Russian eye lids a bit swollen he rubs them and not eating

[Elizabeth Tully]

Caspian went to vet yesterday who I liked but suggested strawberries and red pepper. He's about 3 mos old and eye lids a bit swollen. He ate very well first few weeks I had him but then stopped. He did eat the strawberries which I know is not good but it's so tempting when they're not eating. Following vet's advice I rearranged habitat. He felt humid side should be at cooler end. I have a plastic shoebox with spanghum moss that I spray at night. Got it to 85% humidity last night but vet suggested 100%. humid box at 70-75 degrees.. By raising the heated side of substrate I got temp to 100. Vet felt that I had it too cold before at 76. Attached is how it is now. Should I have the whole enclosure humid? And how do I do this without making a wet soggy mess? Any advice welcome. I love this forum!

 

[Tom]

My first two questions are what are you using for substrate and what type of UV bulb are you using?

Also is the substrate a little damp or dry and dusty?

Is it just one eye, or both?

Humid hide should be on the warm side, not the cool side.

And they definitely need a warmer basking spot than 76, so good advice there.

Some thing that many people don't realize is that most vets don't know much about tortoise husbandry. Having a vet degree does not mean a person knows how to take care of tortoises.

 

[Elizabeth Tully]

My first two questions are what are you using for substrate and what type of UV bulb are you using?

Also is the substrate a little damp or dry and dusty?

Is it just one eye, or both?

Humid hide should be on the warm side, not the cool side.

And they definitely need a warmer basking spot than 76, so good advice there.

Some thing that many people don't realize is that most vets don't know much about tortoise husbandry. Having a vet degree does not mean a person knows how to take care of tortoises.

 

[Elizabeth Tully]

Both eyes. Forest Floor 100% natural cypress mulch. Dry except under the humid box. Uvb bulb spiral fluorescent. Old bulb but I bring him out if sunny warm day for an hour or so. Vet suggested Mega Ray Heat and UVB which I will order in a few days. Heat is ceramic.

 

[Elizabeth Tully]

Both eyes. Forest Floor 100% natural cypress mulch. Dry except under the humid box. Uvb bulb spiral fluorescent. Old bulb but I bring him out if sunny warm day for an hour or so. Vet suggested Mega Ray Heat and UVB which I will order in a few days. Heat is ceramic.

 

[Elizabeth Tully]

Ok moving humid box closer to warmer side.

 

[threeboxerlover]

I am not an expert, but I know that many people on here warn against the spiral bulbs as they can damage the baby's eyes. Also, I have hermanns torts but I believe their care is very similar and the humid hide should never get cold - that can make them sick. One of the members here told me right after I got my first tortoise - AVOID BOTH HOT AND DRY and COLD AND WET. There are great care sheets on this site - the Russian care sheet and the Beginners Mistakes care sheet are excellent resources. I re-read the Hermanns and Mistakes sheets almost weekly it seems!! I'm sure one of the experts on here will respond and offer you good advice. I have gotten so much help from the folks on this site - they are truly awesome! Good luck.

 

[Taylor T.]

Turn off that spiral bulb immediately. That could be what is wrong with his eyes.

 

[Tom]

Both eyes. Forest Floor 100% natural cypress mulch. Dry except under the humid box. Uvb bulb spiral fluorescent. Old bulb but I bring him out if sunny warm day for an hour or so. Vet suggested Mega Ray Heat and UVB which I will order in a few days. Heat is ceramic.

I'll share what I know:

• Coil type UV bulbs sometimes burn their eyes. This might be your issue.
• Dry dusty substrate can also be an eye irritant. That could be your issue.
• One of the complaints about cypress mulch is that the pieces are too irregular and sometimes have sharp points. Since it is both eyes, this is probably not your issue, but I don't like cypress mulch anyway. Its not the worst thing you could use, but not the best either.
• For all the non-forest species, using a CHE and florescent UV source without a basking bulb of some sort, doesn't usually work well. For a russian tortoise I would use a 65 watt regular incandescent flood bulb and a long tube for UV and light. If your tortoise goes outside regularly, you don't need indoor UV at all, and a single flood bulb for basking will get the job done. CHEs are good for maintaining night and ambient temps where needed, but you shouldn't need that for a russian.
• MVBs (The Megaray your vet suggested) can work, but they tend to run hot and dry out the carapace which is not good for a growing baby like yours. They also produce variable amounts of UV depending on the individual bulb, and some of them stop producing UV prematurely even though they still light up. I don't usually recommend them any more.
• It seems to me like your primary issue might have been the cool temps with no area to warm up properly.

Here are my tips for raising russians:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

 

[Elizabeth Tully]

I'll share what I know:

• Coil type UV bulbs sometimes burn their eyes. This might be your issue.
• Dry dusty substrate can also be an eye irritant. That could be your issue.
• One of the complaints about cypress mulch is that the pieces are too irregular and sometimes have sharp points. Since it is both eyes, this is probably not your issue, but I don't like cypress mulch anyway. Its not the worst thing you could use, but not the best either.
• For all the non-forest species, using a CHE and florescent UV source without a basking bulb of some sort, doesn't usually work well. For a russian tortoise I would use a 65 watt regular incandescent flood bulb and a long tube for UV and light. If your tortoise goes outside regularly, you don't need indoor UV at all, and a single flood bulb for basking will get the job done. CHEs are good for maintaining night and ambient temps where needed, but you shouldn't need that for a russian.
• MVBs (The Megaray your vet suggested) can work, but they tend to run hot and dry out the carapace which is not good for a growing baby like yours. They also produce variable amounts of UV depending on the individual bulb, and some of them stop producing UV prematurely even though they still light up. I don't usually recommend them any more.
• It seems to me like your primary issue might have been the cool temps with no area to warm up properly.

Here are my tips for raising russians:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/

 

[Elizabeth Tully]

I have the basking temp up to 100 and the humidity in hide 80%. With the hide being 80 degrees.