Russian Tortoise not eating?

[Justin Notarianni]

So I recently purchased a Russian tortoise from WWW.reptilecity.com. They were awful, on so many levels. Anyway, the Tortoise came and it seemed very sleepy and not active. as recommended I took him to a vet. They said he is severely underweight, has pneumonia and a vitamin A deficiency. I give him Baytril ( an antibiotic i think) every other day. He still won't eat. I'm so scared because he is so underweight! please help! He is in a 4x2 tub with a uvb and uva light, has 3 hides and has a water bowl that be can submerge himself in. I can post pics if needed. Please help experts!

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Justin, and welcome to the Forum!

How do you feel about sending the tortoise back to the seller? If it were me, I would not accept an ill tortoise.

Your tortoise probably won't eat until he feels better. In the meantime, put him into a smaller, hospital tank, and heat up the whole tank to about 85F degrees. Give him shade or hiding places so he can get away from the harsh light. Wake him up daily and soak him in warm water to which a half a jar of Gerber strained carrots has been added and stirred in. Leave him soaking in that solution for at least a half hour. You can position a light over an edge of the soak to keep it warm, but don't cook him. He should start feeling better once the antibiotic regimen if finished, but soak daily the whole time you're giving the injections.

Your tortoise is going to get vitamin A from the carrot soak, so he doesn't need a vitamin injection from the vet (I hope he hasn't already received one, but if so, be attentive to the skin. Vitamin A injections sometimes cause the tortoise's skin to slough off).

 

[Justin Notarianni]

Returning to seller is not an option, since it has been more than 6 days. I checked, and my temps were a little high - around 110 for the basking spot. Could that affect something like his diet? Also, he still has a month of shots left, so waiting until treatment is done is not an option either. Agh! I'm stuck.

 

[Blakem]

That's just too high of heat. Follow exactly what Yvonne said with the smaller tank and baby food soak, without the shots.

 

[W Shaw]

I wouldn't send him back anyhow. If he was that bad off coming from the seller, sending back to the same seller would just be a death sentence.

 

[Justin Notarianni]

Still not eating. The vet recommended force feeding baby food, but that hasn't worked out. I've tried the soaking, and have tried spring mix, romaine lettuce, watermelon, tomato, apple, and pet store bought food by zoomed. I am so worried about my little guy. Any other suggestions?

 

[W Shaw]

Mine won't eat anything mushy, and doesn't like anything you listed. What he'll kill for is radicchio.

Also, although squashes are technically fruit and not really appropriate for a Russian, his vet says don't be afraid to use winter squashes like butternut and pumpkin to put some weight on. They have complex carbs and good calorie density. My tortoise is a rescue who was also severely malnourished and underweight when he came to me. His limbs and shell are malformed from malnutrition and lack of UVB before I got him. He loves raw butternut. He won't eat it cooked but I slice it raw into thin strips like paper matches, which are easy for him to handle and also facilitate hand feeding. If you're not hand feeding him, try it that way. I had to coax Ronan when I first got him, but he'd eat a lot more if I hand fed him. If he pulled his head in or didn't reach for the food, I would tickle the side of his mouth gently with it, then when he got annoyed and opened his mouth, I'd pop it in. He'd close his mouth, and be essentially stuck with it, so he'd have to swallow it. After doing that a couple of times he seemed to remember that he was hungry after all and then he'd take all I'd give him by hand. If I ran out and had to go to the kitchen for more, he'd assume we were done and trundle off to bed, so I learned to have plenty available, and just leave the remainders on his dish.

If things get desperate -- Ronan's vet has saved anorexic tortoises by tube feeding cooked, mashed pumpkin, so you might ask your vet about that option. I'd be happy to connect him with Ronan's vet, who is also the local wildlife rehab vet.

 

[Justin Notarianni]

Hmmm. I have some squash baby food. Would he be interested in that? I'm seeing some very bad things about baytril. I inject him every other day, and after the injections he is tired and slow. I think it also upsets their stomachs. I'll keep you updated.

 

[W Shaw]

Hmmm. I have some squash baby food. Would he be interested in that? I'm seeing some very bad things about baytril. I inject him every other day, and after the injections he is tired and slow. I think it also upsets their stomachs. I'll keep you updated.

He might. Mine won't touch anything mushy, regardless of what it is. I'd also check the ingredients of the squash baby food. These days, most baby food has other stuff in it.

 

[Justin Notarianni]

The ingredients are squash and water. I tried that and radiccio, but no luck. He just ignores the food and walks away! I don't know what to do...

 

[Kori5]

Try to give him a little apple or banana. It is not their recommended food but in this situation it could help.