8 month hermman foaming at mouth and bobbing head in and out of shell. Help

[choclolatebunny]

My Hermmans tortoise (about 8 months old) isn't eating for days (about 4 or 5 days) now and it is foaming at the mouth and taking its head in and out of its shell fast continuously. Seems to be struggling to walk. Dragging back legs. (Have had my tort for 4 months so far & its is supposed to be a captive breed) I did not receive any care packet when I got him & the owner from the shop is not being helpful with this problem. Doing my best with research. I got a vet app. but can't see my tort till 2 weeks from now.

It's got Luck Herp UVA UVB Reptile Light 10.0, Desert UVB 150 Compact Fluorescent Lamp 23W, Fluker's Repta-Clamp Lamp 8.5-Inch Ceramic with Dimmable Switch, Fluker's Repta-Clamp Lamp with Switch for Reptiles & Galapagos Tropicoco Husk Coconut Reptile Bedding (perhaps the coco nut from bedding is bothering his nose?) I spray his cage down every other day with purified water.

It's bathed everyday in warm water for 15mins. My tort is little & weights 0.98oz. It's enclosure is 2 by 4. It eats the Mazuri Small Tortoise Diet LS twice a week & romaine the rest (picky eater.) Again, I do have a vet app. but can't see my tort till 2 weeks.

Here's a picture. Its in its shell right now, I'll try to update with another pic if/when it put it's head out if this website allows updated pics.

My tort looks so unforgettable. What to do in the meantime or what could be wrong please?

Thanks.

 

[wellington]

What are the temps?
Basking temp?
All over temp?
Night temp?
Diet?

 

[Yvonne G]

Foaming from the mouth indicates overheating, or something stuck in the mouth or throat, or having a bite of something toxic. YOU have to be the detective, and if you can't figure it out, a visit to a qualified tortoise vet is in order.

 

[choclolatebunny]

Perhaps you didn't see the part where I am taking it to the vet?

 

[wellington]

If you answer the questions I asked we may be able to figure out what is going on. If we don't figure it out and get it fixed it will continue to happen.
Something is wrong.
Answer the questions and post pics of the whole enclosure.

 

[choclolatebunny]

If you answer the questions I asked we may be able to figure out what is going on. If we don't figure it out and get it fixed it will continue to happen.
Something is wrong.
Answer the questions and post pics of the whole enclosure.

Sorry. I didn't see your reply.
What are the temps? Basking temp? 95 degrees F on heat lamp
All over temp? Day around 85
Night temp? About 75
Diet? Mazuri Small Tortoise Diet LS twice a week & romaine the rest of the week.
Thanks for your help.

 

[wellington]

I would lower over all day temp where there is a range of 75 to 80 and night to 70. Your temps are high but not so high to cause the tort to over heat unless it's in a very small enclosure that it can't get away from the basking temp.
The diet though needs a lot more variety added. This too would not cause foaming but will/can cause problems later on.
Add as much variety in the diet as possible. Chop new items up small along with the romaine and mix together and spritz with water. As he gets used to eating this, use less romaine and more of the better stuff.
Also get humidity up to 80%
Look here for more food items https://www.thetortoisetable.org.uk/

 

[Tom]

Sorry. I didn't see your reply.
What are the temps? Basking temp? 95 degrees F on heat lamp
All over temp? Day around 85
Night temp? About 75
Diet? Mazuri Small Tortoise Diet LS twice a week & romaine the rest of the week.
Thanks for your help.

Your temperatures sound good.

As Yvonne pointed out, foaming at the mouth is usually from over heating or from eating something poisonous. A third cause is incorrect lighting. The cfl type UV bulbs should never be used over tortoises. It might be burning his eyes.

Pet shops are terrible source of info and products in most cases, and vets aren't much better. All of them, and most other people are getting their care info from all the same wrong sources.

Turn that compact fluorescent off ASAP, and read this a couple of times. They can go months with no UV at all, so turning the bulb off for a week or two until you get something better will do no harm, and might stop this problem.

The Best Way To Raise Any Temperate Species Of Tortoise

I chose the title of this care sheet very carefully. Are there other ways to raise babies and care for adults? Yes. Yes there are, but those ways are not as good. What follows is the BEST way, according to 30 years of research and experimentation with hundreds of babies of many species. What is...

tortoiseforum.org

Questions are welcome.