We were given a fifteen year old Russian in May of 2006. His name is Sloski (yeah, I know...very original). He is healthy and iinteractive, but from time to time his breathing is noisy, like he has something up his nose. The reptile vet gave him a thorough exam and says that he is fine, but I was wondering if anyone knows what would cause this if it is NOT a respiratory problem. Thanks.

What type of substrate do you have him in? Maybe that has something to do with it. Welcome to the forum!

welcome to TFO, carol!

Welcome

Welcome Carol I also would ask first what substrate do you have him on?

I use reclaimed pulp for his bedding. I realize that this is not ideal , but he is indoors and it has worked OK so far.

carol, i'm not exactly sure where reclaimed pulp comes from or how it is produced but it may potentially be contributing to any respiratory distress your tort is experiencing.
do they use any chemicals in the production of the pulp?

The information on the package says that this product is free of inks, dyes, clay and chemicals, and is processed to remove harmful aromatic hydrocarbons. It also says that it is tested for contaminants and sanitized to reduce bacteria, mold and fungus. What's puzzling to me is that the problem he has is intermittant.

We can't know for sure, but it is my (humble) opinion that the substrate is causing his problem. Reclaimed paper pulp is very dusty, and you can't wet it down to curtail the dust. If you don't want to use a different substrate, try putting him on paper towells or newspaper for a while and see if the problem persists.

Buy a small container of normal saline solution and a small squeeze bottle. Put some saline in the bottle and squirt it in each of the tortoise's nares.

Yvonne

Thanks, Yvonne, I'll give it a try.