HELP! I jus caught my tortoise consuming dog poop

[sulcata101]

My tortoise was outside when i noticed him eating something strange,I didn't notice it was dog poop until i got a better look. I quickly got him away from it and got him to drink water to flush it out and now i'm feeding him lettuce. Is there anything else i can do and will he be ok?! (There has never been dog poop in my yard and i don't know how it got there). Thank you for your help.

 

[G-stars]

Relax, he will be fine. A lot of tortoises like eating feces for whatever reason. The only concern I would have is if the dog had worms.

 

[sulcata101]

Relax, he will be fine. A lot of tortoises like eating feces for whatever reason. The only concern I would have is if the dog had worms.

Thank you, what a relief

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Dogs also eat tort poop FYI

 

[Pearly]

Yeap! Unfortunately our beloved pets are ... poop-eaters

 

[dmmj]

you only have to worry if the dog who left the surprise is on heartworm medicine.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

you only have to worry if the dog who left the surprise is on heartworm medicine.

In my case YES.
No harm done apparently.

 

[Levi the Leopard]

In my case YES.
No harm done apparently.

Can you elaborate a bit? I'd honestly like to hear more.

Are you saying that your dog is on heartworm medication and your tortoise regularly eats this poop with no ill effect?
If so, how long would you say this had been going on. A few weeks, a few years? What medication is it exactly? How often is the tort consuming it?

Again, I'm honestly asking you because I'm curious.

 

[MPRC]

Welcome to the less talked about side of tortoise enslavement. They love poop.

 

[Bass.Isles]

I'm not certain whether all of y'all are talking about relatively fresh dog feces, but my 2 year old sulcata loves eating OLD dog feces. like when they turn that ash color and are so old that they start crumbling. will this hurt her? I stop her when I catch her doing it but it's like she's drawn to it and tracks it down/seeks it out. WTH?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Can you elaborate a bit? I'd honestly like to hear more.

Are you saying that your dog is on heartworm medication and your tortoise regularly eats this poop with no ill effect?
If so, how long would you say this had been going on. A few weeks, a few years? What medication is it exactly? How often is the tort consuming it?

Again, I'm honestly asking you because I'm curious.

My dog IS on heartworm meds and my tortoises do find some when they are roaming the yard.
It's not very often.
It's a 2lb dog.

 

[deadheadvet]

I would be very careful allowing the Tortoise to move freely around the yard where Dog feces is available. Dogs excrete Heartworm preventative through the urine and feces. A lot of the preventives have Ivermectin in them which Tortoises are very sensitive to. Can be fatal. Also the new flea/tick products are in the Isoxozoline family which has its issues w/ Tortoises as well. There have been reports in Africa where cattle are dewormed w/ Ivermectin and dung piles have killed native species of non mammals due to the amount of Ivermectin present. Best advice is to scoop the poop and then you are good to go.

 

[Pearly]

I would be very careful allowing the Tortoise to move freely around the yard where Dog feces is available. Dogs excrete Heartworm preventative through the urine and feces. A lot of the preventives have Ivermectin in them which Tortoises are very sensitive to. Can be fatal. Also the new flea/tick products are in the Isoxozoline family which has its issues w/ Tortoises as well. There have been reports in Africa where cattle are dewormed w/ Ivermectin and dung piles have killed native species of non mammals due to the amount of Ivermectin present. Best advice is to scoop the poop and then you are good to go.

Thanks for explaining this. My outdoor enclosure does not have a screen on top, so potential for neighborhood animal visit is there. This is good to know bcs I'll be alert to scan the enclosure for presence of animal poo and scoop it out bfr putting my torts out for the day

 

[MPRC]

I totally spaced that people have to treat for heartworm in tortoise conducive environments. I live in Oregon and it's not a problem here. People don't even protect against it unless they travel.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

It's hard to locate 2 pound chihuahua poop.
They look like large raisins.
But as a rule, my tortoises remain in their enclosure unless it's down for maintenance or repairs. And on the flip side...a dog will also eat tortoise poop.