Help sick/acting weird Russian Tortoise

[goodsmeagol]

I have a group of Russians, 3 of them are doing great, never a problem.
One had pneumonia when I got it, was treated and appeared healthy for about 6 months. (she is still in quarantine)
Last week I realized she was not coming out of her hide to eat.
I rechecked all my temps and found her cage was bumped about 10 degrees.
The temps were probably this high for about a week, sorry.
She has a water dish in her cage but never uses it.
I put the temps back to normal and have given her a few extra baths in the last few days.
Today, I found her in her water dish this morning.

Her front feet feel flimsy, and when I opened the door she cocked her head to the side and gaped at me.
I placed her in the heat as the water was fairly cold, and she has done nothing since.

My vet knows tortoises, but likes to charge for useless tests.
PLEASE help me have a good vet visit, tell me what to ask and what to have done to find out what is wrong here.
I have an appointment for 330 tomorrow, PLEASE HELP ME BEFORE THEN!!!!!!!!

 

[jrholls]

I understand some vet's can actually listen to a torts lungs and see if they are clear. If not, I think you should get an x-ray done to see if her pnemonia is cleared up or not. I've also heard that some vet's can give a shot of vitamins to a tort that isn't eating well. If she seems weak, that might be a good idea, might even get her jumpstarted eating again. Good luck

 

[Skyler Nell]

I wouldn't allow any Vitamin shots if it were my tortoises, especially Vitamin A, that usually does more harm then help. I'm not sure what the problem is. Does the tort have a runny nose? Do you hear any wheezing? Was it ever treated for the pneumonia? It's possible the tort has an URTI (upper respiratory tract infection). There are treatments for this. Best of luck! Hopefully someone else will be over to help you soon

 

[goodsmeagol]

I wouldn't allow any Vitamin shots if it were my tortoises, especially Vitamin A, that usually does more harm then help. I'm not sure what the problem is. Does the tort have a runny nose? Do you hear any wheezing? Was it ever treated for the pneumonia? It's possible the tort has an URTI (upper respiratory tract infection). There are treatments for this. Best of luck! Hopefully someone else will be over to help you soon

The pneumonia was cleared up, we confirmed with a set of xrays almost 6 months ago.
There is no sneezing, runny nose or wheezing this time like last time.


I am not to worried about nutrition, up until about 3-4 days ago she had a good appetite and was eating full meals, it will take longer then that for me to worry about her being overly hungry.

I think an xray is what I will ask for, and part of me believes I dehydrated her by letting her stay so warm

How bad is being in a water bowl over night for a tortoise?

 

[bikerchicspain]

Has the vet done any bloods,
She has some sort of infection, she needs urgent care,
I would check for upper tract infection, mouth rot, pneumonia,
I think it's something to do with respiratory problem..

Good luck

 

[Jacqui]

How bad is being in a water bowl over night for a tortoise?

Wanting clarification here, are you thinking of leaving her in water overnight or are you asking because you worry the tortoise may have left itself in the water all night long?

---

Last week I realized she was not coming out of her hide to eat.
I rechecked all my temps and found her cage was bumped about 10 degrees.
The temps were probably this high for about a week, sorry.

What is her hide like? Is it a humid hide? The temps were high, but how high was it? Is that also the temp from her hide at that time? If you don't know the hide's temp at that time, how far is it from where you took the temp and in relation to the heat source? From what your saying, I am also guessing you keep the enclosure at a constant temp both night and day?

 

[goodsmeagol]

How bad is being in a water bowl over night for a tortoise?

Wanting clarification here, are you thinking of leaving her in water overnight or are you asking because you worry the tortoise may have left itself in the water all night long?

---

Last week I realized she was not coming out of her hide to eat.
I rechecked all my temps and found her cage was bumped about 10 degrees.
The temps were probably this high for about a week, sorry.

What is her hide like? Is it a humid hide? The temps were high, but how high was it? Is that also the temp from her hide at that time? If you don't know the hide's temp at that time, how far is it from where you took the temp and in relation to the heat source? From what your saying, I am also guessing you keep the enclosure at a constant temp both night and day?

---

She was in her water bowl over night I assume. Before her lights turned on I found her in the water bowl.... I was not home last night for lights off.

She has 2 'main' hides, one is a small half flower pot cut in half, it is only as moist as the rest of the substrate. One hide where she prefers is kept a little more wet, is about a foot long.
Temp went from 70-95 to 80-105. She is in a somewhat small enclosure 44"x28"
Night temps drop to high 60's.
I measure all temps with digital probes.

The coolest she could get was 80, a few feet away is where the basking light is, which was as hot as 105.

Has the vet done any bloods,
She has some sort of infection, she needs urgent care,
I would check for upper tract infection, mouth rot, pneumonia,
I think it's something to do with respiratory problem..

We did bloods 6 months ago, I do not recall it being discussed as an issue.
She has a vet visit tomorrow, the best thing is a blood test first?
I was planning on requesting blood work and an xray as the first steps.
This doc loves to play Dr House and perform expensive tests, to help save my pocket book, I want to limit the amount of first round tests....

And thank you everyone for the advice and support.
It is a good thing it is the middle of the month and not a rent check!

 

[goodsmeagol]

I got home from work to find a corpse.
Excuse me while I go cry in a corner.

Thanks for your fast replies, seems I was not fast enough, my appointment was for tomorrow.

 

[jwhite]

very sorry for your loss

Jon

 

[Yvonne G]

Oh Drew, I'm so sorry you lost your tortoise. That's never easy to take.

I don't think it died because it was in its water dish over night. I think it was in its water dish because it was sick. I've seen that a lot...a sick turtle or tortoise sitting in its water.

 

[Jacqui]

This is not what I was wanting to read. *hugs*

 

[Laura]

dang.. sorry.. i doubt it was anything you did or didnt do..
they hide thier illness until they just cant anymore..

 

[RianSeeking]

I'm so sorry for your loss. I know how difficult it is.

 

[jrholls]

I'm so so sorry.

 

[bikerchicspain]

I got home from work to find a corpse.
Excuse me while I go cry in a corner.

Thanks for your fast replies, seems I was not fast enough, my appointment was for tomorrow.

OMG I am so sorry for your loss,

It has happened to most of us at one stage or other, but that does take the pain away.
It's a learning curve..

 

[dmmj]

Man sorry to hear about that, I can think of one thing old age, if yours was a wild caught specimen it could have been any age. I currently have 3 russian all WC and I at one time had 5 and twice I had taken them outside in the morning and in the evening when I went to bring them in, they were dead, no illness (healthy vet check), no sign of injury and healthy and eating a couple of days before. It may not help the feeling of loss (I was devastated when I discovered mine) but I am pretty sure it was age related.