RT skin around cloaca grayer than usual

Camade

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Hi all! My russian tortoise Tatlin got to his home at the end of March, and things have been going well for the most part. However, as the summer has been a lot warmer than usual, our appartment has heated a lot - the inside temperature was around 25-26 C for a couple weeks. I tried to keep Tatlin's enclosure cooler by burying ice in the substrate every night, but he still started aestivating. I let him do that, as his previous owner said that he was very prone to brumation and aestivation and would self-starve for weeks even if he wasn't properly brumated. So, he's been digging burrows in his enclosure, being mainly asleep/inactive for about a month now, sometimes coming out on his own. I've continued to soak him 2-3 times a week to avoid dehydration as he is not really eating (he only eats a few leaves of dandelion/other weed if fed directly under his nose). His weight has remained bretty stable, started from 858 g, now down to 841 g.

But on today's soak I noticed the skin around his cloaca had changed colours: it has went from the olive green/yellow to a duller, almost gray colour. Should I be worried? If none of you have had similar experiences, I'll call a vet first thing in tomorrow morning. I sadly don't have pics as I didn't have a camera ready when I noticed, and as I came back, Tatlin had already went back to his burrow.
 

Yvonne G

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Hm-m-m. . . Not to say I'm an unconscious tortoise keeper, but in all the years I've been keeping turtles and tortoises I can't say I've ever paid attention to the color of the skin around the cloaca.

It may have something to do with whether or not there was poop behind the cloaca, pressure on the blood vessels???
 

Camade

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Hm-m-m. . . Not to say I'm an unconscious tortoise keeper, but in all the years I've been keeping turtles and tortoises I can't say I've ever paid attention to the color of the skin around the cloaca.

It may have something to do with whether or not there was poop behind the cloaca, pressure on the blood vessels???
I saw it four months ago as I was confirming the sex after I got him home. Happened to notice it as I had to scrub underneath his shell because he had been apparently dancing in his own poop. I must admit I hadn't really looked at it either before today :p

But, just to be sure, I'll call my vet tomorrow. She is very nice and often gives help for free on the phone if any bigger measures aren't necessarily needed.
 

Camade

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Pictures?
I might post them the day after tomorrow, I don't want to distract Tatlin's burrow session too often (he is aestivating atm). But it's pretty much just the colour, I didn't see any swelling or other weirdness
 

Camade

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Okay, here is a picture of it after today's soak. I called a vet, and they told me to look out for any weird behaviour.

As Tatlin hasn't eaten a lot in a while, I'm slowly trying to get his system to process in a more normal manner. I'll be soaking daily and giving small amounts of food. If things seem unoptimal, we'll go see a vet. I'll update this thread when the issue is solved for future reference.
DSC_1034.JPG
 

TaylorTortoise

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Okay, here is a picture of it after today's soak. I called a vet, and they told me to look out for any weird behaviour.

As Tatlin hasn't eaten a lot in a while, I'm slowly trying to get his system to process in a more normal manner. I'll be soaking daily and giving small amounts of food. If things seem unoptimal, we'll go see a vet. I'll update this thread when the issue is solved for future reference.
View attachment 330620
Pretty sure this is normal and nothing to worry about. I would worry if the behavior is off, and feces was abnormal. Making sure your tort is peeing/pooping daily is good signs of good health/ hydration.
 

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