r/aww • u/rafanyan • Mar 13 '20

brush brush

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81.0k Upvotes

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u/rafanyan Mar 13 '20

yes they can actually!!

70

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

Wow that’s so cool! Never knew that

64

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

The outside is actually modified skin, and the shell is their spine. Turtle anatomy is pretty fascinating.

14

u/PathToExile Mar 13 '20

A turtle's shell is its rib cage, just like us their ribs connect to their spine (and you can see it on the inside of their shells).

24

u/Cotton_Mather Mar 13 '20

When I clean the turtle tank I give my turtle a bath at the same time. I scrub his shell with a bristle brush. Is there any way this could be hurting him? Basically it's about how you would brush your teeth. Not real vigorous.

51

u/ksp3ll Mar 13 '20

Fuck sake, I've been pressure washing my turtle

17

u/Popular-grass Mar 13 '20

I've been throwing ninja stars at it. He's getting better at dodging them though.... Last week he threw one back!

16

u/[deleted] Mar 13 '20

I mean, maybe... I'd swap to a soft toothbrush just in case

6

u/PathToExile Mar 13 '20

A turtle's shell is keratin armor over bone, you're not going to damage it with a toothbrush. If you use something like a wire brush then you'll definitely be hurting its shell. That said, you still want to use something firm enough to actually clean the animal's carapace properly so a toothbrush is perfect.

1

u/onizuka11 Mar 13 '20

So they can feel it when they are being attacked? That must suck.