HELP!!

tort.tort2

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Hello. Last night I noticed that my 2 year old leopard tortoise hadn’t eaten his food. This morning I decided to go check on him, and his legs weren’t moving in and out of his shell like usual. His front legs are hanging out of his shell and his head is inside. His eyes look like they are missing? There are 2 big, black holes where his eyes should be. I can’t get a good look at it since his head is inside his shell. I brought him inside and put him in some water, hoping he’s maybe dehydrated. He is warm to the touch, but is not moving AT ALL. I can’t take him to the vet right now because I don’t have a car. Monday he was doing perfectly fine.. Here is a photo of him I just took. IMG_3378.jpg
 

Yvonne G

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I'm pretty sure the tortoise in that picture is dead. It looks like he is very thin. Had he been eating well? I'm so sorry.
 

tort.tort2

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I'm pretty sure the tortoise in that picture is dead. It looks like he is very thin. Had he been eating well? I'm so sorry.

Yes. He had always eaten half a head of green lettuce everyday, along with cactus pads whenever we could find them. He also ate the tortoise pellets that you soak in water.
 

ZEROPILOT

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Could he/she have overheated in the sun?
"Warm to the touch" sounds unusual.
They are, after all cold blooded.
The shell looks like he/she has been raised very dry, also.
 

wellington

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The diet you described is not a good diet. The lettuce has zero value except for giving him some hydration. The cactus is good but it doesnt sound like you fed it often enough. The mazuri pellets are a good food when part of a good diet not the only diet and with how skinny the legs look I dont think he was fed enough.
If you still dont know for sure if he is 100% gone, soak him in warm water, keeping him warm the whole time and I would add carrot baby food and pedialyte to the soaking water. Leave him for at least 1/2 an hour to 1 hour. If no movement at all then sadly he is gone.
 

Tom

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I see you are in AZ. Does the tortoise live outside? What kind of set up is it in and what do you do to keep it cool in summer?
 

tort.tort2

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I see you are in AZ. Does the tortoise live outside? What kind of set up is it in and what do you do to keep it cool in summer?

Yes, the tortoise lived outside since we didn’t have room for a bigger enclosure for him indoors. He was in a diy cage we had bought from somebody until he’s big enough to either move to a larger, permanent enclosure or free range. To keep him cool, he had many hiding places so he could be in the shade and we also gave him the coldest water we could get (which isn’t very cold since we are in AZ).
 

tort.tort2

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The diet you described is not a good diet. The lettuce has zero value except for giving him some hydration. The cactus is good but it doesnt sound like you fed it often enough. The mazuri pellets are a good food when part of a good diet not the only diet and with how skinny the legs look I dont think he was fed enough.
If you still dont know for sure if he is 100% gone, soak him in warm water, keeping him warm the whole time and I would add carrot baby food and pedialyte to the soaking water. Leave him for at least 1/2 an hour to 1 hour. If no movement at all then sadly he is gone.

He sadly began to smell later tonight, so we set him back in his outdoor enclosure until we decide what to do with his remains. Thank you for this information though. His diet was based off of what the breeder told us at the reptile expo and various care sheets. We used to try and feed him many other foods that we found in care sheets, but he refused to eat anything other than what I listed. He wouldn’t even eat any fruits we tried to give him.
 

wellington

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He sadly began to smell later tonight, so we set him back in his outdoor enclosure until we decide what to do with his remains. Thank you for this information though. His diet was based off of what the breeder told us at the reptile expo and various care sheets. We used to try and feed him many other foods that we found in care sheets, but he refused to eat anything other than what I listed. He wouldn’t even eat any fruits we tried to give him.
Very sorry for your loss and the not so great info you received from the breeder.
If you decide to get another tortoise, please stick to the info on this forum. We all want to help tortoise owners have great experiences and a long lived tortoise.
 

Tom

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Yes, the tortoise lived outside since we didn’t have room for a bigger enclosure for him indoors. He was in a diy cage we had bought from somebody until he’s big enough to either move to a larger, permanent enclosure or free range. To keep him cool, he had many hiding places so he could be in the shade and we also gave him the coldest water we could get (which isn’t very cold since we are in AZ).
Well now you know that its too hot there to house them that way. They need misters, sprinklers, shade cloth and possibly an underground shelter when temps are over 100. Or just bring them to an indoor enclosure.
 

kazjimmy

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During summer time. Numbers of tortoise owner were over heat their tortoise. Large outdoor enclosure with effective shed are the minimum requirement.
 

Maggie T

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I’m so sorry for your loss and sorry your pet suffered from bad information. You did what you thought was right. This has happened to many tort parents, unfortunately. At least there are very experienced people here who generously give of their time to share their knowledge. I hope it was helpful for you to know what could’ve shortened your beautiful tortoise’s life.
 

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