Michael231
Member
It sounds like you are running good temperatures! For Russian tortoises between 22-28 is a good ambient temperature, while 34-35 is a perfect basking temperature. It is possible if you keep him near a window or air vent that a cold draft blew through unnoticed and he was exposed to it for too long, leading to increased bacterial susceptibility. It is also possible he acquired a bug from the substrate or virtually anywhere else in the enclosure. It's even possible he's had an issue for awhile, and its just now being expressed. That is common with infections in tortoises, for an environmental trigger to make a dormant bug virulent.Hey thanks. He is young, he’s around 18 months and 100g although I bet he lost some weight the last few weeks. My scale batteries are dead so I will wait and see tomorrow. He’s in a 5ft open top table, he was doing great in it, I did have him in a viv but swapped it out last year and he seemed much happier. Basking is 35c and is at one end of the table I guess the middle is coolest point at 22c and at the opposite end where he sleeps I run a che at 25c. There are a range of temperatures for him to move between. The ambient of the room is around 22c.
Definitely consult a vet, they will likely administer an antibiotic (such as the ones mentioned above) that will help fix him up. For now, you can do the humid bucket treatment if you feel it necessary. It also wouldn't hurt to bump up his basking temperature by 2-3 degrees Celsius, as this will induce a "cold blooded fever" which can help fight the infection.
Let us know how everything is in a couple of days, or when you have an update! I want to track his recovery!