Russian Tortoises

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puppo19

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Hey, so i have two RTs, a male, Shakespearen Sunshine, and a female, Spunik; Shakespeare is about four years old and for nearly three months now his health has become horrible. His eyes have swollen shut (pinkish color), he is severally under weight and refuses to eat, he will stay in one place for days and sleeps all the time. I bought him vitamin a drops, vitamin a (for water), pedalyte (i give about 5mL in water), i'm starting him on Cod Liver Oil today- i do work for a vet who does work with exotic animals and says he may have herpes... i have been force feeding him (i'm very careful) liquid carrots and collards (about 1.5mL SID), i did also change the light twice, and soak him BID... Spudnik is completely normal... the vet said if it's herpes he will die... should i be looking at putting him down? (they are both indoor tortoises).
Any help would be great!
 

wellington

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Hello and Welcome:) sorry its under these conditions. Tell us the set up. Temps, items using for temps and UVB, humidity, substrate, etc.
 

puppo19

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The temp is about 85, the humidity is 45, the substrate is coconut fiber, i believe i am currently using the powersun 130 w for lighting, i usually give them carrots and everyday change it from dandelion leaves, to collards, to kale, etc. they do get calcium powder daily as well as being soaked. I have had Shakespeare for over a year now, and Spudnik was currently introduced a little over 6 months ago.
 

wellington

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I would cut back on the calcium to 2-3 times a week. Too much is not good. Are the in the same enclosure? If so, separate them, at least until you know what's wrong. They may also need to always be separated as Russians are known to bully each other. Tortoise would rather be alone. Did you quarantine the two, before you added your newest one? If you are using any type of coil or spiral bulbs remove it immediately, they have been known and still do cause eye problems. I know nothing about herpes and tortoises. Hopefully someone else can help you more. Good luck, hope all turns out well.
 

Laura

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separate them..
do a babyfood soak and up the temps on the sick one..
is the other one normal?
add spring mix to the diet as a variety...
 

puppo19

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They are in the same inclosure, i was told it didn't matter at this point- they'd both have it. They actually do not bully each other, they mind their own business and love to sleep together (they have a large enclosure), and the bulb is not a coil or spiral- the original one was, but i changed it. Thank you for your help.
 

puppo19

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laura- i have done the baby food soak for nearly five days, (twice a day), they get spring mix every other week, i don't keep their diet constant except for the carrots. Spudnik is completely normal, active, loves to eat and drink etc. that's why i thought it was odd.
 

wellington

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Please get them separated at least until it is figured out what's wrong. If the one does not have herpes, then the other could still be healthy and could catch whatever the other does have. Play it safe and separate them and do not share and dishes, etc between the two with out washing them first in boiling water. Play it safe until its figured out.
 

jjsull33

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Just because they aren't physically fighting doesn't mean they aren't bullying, the act of sleeping together could actually be one of them attempting to get the other to leave its spot. Mental bullying is also fairly common for fighting torts and will result in the weaker tort hiding and not eating.
 

puppo19

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They don't fight for a spot though... They sleep in their own corners without any disturbance to the other. I'm seperating them anyways as suggested.

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Yvonne G

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You really need to take this tortoise to the vet. There are so many things that could be wrong.

I recently had a rescued adult male Texas tortoise that was terribly thin, wouldn't eat, his eyes were sunken in from dehydration. He died before I could get him in to the vet, and a cursory necropsy showed a bladder stone so large it wouldn't fit out the neck hole of his shell.

If this were caught earlier (seen on an X-ray, for instance) it might have been treatable.

So don't let your vet just cue in on the herpes. There are other things to consider.
 

puppo19

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God i cannot imagine loosing him.:( i'm discussing getting him xrayed to find out if it's internal. Hopefully i'll know more soon. I also sent in a fecal sample and the vet wants to start him on antibiotics for mycroplasam just incase.

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tortadise

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Well herpes won't kill them. They can live with it. You can test for it. I'd get a vet to tube it for you. So you can feed it easier. Definitely take x rays. If nothing shows do a barium x ray to see organs. I would do soaks for sure. But not too much baby food or carrots. They have lots of sugar. Dont want to offset glucose levels. Can you get some ringers or back sub q?
 

puppo19

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They can???? Will they just be sick all the time? And what does a vet tube consist of exactly? And i put more kale/collards then carrots. What exactly is a ringer and i'm sure i can sub q.

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bingbongbibidybobbo

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Its a tube that goes into the side of their neck and directly into their stomach. Easier to feed and also give meds orally. Heres Mort when I just got him back from the vets with his. They can also eat normally with a tube in. After a week or two he was eating fine and I only used the tube for meds

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puppo19

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What is the risk of infection?

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bingbongbibidybobbo

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Well one of the reasons for his tube was to administer Baytril (antibiotic) for his Pnuemonia so I dunno if that reduced his risk of infection from the site. I never noticed any redness or inflammation at the site.

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puppo19

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Russian Tortoise Vomiting

So the vet is no help to Shakespeare. And i feel like i'm going one step forward and six steps back. He can't seem to hold down solids anymore he always spit them up so i have him on liquids again. But now he's making werid noises kinda like he needs to vomit, he spits up alot but is that considered vomit?

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JoesMum

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Re: Russian Tortoise Vomiting

It sounds like it. If you have a stomach upset and nothing in your stomach, that's what you do. :(

Hydration is now vital. This tort must be soaked at least twice a day to stop him dehydrating,
 

puppo19

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Re: Russian Tortoise Vomiting

But he is getting liquids... He responds better to them than solids. The only solid he WILL NIBBLE at is romaine but i heard too much is bad. But at this point i just need him to eat. But he get's liquid food twice a day and a little in the afternoon. He is soaked twice a day and liquid food is added in the water just in case he decides to drink. And he gets .5 mL of pedilyte once a day so he's hydrated. /:

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