Can someone please help my sick Sulcata?

Miggymeister

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4 years ago I purchased Camelot and she has slept with me under the
down comforter every night, curled up around my tummy.

She has always dined on dandelion, clover, hibiscus leaves and rose
petals.

Last week I gave her a strawberry and she started salivating as though
she were in 115 degree weather. I took her into the tub and wiped her
mouth out and cooled her off, just in case.

She hasn't eaten since.

Last night I was reading this formula and it was talking about giving
turtles baths with Campbell baby tomato soup. I haven't seen her pee
or poo for two weeks. She has also had droopy eyes and is very
lethargic.

Another thing I feel really guilty about is that i let her walk around
the house ( I live alone) and am going through menopause so I keep the
house about 66 without even thinking. I bought her a heater to go with
her basking light and she's in her tomato soak right now. It has
always bothered me that she drinks only a little water every couple of
months.

I am thinking about taking one of those plastic syringes and pushing it
down her throat.

Yesterday she ate a frozen green bean but that was it. I stuck a q-tip
in her mouth to see if she might have mouth rot. She used to have a
beautiful pink tongue and her mouth looks yellow now.

I got an apple a squash, the strawberries and some baby tomatoes at the
store for her. I know she can't eat these foods all the time but I
can't get the clover down her.

Could a bumble bee have bitten her?

I'm at my wits end and there are no exotic specialist around here.

Please help me. I love her so much.

PS. Last night I started giving her Pediolyte and a couple of plastic syrynges of baby jars of carrots, squash, etc. She actually opened her mouth a little and swallowed it. Do you think I'm hurting her more? Today I mainly plan on keeping her soaked in a warm tub all day.
 

wellington

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I don't think I would use the baby food tomato, use the carrots or squash ones. The pedialyte is good too. The strawberry, could it have had a pesticide or similar on it? Possibld poison? Keep her off your floor, too dangerous and cold. Also is she getting to warm up under a basking light as she pleases? She needs to warm up over 85 degrees to digest her food. A proper enclosure is the best place for her and also the healthiest place. Good luck, others will have ideas too. Maybe a pic of what enclosure if any she does have will help also.
 

Miggymeister

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I don't think I would use the baby food tomato, use the carrots or squash ones. The pedialyte is good too. The strawberry, could it have had a pesticide or similar on it? Possibld poison? Keep her off your floor, too dangerous and cold. Also is she getting to warm up under a basking light as she pleases? She needs to warm up over 85 degrees to digest her food. A proper enclosure is the best place for her and also the healthiest place. Good luck, others will have ideas too. Maybe a pic of what enclosure if any she does have will help also.
 

Miggymeister

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Thank you so much! I don't know how to take her temperature, do you? And she's been so terribly happy and healthy until now. She has had the run of the house for 4 years but I'm going to keep her in the warm bathroom from now on. Do you think she could have a blockage from that uric acid? She only does that about once a week and it's really thick.
 

Careym13

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Do you have an enclosure for her at all? Letting her roam the house and sleep in the bed can be very dangerous, not to mention it makes it much harder for her to keep her body temperature where she needs it. The temperatures that you need to be measuring are in her enclosure. You should know the warm side temp, cool side temp, basking temp and night temp. Once you have the correct temperatures inside her enclosure, then you will know that her body temperature is where it should be because she will have the ability to move around to different "micro-climates" to warm herself or cool herself as she sees fit.

Does she get outside and/or does she have a UV light?

Please post pictures of your tortoise and of her enclosure if you have one.

Then, click on this link http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/ and read the care sheet very carefully. This will explain how to properly house, feed and care for your tort and is based on many years of successful tortoise keeping by the author.
 

Miggymeister

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I'm sorry to bother you again but I just checked on her and she was walking around slowly in the tub, which is more than she has been. She hasn't been moving at all. Is it possible to give her too much Pedyolite? My gut just tells me she is very dehydrated. I've been giving her 1/2 1 syringe full every 8 hours.

I've also spent an entire week reading about the various medical conditions of the Sulcata and there is such a thing as "rot mouth" which is very painful and they won't eat at ALL if they have it.

This sounds really gross but if I took a toothbrush and gently brushed her genitals could that perhaps stimulate her to want to go to the bathroom? Someone on here said that they don't poo out what they ate up to two weeks ago. As you can see I'm desperate and I looked at the calendar and it's been 2 weeks since she ate. How long can a 4 year old go without food?
 

Miggymeister

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Do you have an enclosure for her at all? Letting her roam the house and sleep in the bed can be very dangerous, not to mention it makes it much harder for her to keep her body temperature where she needs it. The temperatures that you need to be measuring are in her enclosure. You should know the warm side temp, cool side temp, basking temp and night temp. Once you have the correct temperatures inside her enclosure, then you will know that her body temperature is where it should be because she will have the ability to move around to different "micro-climates" to warm herself or cool herself as she sees fit.

Does she get outside and/or does she have a UV light?

Please post pictures of your tortoise and of her enclosure if you have one.

Then, click on this link http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/ and read the care sheet very carefully. This will explain how to properly house, feed and care for your tort and is based on many years of successful tortoise keeping by the author.
 

Careym13

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I'm sorry to bother you again but I just checked on her and she was walking around slowly in the tub, which is more than she has been. She hasn't been moving at all. Is it possible to give her too much Pedyolite? My gut just tells me she is very dehydrated. I've been giving her 1/2 1 syringe full every 8 hours.

I've also spent an entire week reading about the various medical conditions of the Sulcata and there is such a thing as "rot mouth" which is very painful and they won't eat at ALL if they have it.

This sounds really gross but if I took a toothbrush and gently brushed her genitals could that perhaps stimulate her to want to go to the bathroom? Someone on here said that they don't poo out what they ate up to two weeks ago. As you can see I'm desperate and I looked at the calendar and it's been 2 weeks since she ate. How long can a 4 year old go without food?
DONT use a toothbrush on her genitals. There could be a number of things going on with her. Considering she has been roaming around your house and could have ingested any type or number of foreign objects, I would take her to a reptile vet as soon as possible. They can go a while without food, but the longer you wait and guess as to what may be wrong with her the harder her recovery may become. Don't gamble with your tort's health. Take her to a vet and get her a proper enclosure immediately.
 

Robertchrisroph

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Hello. You have her in the tub? Is there water in there? the bottom of a tub can be very cold. please start from beginning. With three temps. Water must be in 80s to 90s to soak
 

Tom

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Your tortoise has been in the totally wrong environment and conditions for 4 years. It is simply amazing that it is still alive. I think your luck has finally run out.

Where are you? What size is your tortoise? I ask because your climate and tortoise's size will dictate the best advice.

One way or another, your tortoise needs a proper heated environment. Loose in a 66 degree house and sleeping in a bed is no place for a tortoise. Sorry, but what you have been doing might feel good for your emotions, but it is not what is best for your beloved tortoise. Time for a big chance if you want to save her life. This is a tropical animal. Daily highs are near 100 degrees all year long every day where they come from. They stay under ground in warm burrows to avoid the mid day heat.

Once we know where you are and what size tortoise you've got we can give more specific advice.

An x-ray to eliminate the very likely possibility of an ingested foreign body would be a very good idea.

This thread will offer some insight too:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
 

Yvonne G

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Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

Now, don't get upset, and I apologise right off the bat if I sound like I'm picking on you, but I don't mean to hurt your feelings.

You are treating your sulcata tortoise as if it were a puppy or a kitten. Tortoises are not interactive pets. They are wild animals and they need to be set up in a habitat that answers all their needs. Tortoises need the sun or a good UVB light in order to warm up. You can't 'take their temperature.' Tortoises are cold-blooded and they won't eat if they aren't warm enough to digest their food.

Please read the pinned threads shown at the top of our Sulcata section and either set this tortoise up outside or build him an indoor habitat big enough for him to roam around.
 

SarahChelonoidis

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I saw in a 2012 post you mentioned having three sulcata - do you still have more than one and are they in good health? Do you have photos of Camelot you could share?

Soaking in a salty soup seems like a bad idea, regardless of what else is going on.
 

Lyn W

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Where do you keep your other 2 torts?
 

Miggymeister

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Your tortoise has been in the totally wrong environment and conditions for 4 years. It is simply amazing that it is still alive. I think your luck has finally run out.

Where are you? What size is your tortoise? I ask because your climate and tortoise's size will dictate the best advice.

One way or another, your tortoise needs a proper heated environment. Loose in a 66 degree house and sleeping in a bed is no place for a tortoise. Sorry, but what you have been doing might feel good for your emotions, but it is not what is best for your beloved tortoise. Time for a big chance if you want to save her life. This is a tropical animal. Daily highs are near 100 degrees all year long every day where they come from. They stay under ground in warm burrows to avoid the mid day heat.

Once we know where you are and what size tortoise you've got we can give more specific advice.

An x-ray to eliminate the very likely possibility of an ingested foreign body would be a very good idea.

This thread will offer some insight too:
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
 

Miggymeister

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Sarah, I got Bogie and Bacall the same time I did Camelot in May of 2010.

There was a really hateful neighbor who threw Bogie in the trash dumpster when I wasn't looking and I was doing yard work with Bacall when I turned around and she was suddenly gone.

That taught me the lesson of keeping a key finder wrapped around Camelot when she goes outside because when they decide to start moving they move FAST!
 

Miggymeister

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Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

Now, don't get upset, and I apologise right off the bat if I sound like I'm picking on you, but I don't mean to hurt your feelings.

You are treating your sulcata tortoise as if it were a puppy or a kitten. Tortoises are not interactive pets. They are wild animals and they need to be set up in a habitat that answers all their needs. Tortoises need the sun or a good UVB light in order to warm up. You can't 'take their temperature.' Tortoises are cold-blooded and they won't eat if they aren't warm enough to digest their food.

Please read the pinned threads shown at the top of our Sulcata section and either set this tortoise up outside or build him an indoor habitat big enough for him to roam around.
Yvonne, I'm not upset. I'm simply glad you cared enough to respond.

They're such sweet, gently animals and I have even taught mine a few tricks. In my heart I KNOW that SHE knows I'm trying my best to save her.
 

Careym13

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Sarah, I got Bogie and Bacall the same time I did Camelot in May of 2010.

There was a really hateful neighbor who threw Bogie in the trash dumpster when I wasn't looking and I was doing yard work with Bacall when I turned around and she was suddenly gone.

That taught me the lesson of keeping a key finder wrapped around Camelot when she goes outside because when they decide to start moving they move FAST!
So....did you get the tort out of the dumpster? What is happening with Camelot? Have you gotten her an enclosure set up?
 

Miggymeister

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The latest on Cam is that I have a dear vet friend who took an xray for free ( I have been unemployed and down to my last two bucks for several months now). It was very kind of him and he he emailed the pic to another local vet. The xray shows no blockages of any kind and the new vet put her on her first dose of Baytril today and she was like on Meth! She was wandering around and even slowly chewing on clover (which has been almost three weeks). The problem is it cost me$250 today and I have to bring her back tomorrow. I'm not sure I can afford this but I believe God gives us ways. It sure was good to see her happy again! I should know more tomorrow. I love that little girl so much. The vet said he believes she has respiratory/breathing problems. Thanks to everyone who has offered advice.
 

Careym13

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The latest on Cam is that I have a dear vet friend who took an xray for free ( I have been unemployed and down to my last two bucks for several months now). It was very kind of him and he he emailed the pic to another local vet. The xray shows no blockages of any kind and the new vet put her on her first dose of Baytril today and she was like on Meth! She was wandering around and even slowly chewing on clover (which has been almost three weeks). The problem is it cost me$250 today and I have to bring her back tomorrow. I'm not sure I can afford this but I believe God gives us ways. It sure was good to see her happy again! I should know more tomorrow. I love that little girl so much. The vet said he believes she has respiratory/breathing problems. Thanks to everyone who has offered advice.
I'm glad to hear you have a vet taking care of her. Let us know how she does.
 

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