Hi. I'd be very grateful for some advice from folks here with veterinary knowledge.
I'm a ecologist, working on Testudo hermanni populations in Montenegro for around 14 years, and have more and more found myself getting involved in rehabilitations. Our latest case is a mature female brought to us with major carapace trauma from, presumably, a steel-bladed brush cutter. We put her on a course of s.c. Ceftazidime injections for a period of 6-8 weeks, and administered silver sulfadiazine dressings daily, and she appears to be progressing nicely. The next stage, once infection risk is completely free, is to use vacuum-assisted closure dressings to allow the coelom to rise and re-adhere before using fibreglass to seal the carapace.
The tortoise's vertebral column and pelvis appear, miraculously, to be intact. Currently she is able to use her back legs, which she trails along behind her as she moves. I am hoping, in a kind of amateurish optimism, that this might be due to nerve damage, hopefully temporary, but I suppose time will tell.
A recent xray showed 6 eggs, one of which was "ready to launch" in the cloaca. The vet attempted to manipulate this egg out; it broke but was extracted entirely and without mishap. Currently, the tortoise is showing all signs of needing to lay the rest of the clutch (restlessness, lack of appetite, etc.) but I can't think she will be able to do this unless able to dig a nest, which she clearly can't do without the use of her back legs.
The major problem we have here in Montenegro is that there are no exotic vets. We rely on a very enthusiastic, young local "domestic" vet who has a particular interest in birds, and is very bright and willing to learn on the go as far as tortoises are concerned. On top of that, drug availability is limited outside of basic drugs applied to cats and dogs.
So my question regards the use of oxytocin in a situation like this. We are almost certain there is no physical obstruction to egg laying (the trauma only occurred at the top of the carapace), and that she is being held back by her physical inability to create a nest. and possibly by nerve damage / pain.
Would oxytocin be a sensible method to get her to lay, and if so what would the dosage be for a 2120 gram hermanni?
Any comments would be hugely appreciated, including on the treatment of the original trauma.
Many thanks
Richard
P.S. Apologies to anyone squeamish for the slightly graphic photos!
I'm a ecologist, working on Testudo hermanni populations in Montenegro for around 14 years, and have more and more found myself getting involved in rehabilitations. Our latest case is a mature female brought to us with major carapace trauma from, presumably, a steel-bladed brush cutter. We put her on a course of s.c. Ceftazidime injections for a period of 6-8 weeks, and administered silver sulfadiazine dressings daily, and she appears to be progressing nicely. The next stage, once infection risk is completely free, is to use vacuum-assisted closure dressings to allow the coelom to rise and re-adhere before using fibreglass to seal the carapace.
The tortoise's vertebral column and pelvis appear, miraculously, to be intact. Currently she is able to use her back legs, which she trails along behind her as she moves. I am hoping, in a kind of amateurish optimism, that this might be due to nerve damage, hopefully temporary, but I suppose time will tell.
A recent xray showed 6 eggs, one of which was "ready to launch" in the cloaca. The vet attempted to manipulate this egg out; it broke but was extracted entirely and without mishap. Currently, the tortoise is showing all signs of needing to lay the rest of the clutch (restlessness, lack of appetite, etc.) but I can't think she will be able to do this unless able to dig a nest, which she clearly can't do without the use of her back legs.
The major problem we have here in Montenegro is that there are no exotic vets. We rely on a very enthusiastic, young local "domestic" vet who has a particular interest in birds, and is very bright and willing to learn on the go as far as tortoises are concerned. On top of that, drug availability is limited outside of basic drugs applied to cats and dogs.
So my question regards the use of oxytocin in a situation like this. We are almost certain there is no physical obstruction to egg laying (the trauma only occurred at the top of the carapace), and that she is being held back by her physical inability to create a nest. and possibly by nerve damage / pain.
Would oxytocin be a sensible method to get her to lay, and if so what would the dosage be for a 2120 gram hermanni?
Any comments would be hugely appreciated, including on the treatment of the original trauma.
Many thanks
Richard
P.S. Apologies to anyone squeamish for the slightly graphic photos!
