spur-thighed tortoise

Question
i have had an african spur-thighed tortoise for 8years now,he lived in a 4ft viv,he had u.v and a heat lamp,the last few days hits been very hot here,he has been roaming the garden,like he does every summer.this morning we found him dead.we are devastated,thought he would live a very long time.lately he wouldnt eat greens,only the dried pellets from the pet store.maybe he could have had a vit dificiency? could he have eaten something? the garden is concrete,but there is some gravel.we are dumb-founded.we thought he was in a deep sleep at first,but he smelled a little,and his eyes were open and dried out,is it possible he could have dehydrated? got too hot? do you think it is worth having a post mortem done,i have to know why he died.any suggestions appreciated.thankyou.

Answer
If it is what I think it is, it is 'maladaptation syndrome'- a sort of catch-phrase that covers what happens when a long series of problems just sort of creeps up on a captive animal.

I would bet that the daily cares, while you tried hard, were not what it wanted. For example, an 8 year old Sulcata (a shorter, more commonly used name) should be about adult size, or pushing 20" long. A 4' vivarium would be horribly too small since the housing size we recommend is 8 shell lengths long by 4 shell lengths wide. A 20" tortoise should be in about a 13' x 6.5' habitat- and Sulcatas like space more than most so we would generally recommend doubling that- about 13'x13'. Many experts do not recommend Sulcatas indoors at all.

Sulcatas eat what we call the 'weed diet'- mostly grasses and hays supplemented with flowers, cactus pads, weed and plant leaves, etc. with things like lettuce and grocery store greens only being a small part. Pellets can be used to supplement a diet, but few pellet makers suggest it as the only diet.

Maladaptation syndrome usually slows the tortoise's growth, causes some sort of physical oddities, affects the tortoise's personality, and can go on for years. What often happens is some little thing pushes them over the edge- sudden heating or cooling, the stress of being moved if it is not used to it, dehydration, etc.

You can review the suggested cares at a site like http://www.sulcata-station.org to see if what they suggest match what you were doing.

I am sorry for your loss.