# New Rescue Hatchling---PLEASE LOOK



## Meg90 (May 19, 2010)

This is the Craigslist baby I got today---He has skin issues, you can see in the pictures parts of his arms are swollen. He also looks so DRY. I have him set up the same as my other babies 2/3 aspen, 1/3 moist eco, and I will soak him once a day til I think he's fit to go once a week.

He was being fed Wet cat food once a week, commercial tortoise diet 4 days a week along with monkey chow, and only greens and apples ONCE a week.  I am wondering if he has bloat from all the sodium?















He'll get nothing but Spring mix and mazuri with me from now on. No veggies until he's bigger, and no fruit at all. I will have a cuttle bone in with him, when I discover where I set my pack of six--


My jaw dropped when I saw how tiny he was. He feels like nothing--like air. I fed him tonight when I got home, it was late, but I wanted to get something real into him. He's still eating as I type. He was timid with the whole leaves at first, but now he's getting the hang of it.





(Reid's hand)





He's under a reg house bulb tonight for heat and light, and I am leaving a red bulb on him overnight as well. But he will have a 100W Trex Bulb hooked up in the morning. 

He's so cute--we may just end up keeping him, instead of rehoming him like I originally thought. When Reid saw him, he was like---why do we have to give him away? Can't we keep him? And to think he groaned at the thought of picking up another. 










I need some ideas as to why he has the problems he has---this was his old setup. He's in the red circle, so you can all see that his bulbs were too far away to do him any good at all.






Also is he in fact, a Hermann Tortoise?


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## Millerlite (May 19, 2010)

Nice little guy, hes sure is tiny


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## DeanS (May 19, 2010)

My heart ALWAYS goes out to animals that have not been cared for properly...but even moreso to the people that are willing to turn things around...he's DEFINITELY in good hands now...please keep us updated on his progress...DAMN! He's cute.


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## egyptiandan (May 19, 2010)

You'd need to post a plastron picture Meg for us to be sure, but it does look like a Hermanns to me.
There is quite a bit of dead skin on his legs and that could be cutting off circulation. That takes a while to get there, so he is over 6 months old. He could also be having kidney issues. With his weight that low he has been dehydrated quite a bit.

Danny


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## Meg90 (May 19, 2010)

What do you recommend Danny? I have a product here called Shed Ease that I use for my snakes--but I am not sure I wanna soak him in it. How do I get that old skin off? Will he lose his limbs?

Daily soaks, and a proper diet should help right? His baby scutes are still touching so he has not grown AT ALL if he's 6 months old. The people I got him from, had him for about 5 weeks.


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## egyptiandan (May 19, 2010)

Petroleum Jelly on the dry skin will soften it up enough to be able to peel it off.

Daily soaks (with liquid vitamins) and proper diet will help, but always hard to tell if it will make him better. So all you can do is try. 

Danny


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## Meg90 (May 19, 2010)

Here are some new pictures, it looks almost like he is just missing the scales on the top of his legs. His back legs are fine--Could it be an old injury? Picked on by a bigger tort?













He ate spring mix for about 30 minutes, and packed a decent amount away for someone his size (compare these pics to the ones in the original post to see how much he ate). He's not lethargic, or soft, and his eyes are clear. He's walking around right now without any obvious limps or anything. I will pick up some bird vitamins tomorrow.

Is Mazuri a bad idea right now for him? Should I hold off a week or two before I offer some? I'd only give him a single pellet, he's so teeny. He's so teeny it hurts to look at him almost. Man, its hard to remember Novalee at this size, and she's only 10 months old!


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## egyptiandan (May 19, 2010)

Nope thats dead skin  

Personally I've had a problem with giving Hermanns (yup he's a Hermanns, _T.h.boettgeri_) any kind of protein. With Hermanns I'd keep the protein level as low as possible.

Danny


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## Meg90 (May 19, 2010)

The raised portions are layers of dead skin?

Ugh!!! And they were feeding him almost nothing BUT protein! 

So I'll stick to spring mix for him then for a few weeks. He has a good appetite, I waved a leaf at him, and he came running to take more nibbles. He weighs 21.3g. I am going to put Vaseline on his little noggin to help soften the skin there--but I worry about using it on his legs, because I don't want him to wipe his eyes and get it in them.

Danny, thank you for your helpful responses btw! I am SO glad you were on!

Any other tips for me? Obviously I am new to Hermanns heh. Also, best guess, male or female? We're trying to pick a name, and you've been spot on with the kids I got from you


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## terracolson (May 19, 2010)

my heart hurts for this little guy


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## Maggie Cummings (May 19, 2010)

OMGosh! Queenie is half (T.h.boettgeri), and they are the easiest keepers by far. She's only half but I believe that they are super easy to keep and maintain. She plays with rocks, pushing them around. She likes to dig for forage like her super worms. I love just watching her. She's sweet and funny and so far hasn't caught on to my eavesdropping on her. 
You are very lucky to have gotten one for free...


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## Meg90 (May 19, 2010)

I wish he was for free  I didn't pay the 175$ like she wanted, but I did pay. 

He's sleeping now. She? I dunno. Told Reid to name them something unisex for now. Since it was his idea this time, to keep him, he gets to have the honor of naming it!

And it looks like I am now branching out species wise. Maybe he won't be so mad when I bring a redfoot home next


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## egyptiandan (May 20, 2010)

No problem with getting petroleum jelly in his/her (can't tell sex yet) eyes as the base of most eye ointments is petroleum jelly. 

Your welcome 

Danny


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## mightyclyde (May 20, 2010)

WHY do people EVER think its ok to give a tortoise CAT FOOD?!! It makes me so angry. The little guy looks so sweet though, even with his Popeye arms! I would have adopted him too... what a cutie.


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## ChiKat (May 20, 2010)

Oh my goodness what a poor little guy!!! Thank God you rescued him! 
He is SO adorable- I have always loved Hermanns!
You'll have to post updates often! Can't wait to hear a name- you always pick the best names


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## Kayti (May 20, 2010)

Oh my god, how horrible  He looks so mangled, but if it's just dead skin it's fixable, right?

I can't believe someone would let him live in that condition! Did she not realize something was wrong?

He's really cute though, I'm so glad you're keeping him! I really want to see his progress!


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## BethyB1022 (May 20, 2010)

What a cutie, looking forward to updates and more pictures. He is lucky to have you to take care of him!


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## Stephanie Logan (May 20, 2010)

Poor little baby...that is painful to look at. He probably wouldn't have lasted much longer in those conditions, so thank goodness you came along.

Poor Reid, how can he possibly think of a name to compete with all of yours, Meg?


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## Meg90 (May 20, 2010)

I offered some Romaine this morning, dusted of course. I switched it so that his moist side is under the Trex UVB light, so that his humidity would be higher. After eating, this is how he has been spending his time:










He wakes up when we talk to him and looks at us. I've been telling him how much I love him already.

I'm off to get Vaseline and bird vitamins. I have hope for the little squirt.


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## ChiKat (May 20, 2010)

Awww precious little man  It looks like he's settling in well! Already wrapped around your finger


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## TortieLuver (May 20, 2010)

It's sad how many people out there have tortoises and don't have the knowledge to take care of them. GOOD thing he is in your care now, as he will do great!


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## Weloveourtortoise (May 20, 2010)

The little guy is definately a heart melter! I hope he has no long lasting adverse effects from his earlier treatment.


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## terryo (May 20, 2010)

I'm sure he'll make it Meg, with all your great care. He really is precious, and keep us posted.


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## Meg90 (May 22, 2010)

Well, still no name yet. I am still calling him "The Bean" but we don't want that to be permanent. Since Wednesday, the swelling on his limbs has gone down, and I haven't messed with him too much, so I do think that some of it was diet related. He's been eating dusted spring mix, and one day had dusted romaine. He sleeps under his basking light during the day on the eco but buries himself in the aspen in the same spot every morning.

He is about half way up his burrow by 9:30-10 o clock (His MVB is on at 6:30). I bring him up the rest of the way, let him bask for 20 minutes and then put him in front of food. He is already starting to pick his favorite greens (He loves oak lettuce) I'll have more recent pictures up later today. 

But I wanted to update this, because he is seeming to be slowly getting better. We love him already, and I am glad Reid asked to keep him, because I don't think I could put so much effort into him, only to give him up.


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## Kristina (May 22, 2010)

Meg, a little tip on the front legs...

Get some mineral oil, and warm it by placing it in a coffee cup with hot water, just to the point where it feels the same temperature as your wrist, or slightly warmer. Work it onto the dead skin with a Q-tip, and use a very soft toothbrush to brush at the dead stuff. Do it daily, a little at a time, not so much that it will make him sore. I have had to get stuck shed off snakes and igs many times, and the warm mineral oil really helps.


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## Meg90 (Jun 14, 2010)

ok, so time for an update here---

We named the little guy Conan. And I thought he was doing better, but he hasn't gained a single gram since I have had him. He's active enough for a baby, gets up on his own in the morning (first one up looking for food) eats dusted greens daily, is under UVB, uses his water dish--

But still no gain at all. I have started doing soaks in bird vitamins again but part of me wonders if his little body has parasites. I don't want to stress him by taking him in to get the wormer like they will make me do if I call--so can I puree a pumpkin/squash seed and feed him that with a bit of pumpkin/squash flesh?

He seems lethargic these last couple days, and that worries me. He's not as alert as he has been, and it takes him a while to "wake" up when I touch him, or hold him or soak him.

I'm just worried about the little squirt. Would it be so terrible if he had alittle mazuri? I know his diet is supposed to be low in protein, but I think the benefits of the mazuri formula might outweigh the risk?

He's 22g and tiny. I think the shock of a 20 minute drive to the vet for his "exam" (they couldn't tell me anything I didn't already know at this office when I brought Eglantine in) would just be counterproductive. I can forsee a lot of cooing and touching because of his size, and for them to tell me what I already know is wrong with him.


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## Livingstone (Jun 14, 2010)

Yes, add the mazuri, use boiling water to soften it up to a porridge then cool it and let it eat. 
The other thing to do would be soaking to help its internal organs and skin.
*** I dont know if you can add mineral oil to water when you bathe, my thought is it would separate. 
If its whole life it has not had adequate uva/uvb as indicated by the photo, then maybe the reason it hides under the leaf is because
its not used to the exposure. In which case a break in period to let it aclimate to the lights could also be advisable.

I wish you the best of luck, it is very lucky that you rescued it. There are so many animals that are in the care of ignorant people, you just reduced that by 1.


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## danielledelynn (Jun 14, 2010)

This is the first time I've seen this thread... Meg, it sounds like you're giving it your all for wee Conan, and I'm sure he appreciates every bit of it!

C'mon Conan, we're rootin' for you, little guy!!


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## DoversMama (Jun 14, 2010)

Oh! So precious...Good for you for rescuing the little one. I can't believe how tiny he is. Best wishes!


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## stells (Jun 15, 2010)

I would get a fecal tested for worms and protozoa... you don't need to take him to the vets for that... you would need to take a sample in for testing... to rule that out first as his history is unknown... tbh i wouldn't get tested i would treat him anyway as a precaution.... i would also get something to boost his gut flora... not sure what it would be called over there... with his past diet i wouldn't be surprised if his gut flora is abit off... the squash flesh would help with the weight... but will do nothing for the worms... it is said that the seeds are the effective part for it to work as a wormer...


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## bettinge (Jun 15, 2010)

My vet will not do fecal tests unless they have seen that tort before. So basically the first fecal would cost me about $75, and $20 for later fecals.


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## stells (Jun 15, 2010)

Any vet can do a fecal test... you may be lucky enough to find one that will... here you can just take sample in without the animal... if it came to it and the vet wanted to see the tortoise... i wouldn't hesitate too... untreated protozoan infections can be fatal... i'm not saying this tortoise has that but you just don't know and it needs ruling out...


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## TortoisesRock! (Jun 15, 2010)

poor guy, his feet really look unhealthy! I am glad that he now has a great home!


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