# feeding tube



## tortoise lover (Jun 4, 2008)

Hi i have 2 russians called harriet and martha,Harriet at the moment is very poorly and has had to have a feeding tube inserted as she will not eat on her own.I rescued her from someone 5,months ago as she was a in a very poor state, her eyes were swollen and shut tight and she was very lethargic and had not eaten properly for a long time.She was very underweight as well,I have had her to a reptile expert who has done xrays and blood tests and apart from her nutrician being way down everything showed as satisfactory.She has had a feeding tube down now for 2weeks and is still not showing any signs of eating on her own,She had just finished a course of baytril as she has had pneumonia as well,poor little thing.What i have noticed is that she is has so much more energy and she is walking round her tortoise table like a bull in a china shop,stopping at nothing.And one of her eyes has opened fully but the other one the swelling has gone down a lot still remains closed.Has anybody out there had any experiences like this.Would appreciate any advice.


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## Jacqui (Jun 4, 2008)

First off, sorry I haven't had to do this learning experience myself yet. *knocks on my wooden head*.

I am sure the Baytril didn't help her with her lack of desire to eat. Sounds like everything is starting to come back on track (ie her activity level and her eyes even are improving), I would guess it's only a short time til something catches her eye and she tries eating it.

Is the long range plan to get her a little weight on and other wise in good health and then stop tubing her so she becomes hungry enough to eat on her own? Sorta a tough love thing for eating, only short in duration if she fails to eat?

Curious, what is she getting fed down the tube and how often/how much?


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## tortoise lover (Jun 4, 2008)

Hi she has already put some of her weight back on.She is back at the vet a week tomorrow.At the moment i am putting Critical Care Formula twice a day down her tube and also giving her some weeds which i have to force feed her with them,When she gets the taste she does eat them but she just has not got the incentive to eat on her own at the moment. She finishes her baytril tomorrow so fingers crossed she may start to eat on her own as i have read that it can actually put them off there food.I really dont know how long these feeding tubes can stay down for, i must remember to ask the vet when i see him next week
.


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## Yvonne G (Jun 4, 2008)

I takes a long time for them to be weaned off the tube and to start eating on their own. Be patient. In the meantime, get a tube of Terramycin Opthalmic Ointment by Pfizer. Your vet can probably sell it to you, otherwise you can buy it at a feed store. Put it on the eye (lid) three times a day. You will see significant improvement in her eyes after just a day or two. This is truly a miracle drug!

Yvonne


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## spikethebest (Jun 4, 2008)

when this happened to my vet, they told me to use human contact lens solution and rub it on hourly with a que-tip. that seemed to work really good. so whenever i think any of my tortoises might get an eye infection, or swelling, or puffyness, i immediately rub their eyes with it, and since then, i have never had an eye infection to cause my tortoise to get ill.

i know how it feels. the tortoise doesnt want to eat or drink or move. its very scary. but just clear up the eyes, and things will get better. 

please keep us updated!

thank you!


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## tortoise lover (Jun 4, 2008)

Thanks everyone,Did forget to mention that the vet did give me Tiacil eyedrops to put in 3 times a day which i have been doing but if her other eye doesnt open soon i may try one of those that you have mentioned,hopefully get the piccys on later.


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## Jentortmom (Jun 5, 2008)

I like the drug Yvonne said, I used it on a rescued boxie a while back and it works great. eyes that had been sealed shut for months at the previous home cleared up with in days. Also I was told baytril can take an appetite away. Also have you taken her out for some real sun?? I must say it works wonders... Good Luck I hope she starts doing better real soon..


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## K9KidsLove (Jun 6, 2008)

About 4 years ago, I rehabbed Bobby Box turtle who had his face crushed by a car. The vet had to rebuild his mouth, so he couldn't eat. He put a tube in. About 4-5 months later, Bobby Box pulled the tube out, and we replaced it. It stayed in for 3 more months. I fed babyfood chicken, squash, green beans, peas, a pinch of calcium and enough water to easily push it thru the tube. One thing to always remember...flush the tube with 1-2 cc of water after every feeding so the tube won't hold food that would spoil and cause an infection.

I use Gentocin eye drops or Vetropolycin eye ointment if my turtles need medication. The drops are easier to apply.

Good luck
Patsy


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## tortoise lover (Jun 7, 2008)

Thanks for that patsy,That story has a happy ending then.She is improving a lot in the fact that she is moving so fast like shes on autopilot but she just will not eat on her own,I have tryed every method i can think of to try and persuade her to eat and yes i am making sure that i flush after each feed,The vet told me to put 1ml down each time.She is back for a check up next week so see what that brings,Thanks for your concerns


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## Jacqui (Jun 7, 2008)

I know there is frustration with the fact that she isn't yet willing to eat on her own, but relax a bit. She isn't going to waste away, because she has that tube in her. She is not getting worse, she is slowly getting better. You know that the meds she has been on are known to cause torts to go off food for awhile.

I know we all want them to have these miraculous overnight cures, but these are tortoises we are talking about. They do things slowly and in their own time, not ours. You have done wonders so far with her.

Just keep being patient. If your like me, patience is something I am not strong on. I use to laugh that the reason I was keeping the turtles and torts was so they could teach me patience. I am such a slow learner, looks like I will have to keep my "teachers" around for the rest of my life. 

*hugs* and keep up the hard work!


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## tortoise lover (Jun 7, 2008)

Thanks for them kind words. I think i am expecting her to improve overnight,I know i am doing all i can and it seems to have been such a long drawnout thing with her but i do understand its gonna take time,I have noticed today that her right eye is partiallly open now so i am really pleased about that,shes just pacing up and down like anything at the moment,shes making me tired just looking at her haha


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## K9KidsLove (Jun 7, 2008)

Yes, we did have a happy ending, but it was still 3 months after the last tube was removed before he was eating normally. Because he was a rehab, I was required to release him. Boy was that difficult for me. We have 4.5 acres, so the vet said I could release him on my property. My grand daughter walked down to the back with me to leave him near the small stream. We were both crying when we came back to the house.

But a couple weeks later, I got Gertie gopher & Billie box to rehab...plus I already had 3 iguanas rehabbing. The iguanas have all been rehomed but I still have Gertie & Billie. Billie will never be released cause he has only one eye, because of a dog. Gertie will probably be ready to release in the fall or next spring. She is required to be released near where she was found. I will check out the area. A dog chewed her up. If I don't think it is safe for her, I will convince the vet to let me release her on my property.

It is so rewarding when they make it back to being normal again. Just keep on keeping on. Everything takes a long time to heal.
Good luck
Patsy


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## tortoise lover (Jun 8, 2008)

Hi everybody,just thought i would share the good news with you all,I went to check and feed harriet this dinna and noticed that she was trying to pick a piece of substance up so i gave her some weeds and she has actuallly eaten them on her own,Wow i am so happy.This is the first time that she has eaten on her own for at least 5months.It was only maybe about six leaves but it is a big step forward .She is back at the vet next week and i cannot wait to tell them.Hopefully her feeding tube might not be in as long as i expected now.I just hope its plain sailing with her from now on.


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## Jacqui (Jun 8, 2008)

That is the best news!!!!


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## tortoise lover (Jun 10, 2008)

Just a quick update to let you know that things are still going very well.She cant eat enough now and shes walking up to me as well and taking them from my hand,bit naughty i know but she deserves to be spoilt what she has been through.I have spoken to the vet and she said if she still continues eating how she is they may even consider taking her tube out this thursday, so its still brilliant news.


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## Jacqui (Jun 10, 2008)

I really really love reading posts like this! I bet seeing her coming up to you like that is making all the time, energy, money and the emotional roller coaster seem so worthwhile.  Just such wonderful news!!! Looking forward to a Thursday post saying the tube is out.


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## [email protected] (Jun 11, 2008)

I have nursed many a sick turtle back to health in my day and it is nice to see other people have as much of a passion for these critters as I do. My hats off to you. Thanks for all your hard work!

jess


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## tortoise lover (Jun 11, 2008)

Thanks everybody she is back at the vet later today so i will let you know how she gets on,fingers crossed,It is about an hour and a quarter drive where i take her as there isnt a tortoise vet near me only the local vet so i will catch up with you all later and thanks again for all the kind words


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## tortoise lover (Jun 12, 2008)

Hi, We have been to the vet and just to let you all know that harriets feeding tube has been removed today,the vet is over the moon at her progress.I have got to really feed her up over the next 2-3months and hopefully she will be fine so i am so happy at the moment that things have got so much better,As soon has i fetched her home she was back in her tortoise table eating straight away and now she has just gone to sleep,how nice.


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## Jacqui (Jun 12, 2008)

Yippy!! Today was such a big day for the both of you. So glad the tube is out. You have done wonderful with her!


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## tortoise lover (Jun 12, 2008)

Yeah i do feel great,should sleep tonight and at least i know now of an excellent tortoise vet and would not hesitate to go there again with any worrys or concerns


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## Jacqui (Jun 12, 2008)

tortoise lover said:


> at least i know now of an excellent tortoise vet and would not hesitate to go there again with any worrys or concerns



That knowledge is very rare and worth it's weight in gold. Many of us can't say the same thing.


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## K9KidsLove (Jun 13, 2008)

Congratulations on a job well done!! 
Patsy


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