General Care Discussion :: Basking & Not shedding scutes

[cprcheetah]

I have a couple questions/concerns about basking. Zeke MAYBE basks about 1 hour per day. Tank temp is around 76 with basking temp around 87. He is on a healthy diet of Veggies (Carrots, Romaine, Red Leaf Lettuce) with limited Pellets, Protein, Fruit. and is doing great with that. He LOVES his veggie clip and eats his carrot slice EVERY day now. My hubby is home all day and that's about all he basks. He has only shed 4 full scutes since I got him...before today. I put him in a container and made him bask for about 20 minutes and off came about 7 scutes...with slight help from me...but they were sticking up and loaded with algae underneath. How many scutes should he be shedding? He has layers of them that need to come off. Do I need to do 'forced' (meaning put in a container with no other options but to bask) baskings regularly until he gets rid of some of the buildup? My hubby is going to be building him a basking spot above his tank next week (payday). Anyways just curious as to what I should be expecting. Also do they shed their scutes on their Plastrons (bellies?). Here are some pictures of him right after I got him and then taken today. He still has a long ways to go for a completely healthy shell but we have made some progress. Is shedding something that is expected all the time or just periodically?

BEFORE (Right after I got him about a month ago)



AFTER:

[steve]

There is no set formula to determine how much he will shed under certain conditions. I wouldn't force him to bask, but you could put him in an area where he can dry off and you can add a basking light at one end and he can choose to go there if he wishes.

It shouldn't be necessary for you to help him shed though I see no problem in assisting scutes that are already coming off. The scutes on the plastron will shed as well. He looks like he has made some great progress.