Red footer tortoise has mucus

[Dazzin]

Hi everyone, im new on this forum and I hope you people can help me to get through some concerns I've had this last days with my baby . Well, to make things clear my red foot tortoise (she has almost 1 year with me, and was born 1 year and 5 months ago) has been having some kind of mucus coming out of her nose this week, i go check her out every morning when she wakes up and I noticed this 5 days ago. I usually soak her every morning before she eats, and when she Is done, the mucus stops, then i let her go walk outside and check if the mucus Is still in her nose, but its not. Finally when its time to sleep, the mucus re-appears. When she has the mucus she starts to make some kind of coffing sound every 15 seconds or so.

Im really concerned about her and i've been reading some similar posts about my case. I saw that maybe one of the reason Is the stress, I admit that i do manipulate her "to much", i grab her, take her to soak, feed her (i do this since im worried she doesn't eat or something), take her outside and finally move her to sleep. I think she Is still to small to let her live in the backyard.

Besides that, i have her in a terrarium with dirt, so i dont know if humidity and dirt may be a factor to cause the mucus. I hope you guys help me to figure out whats wrong with her. I will take her to the ver tomorrow to see what he says. Thanks a lot .

 

[Beep-Beep]

Hey Dazzin, this is certainly the place for good advise on tort-care. I am totally new with the tort world and will be following this thread closely.
The Knowledgeable Ones will bombard you with questions ref. humidity / temp / diet / enclosure and such You might just as well get those posted now.

Not matter a dog, a cat, a parrot , a white mouse, or a gecko, if it is spitting mucus, then it is certainly not feeling too well. Your cutie sounds a bit sick.

I have seen videos where torts are held head down for, let's say, 10 secs a few times a day, so the mucus dribbles down their throat / nose. Apparently torts can't really sneeze (or cough) so a gentle head down maneuver helps clearing things up temporarily.

Serious and effective advise from other members will follow soon I'm sure. Hang tight, both of you !

Cheers,
Beep-Beep

 

[Maitaimommy]

Could be a RI. I have a male russian tort named Maitai, he's pretty cool I'm not too familiar with RFT's so it's good that you're concerned and taking her to the vet
BTW, welcome to the forum! Glad to have you! You'll like all the helpful, knowledegable ppl on here. I've learned to listen and accept the advice they offer.

 

[Dazzin]

Thank you very much for the support my friends!.

So, in terms of humidity, i live in a dry area, is very sunny and in the mid-day the temp goes really high outside, maybe almost 35º, so when that happens i try not to expose her directly to the heat. As i said, she lives in an indoors "enclosure" (if you can call it) with dirt. As i wrote this, she is sleeping in a big garden potter in the porch of the house, i put her there yesterday cause it was warm and humid last night. I don't really now the temp of the garden potter later in the night (maybe 27-25º?) but basically, i try to make sure that her sourrondings are humid everyday.

Her diet is not that extense i'm afraid, i give her lettuce, zuchinni, cucumber, cabbage (not to regular) and fruit two times a week like bananas, mango, sometimes strawberry, and she's been eating pretty well, walking around and exploring, the only thing i noticed is the mucus, but her behavior has not changed.

I hope this information will help you guys to give some kind of diagnosis, second thougths are pretty helpfull.

 

[Maitaimommy]

The vet will be able to give you a better idea of what's going on and the best treatment options when you see her/him tomorrow.
Nice observation skills

 

[Dazzin]

When i get a treatment from the vet i willlet you know thanks for the help.

 

[Maitaimommy]

Please do. Goodnight

 

[Dazzin]

Hello everyone! I came back a few hours ago from the vet. So basically what he asked me was if the mucus was coloured, like green or yellow, and I told him that it wasn't, is transparent, almost liquid. So he told me that it was normal cause this kind of tortoise (i don't know if other species does) they tend to "transpire" through their noses and mouth when is hot or dry, wich is the same thing that happens with my baby.

Well that was basically it, if I see that the "mucus" turned to green or yellow i should go back. i haven't seen anything on her nose or mouth since we came back home but i will keep an eye on her. I HOPE YOU GUYS GIVE ME SOME OPINIONS OBUT THIS, and tell me if the vet's daignosis is correct or valid, thanks for your support .

 

[Maitaimommy]

Glad you received good news
Best to believe the vet and follow his advice when it comes to medical stuff.
Hope you have a good night!