will reduce the amount of UVB rays.

One more thing to keep in mind is that UVB bulbs will stop producing UVB rays, way before they will stop producing light. On average I would say that a UVB bulb only produces UVB rays for only half of its lifespan. I measured the amount of UVB light produced by the bulbs and noticed that after about 6 months, the amount drops considerably, so I change my light bulbs at around 6 months, and I would advise you to do the same.

And if you want to measure how much UVB light your bulb produces you can use this device. While it’s a little bit expensive, overall it will save you money since you will know exactly when the bulbs run out of UVB light, and it will help your tortoise remain healthy. But it’s not a requirement.

Pyramiding

Pyramiding is a tortoise affection where the shell grows too much, and sometimes as a result it can create the impression of peeling.

Here is a picture of a tortoise with severe pyramiding:

Unfortunately, pyramiding is irreversible, but fortunately, it won’t affect the health of a tortoise until it becomes very severe, like in the photo above.

Pyramiding happens due to excessive proteins in the diet of a tortoise, and the only way to stop it is to reduce the number of proteins.

Tortoises don’t usually need too many proteins, they only need them when they are growing, after that you don’t have to make any effort to add extra proteins to their diet.

Shell Rot

Shell rot is a disease that usually affects the shell from the interior and works its way to the exterior.

Shell rot is usually accompanied by one or more of the following signs:

• Strange indentations in the shell.
• White spots on the shell.
• Pink Spots. In severe cases, the white spots will start to become pink and you will be able to see the flesh underneath the shell.
• Soft spots in the shell in general.

If your tortoise has shell rot, the only appropriate thing to do is to go to the vet. This is a health problem that should only be treated by a specialist.

Renal Failure

Kidneys play an important role in the processing of phosphorus in the body, which affects how calcium is processed.

Renal failure in tortoises is quite rare, and should only be treated by a vet. So I’m not going to give you any tips or suggestions for this problem.

But as I said they are quite rare, so unless you are sure that the peeling is caused by lack of calcium, or an injury, or something that we discussed, you can also kidney problems into account.

What Can You Do to Help

In general there is not much that you can do. If your tortoise’s shell is peeling you have to continue taking care of it as you usually do. And in case you realized that you were doing something wrong, fix that thing and soon enough the peeling will start to get better until it disappears completely.

And make sure that you never try to remove the part that is peeling with your hand. This will hurt the tortoise and damage the shell.

If your tortoise is suffering from shell rot, or it has a cracked shell or any kind of health problem you should go to the vet. While giving your tortoises a good diet, and providing the best conditions can help, they won’t do too much if your tortoise is already sick.

Final Thoughts

So, tortoise shells don’t peal the same way turtle shells do, in most cases, they look like they are peeling, but in reality, is something completely different.

In some cases, it’s something completely harmless, but in some cases, it can be something serious.

The best way to prevent peeling is to ensure that your tortoise has the best living condition possible, this means that it should have a well-balanced diet that contains all the calcium that they need in order to have a healthy shell and to make sure that they have a good basking area.

And as promised here is a list of some of the most common vegetables and their Calcium to Phosphorus ratio:

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