1 month old baby Leo with swollen eyes

[Katybug]

I am a newbie and a new mom to a baby leo.
I have been reading this forum all month to try and come up with the best affordable cage for my baby.

she is on coco coir substrate. 2 hides, one is a humidity hide with moss. two water dishes, and I have also purchased a humidity machine because it is very dry here in Utah. i dampen her substrate daily.
I soak 30 min daily but have started to change that to 2 x daily with the baby food carrots soak I have been feeding her, water cress, collard greens, turnip green mix.
I had a 160 w. zoomed uvb bulb for a basking light and I was using a ceramic heat bulb for the rest of her cage. the zoomed light was lighting up her cage pretty well so I didn't bother with a second light. her basking temp was about 100 and the rest of her cage about 80. her night time temps are kept between 70-80 with the ceramic heat bulb. i recently started to use a regular house hold bulb 60w incandescent in place of the ceramic heat bulb thinking she needed more light.

she has very swollen eyes and is not moving or eating unless I soak her. after her soaks she eats, wanders for a bit and goes back to sleep. her eyes wont open unless I soak her.

I have since removed the 160 watt bulb and replaced it with a zoomed uvb 100 watt bulb because i thought the 160 was hurting her eyes.

I am so stressed that I am going to lose her!!!

Please please help!

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[Yvonne G]

RE: PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

You're using the 160w Zoo Med PLUS the incandescent bulb? That's way too much light for such a tiny baby. I only use a 100watt MVB in a tort table about twice the size of your viv.

It sounds like you're doing everything else right. Temp, food, soaks all seem good. Try turning off the Zoo Med bulb for a while and see if the eyes get better. If they do, I'd buy a 100 watt MVB and not use either the incandescent bulb or the 160 bulb.

(I know you said "incandescent" bulb, but I just want to make sure. You're not using one of those curly bulbs that they came out with, are you?)

 

[Katybug]

RE: PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

Thanks for the quick response. I look for, trust and listen to your suggestions often on here!

I am not using a coil bulb. I did start with a 160 w zoo med power sun mercury vapor bulb and then read a thread and decided that was to much for her. I have since bought a 100 w zoo med power sun mercury bulb but I have not turned it on since her eyes have been bad. i am only using two 60 w incandescent bulbs right now for heat and light during the day. (x 2 days.)

I plan to restart the uvb bulb after her eyes get better. Should I use the ceramic bulb and forget the other lights for now until she gets better???

 

[Levi the Leopard]

RE: PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

Do you know how your baby was started? Some breeders start their leopard babies with moisture and humidity right away. Others keep them very dry or leave them outside all day.

Eyes closed has never been a good sign for me... all of the babies I've tried to rehab that get to that point, haven't made it. So, I don't have any tips for you.

Monitor your temps, keep the baby hydrated and good luck. If anything comes to my mind, I'll be back to share it. I wish I had more to offer :shy:

 

[Katybug]

RE: PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

I am not using a curly bulb.
I have turned off the UVB mercury vapor 160 w bulb and returned it for a 100w uvb mercury vapor bulb.

Should I turn off all light for now and only use the ceramic heat bulb?
Or will 1 60w incandescent bulb and the heat bulb be better for day so she has some light??

I ordered her from backwater reptiles.com. When I ordered her i was told I had to wait an extra day for her to be shipped because they were just receiving a new batch of babies so I am guessing they will not know how they were kept because it sounds like they got them from another source as well...
thanks for your response!

 

[christinaland128]

PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

I've had aquatic turtles in the past, and once one of them had pneumonia. His eyes closed and he had a few bubbles coming out of his nostrils. I took him to the exotics vet and he received an antibiotic and he eventually recovered. Best of luck to you.

 

[featherator]

RE: PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

I wouldn't turn off all lights. Baby still needs light & UV during part of the day. If you turn off the lights he will keep sleeping/awake with eyes closed/think it's night time.

Good that the eyes open during soaks. Great that you are doing baby food soaks. Try sweet potatoes too. They seem to really like it. Tastes different, gives variety and it's got about the same vitamin A as carrots.

Are you seeing him eat a fair amount (of green things) and is he pooping regularly? Poop will show you how much baby is eating. If only baby food in there then substance would help.

That will improve energy and those eyes will start opening on their own. If the baby isn't eating much of what you are offering, add some dark romaine and or spring mix. These aren't the top diet but the flavors are milder than cress etc. Offer whatever keeps baby eating. Then add the hearty stuff back in.

You are doing great. If you don't see improvement, maybe check with a vet.

Should I turn off all light for now and only use the ceramic heat bulb?
Or will 1 60w incandescent bulb and the heat bulb be better for day so she has some light??

 

[wellington]

RE: PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

I would get the proper UVB bulb turned on. I would also use the CHE and maybe even a second CHE for night time. You don't want the temps to go below 80 ever, with the humidity of 80% that is needed to grow smooth. If you need refresher, Toms threads are below in my post.
Keep us posted and good luck.

 

[Yvonne G]

RE: PLEASE HELP!!!! 1 month old baby Leo.

Set the baby up in a smaller, hospital tank and make it so the overall temperature in the tank is at least 85F degrees. Then use the 100w UVB, but put in things that make shade - plastic plants or whatever. One hiding place is all you need in the hospital tank.

Soak the baby in Gerber strained carrots once a day for at least half an hour...longer is even better. If you can find a small bowl with tall sides that the baby can't climb out of, that's what I'd use.

Mix a half jar of strained carrots with enough water to come up to the middle of the baby's sides (this is why I suggested a small bowl. If you use something bigger you'll need to use more of the jar).

Set the bowl back inside the hospital tank, but not directly under the light. If you have the overall temp in the tank 85F degrees, then the water can't cool any less than that...and 80F degree soaking water is just fine. Keep checking on the baby the whole time it's soaking to make sure it hasn't tipped over on its back trying to climb out. If you can leave the baby in there for a very long time, that's good.

Do that once a day and the eye swelling should start to go down in three days.

Once you get the baby back to looking normal you can put him back into his big habitat BUT be very careful that the temperature in the moist habitat doesn't get below 78F degrees because being moist and cool is a death sentence for baby tortoises.

 

[katrvt]

In addition to everything else that has been said, swollen eyes can often indicate a vitamin a deficiency... Sweet potatoes, dandelion greens and okra are all good sources of this important nutrient...

---

Just saw that someone else beat me to the vit a recommendation as well.

 

[Tom]

Your diet needs some improvement. None of those foods should be fed often. Once in a while, all are great. Try some spring mix, endive and escarole, and mix in the right weeds, leaves and succulents when you can find them.

Also 70 is MUCH too cold at night especially if you are running a humidifier. I would stop the humidifier for the time being at least. You should be running your CHE on a thermostat set to 80. This will maintain ambient temps day and night and you won't have to think about it. Thermostats only cost about $30. Then get your MVB set up so that the temp under it is around 100. If your ambient climbs during the day into the high 80's or low 90's, that is fine.

How long have you had this baby? It is possible that the seller had it under a coil bulb before it was shipped to you.

I hope he makes it.

 

[diamondbp]

I recommend really long warm soaks. 10 minutes won't clear up the eyes. It takes an hour plus several days in a row. If that doesn't work to some degree then it may be a really big issue. Best of luck to you

 

[AmRoKo]

If you can - try soaking him More than once a day for at least 30 minutes each time. I had a baby tortoise that had puffy eyes and when I took him to the vet he gave me a very thick gooey medicine to put on his eyes once a day, that really seemed to help the most. Besides that he also had to get injections every other day for five days and nose drops. I really hope your baby gets better.

Oh one more thing, be careful with the baby food vitamin A soaks, too much vitamin A can decrease appetite.

 

[timtamthetortoise]

hows your little one doing? better, i hope

 

[Katybug]

Thanks everyone for all of your suggestions. Penny is still in the same boat. only eats and opens her eyes when I soak her. she seemed to be doing better when I removed her UVB light. Now since i have put the 100watt back in she seems to be doing worse again... I am taking her to the Vet on monday. I am done trying to make her better on my own. It is much to stressful.

 

[Yvonne G]

Well, then...it sound like its the light. Maybe its too close to the floor of the habitat??? Try putting some plants or fake plants in there to give more shade and relief from the light.

 

[Katybug]

okay,
Thanks Yvonne and everyone else for your help. I changed out the light and I am using a watt household (not coil) for right now to maintain the temp. I keep it at least 12 inches from the floor but any higher and its not hot enough. does everyone recommend a closed top type of habitat?? I am thinking that I need to build one sooner rather than later.
I will post an update tomorrow after I get her in to the vet. I have been saving her poop to take with me just to be sure that there isn't anything else going on.

 

[naturalman91]

okay,
Thanks Yvonne and everyone else for your help. I changed out the light and I am using a watt household (not coil) for right now to maintain the temp. I keep it at least 12 inches from the floor but any higher and its not hot enough. does everyone recommend a closed top type of habitat?? I am thinking that I need to build one sooner rather than later.
I will post an update tomorrow after I get her in to the vet. I have been saving her poop to take with me just to be sure that there isn't anything else going on.

cover the top and you already have a closed habitat

 

[Katybug]

So I just wanted to post an update on my baby leo. We took her to the vet and he gave her 3 vitamin injections and neomycin ointment for her eyes. Her poop was normal. He told me that the spring mix that Tom had suggested to feed her was a bad idea? , However she seems to eat it very well.
I also tried Yvonne's "tinfoil top" idea and it is helping her the most! I am able to keep her humidity up to 80% so much better! Today she woke up on her own and has eaten on her own twice without being soaked first! Thank you so much for all your suggestions! I think Penny is going to pull through!

 

[lovebugaphid]

that's fantastic news! so happy for you keep up the good work