What's the bluish coloration for?

Hatched_tegus

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He has shell rot with hemorrhaging, I've been doing the betadine treatments and he also has an oral antibiotic. This is his second round with it as he crashed again a few days ago and hasn't eaten since then. The betadine treatments havent been seeming to help much, if at all, and the oral antibiotic is the only thing seeming to do anything. It makes me wonder if he might be septic?

I think he got the shell rot from the wholesaler I bought him from, as I've had him since April and looked at the photos I took on the first day I had him and there was shell dimpling then.

My question is, what's going on with that blue-grey coloration?20200704_104834.jpg
 

Yvonne G

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Yipes! That doesn't bode well for this little baby. That's the inside of the tortoise showing through a VERY thin shell. Besides that, there's no meat on those skinny little legs. I don't see any fungus though. Stop the Betadine. It inhibits the growth of new white cells. I'm assuming the hemorrhaging is where you see red showing through? You'd better prepare yourself. This baby is dying. Any chance you can get back with the seller?
 

Toddrickfl1

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That's not shell fungus. Unfortunately this baby is about to die. I'm sorry.
 

Hatched_tegus

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Yipes! That doesn't bode well for this little baby. That's the inside of the tortoise showing through a VERY thin shell. Besides that, there's no meat on those skinny little legs. I don't see any fungus though. Stop the Betadine. It inhibits the growth of new white cells. I'm assuming the hemorrhaging is where you see red showing through? You'd better prepare yourself. This baby is dying. Any chance you can get back with the seller?
The seller has a no refund and no return policy so I'd assume not :(
Excuse my stupidity (this is my first chelonian, but not my first reptile), but are shell rot and shell fungus synonymous?
 

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Looks kinda like what we refer to in humans as "dependent lividity." It was a confirming sign of death we used in the EMS field...
 

Tom

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He has shell rot with hemorrhaging, I've been doing the betadine treatments and he also has an oral antibiotic. This is his second round with it as he crashed again a few days ago and hasn't eaten since then. The betadine treatments havent been seeming to help much, if at all, and the oral antibiotic is the only thing seeming to do anything. It makes me wonder if he might be septic?

I think he got the shell rot from the wholesaler I bought him from, as I've had him since April and looked at the photos I took on the first day I had him and there was shell dimpling then.

My question is, what's going on with that blue-grey coloration?
That is not shell rot. That is what happens when there is damage to internal organs and the kidneys have shut down. This usually happens when babies are started too dry and or kept outside all day. It can also happen when people give antibiotics, "vitamin injections", and other meds to tiny little babies. Their little systems can't handle it.

Who was the seller? Did they soak daily and keep the tortoise in a warm humid indoor enclosure?
 

Hatched_tegus

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That is not shell rot. That is what happens when there is damage to internal organs and the kidneys have shut down. This usually happens when babies are started too dry and or kept outside all day. It can also happen when people give antibiotics, "vitamin injections", and other meds to tiny little babies. Their little systems can't handle it.

Who was the seller? Did they soak daily and keep the tortoise in a warm humid indoor enclosure?
The seller was underground reptiles. I had gotten both of my tegus from them, and although I had trouble with the second one, gave them the benefit of the doubt and got the tortoise from them. I think they wholesale everything but their tegus, maybe even some of the tegus. Ive been to the store before and they basically keep all the hatchlings of a species together in a tank. But yeah, with the volume of reptiles they get, I doubt they gave the individuals any special treatment.
 

Tom

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The seller was underground reptiles. I had gotten both of my tegus from them, and although I had trouble with the second one, gave them the benefit of the doubt and got the tortoise from them. I think they wholesale everything but their tegus, maybe even some of the tegus. Ive been to the store before and they basically keep all the hatchlings of a species together in a tank. But yeah, with the volume of reptiles they get, I doubt they gave the individuals any special treatment.
Sorry man. Now you know.

On a lighter note, I love tegus. I've raised several. May I request a thread with pics in our "Other Pets" lizard section?
 

ZEROPILOT

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The seller was underground reptiles. I had gotten both of my tegus from them, and although I had trouble with the second one, gave them the benefit of the doubt and got the tortoise from them. I think they wholesale everything but their tegus, maybe even some of the tegus. Ive been to the store before and they basically keep all the hatchlings of a species together in a tank. But yeah, with the volume of reptiles they get, I doubt they gave the individuals any special treatment.
RIANN at Underground REPTILES is a long time friend of mine.
We've had several conversations about him and why I can not support him.
The last time I had baby Redfoot for sale, he wanted to buy them. But when I visited his shop, I saw his babies on dry rabbit pellets. Zero water source and actual dust on the shells of the tortoises.
Bone dry.
These babies where off to a horrible start.
His logic?
"They're easier to keep that way"

If you buy another, I recommend SOUTHERN REPTILES. Also in Florida. Actually very close to Underground. But Ryan (same name) cares about the health of his animals.
 

ZEROPILOT

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I‘d say yes. Shell fungus & shell rot are pretty much the same.
I still disagree.
However, an infected injury or very advanced shell fungus can become smelly shell rot.
The two are separate and require different treatment.
Athletes foot cream for simple fungal issues.
Antibiotic ointment and possibly more for advanced shell rot.
But they both manifest externally. Neither would show up as the OPs photos show.
 

Hatched_tegus

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RIANN at Underground REPTILES is a long time friend of mine.
We've had several conversations about him and why I can not support him.
The last time I had baby Redfoot for sale, he wanted to buy them. But when I visited his shop, I saw his babies on dry rabbit pellets. Zero water source and actual dust on the shells of the tortoises.
Bone dry.
These babies where off to a horrible start.
His logic?
"They're easier to keep that way"

If you buy another, I recommend SOUTHERN REPTILES. Also in Florida. Actually very close to Underground. But Ryan (same name) cares about the health of his animals.
Yeah I guess I learned my lesson to definitely get my reptiles from a breeder. I never really paid much attention to the enclosures in the shop but I did notice a lot of the same species were kept together. My red tegu showed up severely dehydrated with some weird flaky shed and barely ate for months. I had gotten her in may of last year and she never had a proper shed until august and started eating regularly just a few weeks before that.
 

ZEROPILOT

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Yeah I guess I learned my lesson to definitely get my reptiles from a breeder. I never really paid much attention to the enclosures in the shop but I did notice a lot of the same species were kept together. My red tegu showed up severely dehydrated with some weird flaky shed and barely ate for months. I had gotten her in may of last year and she never had a proper shed until august and started eating regularly just a few weeks before that.
Riann is a great guy.
It upsets me that I must be obligated to talk out against him in any way.
He should not be selling live animals.
He has a lengthy history of unethical practices.
 

Hatched_tegus

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So basically it's now been established that this is not shell rot, that it's most likely his organs and particularly the kidneys shutting down, that the husbandry from the shop he came from was hell, and that he will be dying very soon.

Is everything I said correct?
 

Hatched_tegus

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Riann is a great guy.
It upsets me that I must be obligated to talk out against him in any way.
He should not be selling live animals.
He has a lengthy history of unethical practices.
Is the Riann you're talking about the same guy that loves tegus a lot?
Because he seems like he is a great guy, but it also seems to not only be him, but the fault of also the employees he hired to not be more carefully looking after the animals.
 

Maro2Bear

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I still disagree.
However, an infected injury or very advanced shell fungus can become smelly shell rot.
The two are separate and require different treatment.
Athletes foot cream for simple fungal issues.
Antibiotic ointment and possibly more for advanced shell rot.
But they both manifest externally. Neither would show up as the OPs photos show.

I think “shell rot” & “shell fungus” are just two different ways for a hobbyist to describe a “fungus” issue with a tort’s shell. Maybe neither description is medically accurate, but for the average keeper shell rot/fungus appears to be an issue with the shell. I don’t think the OP actually showed pix of the reported fungus, but seemed more concerned by the blue/green discoloration. Either way, this hatchling isn't looking good.
 

ZEROPILOT

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I think “shell rot” & “shell fungus” are just two different ways for a hobbyist to describe a “fungus” issue with a tort’s shell. Maybe neither description is medically accurate, but for the average keeper shell rot/fungus appears to be an issue with the shell. I don’t think the OP actually showed pix of the reported fungus, but seemed more concerned by the blue/green discoloration. Either way, this hatchling isn't looking good.
People DO lump the two together.
That's for sure.
 

KarenSoCal

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So basically it's now been established that this is not shell rot, that it's most likely his organs and particularly the kidneys shutting down, that the husbandry from the shop he came from was hell, and that he will be dying very soon.

Is everything I said correct?
Tragically, it is correct. ?
 
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