# Sulcata suddenly can't walk



## RogerC (Mar 24, 2016)

Our 90 pound African Sulcata suddenly can't support his weight with his back legs. We believe he's about 10-15 years old. He's always been very active, climbing all around our 1 acre yard every day. We're in Phoenix Arizona.

For the last two weeks he only pulls himself out of his burrow to eat the food I leave in front of it, then goes back in. He seems to be unusually hungry too, very aggressively coming at me looking for food.

We feed him a diet of hay (I think I bought Timothy the last time... whatever it was he's been eating on this bale for about 6 months with no problem). About every 3-4 days we give him a head of romaine lettuce.

Normally, when walking he lifts his shell entirely off the ground and takes forward steps with all four legs, keeping his shell up off the ground the entire time. Now he lifts himself fine with his two front legs, but when he tries to take a step with his back legs, he lifts his weight up in the back, then drops it back down hard while he's pulling himself forward with his front legs. He does this with every step. His shell hits the ground in the back only with each movement forward.

Any thoughts on what might be going on? We would sure hate to loose our Leo.


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## Kasia (Mar 24, 2016)

Did You noticed any other things like swelling or injuries of his limbs/body? How long is he Your tort and do You know his history? Does he have daily access to water? Dose he pee/ poo normally?
Maybe do a video of him trying to walk and post here, It will be very helpful. From Your current description it could be anything from an injury to internal issue like kidney stones.


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## Pearly (Mar 24, 2016)

Goodness, this sounds serious! I can't help you unfortunately but wegavd a bunch of very experienced sulcata people here and hopefully they'll see this thread soon. Wishing you all the best in resolving this


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## Tom (Mar 24, 2016)

What is his water source and do you see him drinking regularly? Do you soak him?

I think you need to run him to the vet for an Xray to check for stones.


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## MPRC (Mar 24, 2016)

Poor guy, I hope you can get to the bottom of it soon. Is he coming out to bask at all or does he just hide? If you need suggestions for a vet in the Phoenix area @Yvonne G is usually pretty quick with a list of herp vets for people.


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## RogerC (Mar 24, 2016)

Kasia said:


> Did You noticed any other things like swelling or injuries of his limbs/body? How long is he Your tort and do You know his history? Does he have daily access to water? Dose he pee/ poo normally?
> Maybe do a video of him trying to walk and post here, It will be very helpful. From Your current description it could be anything from an injury to internal issue like kidney stones.



Everything about him looks normal. I lifted him to look at his back feet and don't see anything odd. When I touch them, he retracts them into his shell very quickly as you would expect. 

He came with the house when we bought it 3 years ago. The previous owners said he was 8 at that time. They fed him on lettuce and kitchen scraps I believe. We did the research and have had him on grasses the past 3 years. He has access to a water bin for drinking. 

He seems to be peeing/pooping normal, but he's doing it all in his burrow now. I plan on cleaning it out this weekend and will see what's there. 

Here is one embarrassing thing... I had to travel for a while and I don't know for sure, but I suspect his water may have been neglected at some point during that time. He has had water and is drinking it since I returned several weeks ago. 

Thanks for the response. I'll do a video soon.


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## RogerC (Mar 24, 2016)

Tom said:


> What is his water source and do you see him drinking regularly? Do you soak him?
> 
> I think you need to run him to the vet for an Xray to check for stones.



He drinks from a bin I keep full of water. It's a daily chore because his head can only get into it so far... I have to keep it topped off. 

We spray him with a hose as often as we think to during the hot summers here in Phoenix. We haven't done that through the winter. 

Thanks for the response.


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## RogerC (Mar 24, 2016)

LaDukePhoto said:


> Poor guy, I hope you can get to the bottom of it soon. Is he coming out to bask at all or does he just hide? If you need suggestions for a vet in the Phoenix area @Yvonne G is usually pretty quick with a list of herp vets for people.



He isn't coming out to sunbathe at all, although he typically did often. 

Thank you for the vet suggestion. From what I've researched, there's only one in the Phoenix area that treats tortoise. I'll check with Yvonne.


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## Tom (Mar 24, 2016)

Sometimes when they are dehydrated over the long term, they form large bladder or kidney stones. These are very painful for them, and it sometimes causes what appears to be back leg paralysis, or refusal to use their back legs.

It could also be simple constipation. Do you have access to spineless opuntia? If not you can buy it at the store. Its called "nopales" in grocery stores and its a common ingredient in a lot of Mexican dishes. Most grocery stores sell it, but if you have any trouble finding it, look for a Mexican grocery store like "Tres Sierras" or "Vallarta". That's what we have here anyway… Opuntia is a great tortoise food anyway, so you might want to get some and start growing your own. Its pretty slimy inside and that is why I suggest it here. It will lube things up in there and get things moving.

Living in a dry climate, eating dry food all the time, could do this. Access to water, and drinking are two different things. Many tortoises have a seemingly suitable water dish, but they ignore them or choose not to drink from them, or they just don't drink enough, for a variety of reasons.

The first thing I would do with this guy is get a large tub of warm water and soak him for a good hour. I would do this daily for at least a couple of weeks. I use 3x5' cement mixing tubs, or horse watering troughs for this purpose. It isn't easy with the big ones, but its necessary.


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## RogerC (Mar 24, 2016)

Here's Canyon teaching Leo to dance a jig. (To give you a sense of Leo's size, Canyon is a standard poodle).


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## MPRC (Mar 24, 2016)

He is a really beautiful boy. 

Another soaking bin option is a children's plastic swimming pool. They aren't always super sturdy, but the more rubbery ones can take a beating.


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## RogerC (Mar 24, 2016)

Tom said:


> Sometimes when they are dehydrated over the long term, they form large bladder or kidney stones. These are very painful for them, and it sometimes causes what appears to be back leg paralysis, or refusal to use their back legs.
> 
> It could also be simple constipation. Do you have access to spineless opuntia? If not you can buy it at the store. Its called "nopales" in grocery stores and its a common ingredient in a lot of Mexican dishes. Most grocery stores sell it, but if you have any trouble finding it, look for a Mexican grocery store like "Tres Sierras" or "Vallarta". That's what we have here anyway… Opuntia is a great tortoise food anyway, so you might want to get some and start growing your own. Its pretty slimy inside and that is why I suggest it here. It will lube things up in there and get things moving.
> 
> ...



Yes, I've seen nopales at Food City here. I've never given them to Leo, but will start this afternoon. Will also try the daily soak. I've got a mixing tub plenty big enough. Thanks so much for the suggestions, Tom.


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## Kasia (Mar 24, 2016)

RogerC said:


> Yes, I've seen nopales at Food City here. I've never given them to Leo, but will start this afternoon. Will also try the daily soak. I've got a mixing tub plenty big enough. Thanks so much for the suggestions, Tom.



If You do not notice any improvement after week or two of hydration and feeding laxatives or worse, You will see any other symptoms like being swollen/lethargic get him to the Reptile Vet ASAP. It's hard to tell when/if Tort's in pain but bladder/kidney stones are one of the worst type of it. His previous diet with lack of proper hydration could cause some damage. Wish You and Leo all the best . Keep us updated.
Good luck.


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## Kori5 (Mar 25, 2016)

What a beautiful tortoise. His shell is stunning and looks so healthy. I hope everything is ok but I would take him to the vet .


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## Yvonne G (Mar 25, 2016)

Besides stones, another thing to think about is calcium deficiency. I have an Aldabran tortoise that exhibited the same symptoms as your sulcata. He had been only grazing on the grasses and weeds in his yard with no supplementation.

I've been giving him human calcium pills in a strawberry for a couple years now, and he is finally able to lift his weight, but it's been a long row to hoe.


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