couple questions

[fordohio]

We have a Leopard and he/she is just over one year old. I just noticed last night when you listen to him breathe you could hear something in the exhale. Kinda sound like congestion to me. Maybe it is normal and I never noticed before. No bubbles. Is this something I should be concerned with?

We just moved him into a new turtle table. I had read enclosed was bad because of it holding in humidity. And then I turn around and read about people wanting humidity. He always has fresh water availiable. Is the a humidity level to shoot for?

The table is 95 in the basking area. And the coldest area is around 72-73. We have a small amount of heat at night with around 80 in the heat area and around 70ish everywhere else in the table.

 

[fordohio]

So, we are still dealing with our problem. We have been to several Vets. We were first prescibed to give him 10 shots of Fortaz. Then another batch of 10. Xrays were done after those shots did not clear him up. They showed us a spot in the xray in his lungs. And then prescribed 10 shots of Amikacin. After the last shot of Amakacin his noise/clicking sound went away. We went to the vet the next day. And the new Xray showed the lung was cleared up. But after 3-4 days the noise came back.

We decided to look for a second opinion. I searched online and finding another vet has been very difficult. We went to one I found on a herp registry site and was refered to the vet we visited today. Throughout this time he/she has still eaten. Never had any discharge from his nose. But activity has slowed down. When outside he goes to his hide. And inside he seems to spend most of his time in the cooler side of his table.

Today the vet said we should give him anastesics. Then put a liquid into his lungs. Then take the liquid back out and make cultures to see what antibiotic to give him. We are not really worried about the cost in all this. I'm just worried I am doing the wrong thing. Looking for others opinions.

 

[Yvonne G]

Well, its good that the vet wants to culture the mucous in the lungs to see which antibiotic will kill the bugs. Like we were talking on another thread, most vets just automatically prescribe a round of Baytril injections without really testing to see if there is something there to kill. Fortaz, Baytril and Naxcell are what is usually used to clear up an upper respiratory infection, with Baytril being the harshest (and the one that really gets the job done.)

Yvonne

 

[Laura]

But Baytril can also be given orally right? No painful injections.. liquid or pill form... as long as the tort is still eating...
I gave baytril pills this way and hid in food.. it work very well.

 

[fordohio]

Update: The vet was not able to anesthize Titus. Because of his size they could not give him an iv and none of the injectibles affected him. They prescribed a combination of Naxcel and Amikacin to fight pnuemonia. We have been doing the shots for two weeks, and are continuing for a third. He has had some pink on his shell since we first started with his problem a long time ago. But today is really bad. It is very bright on the lines of his underbelly and is showing on his feet and legs. Has anyone ever seen pink on their tortoise?

 

[egyptiandan]

Hi,
If the red has moved to his legs, than it sounds like he has septecemia, which is a blood/body infection.
In all this has he produced any urates? It sounds like his kidneys have an infection or have shut down.
He definately needs to have blood work down to find out whats going on ASAP.

Danny

 

[Crazy1]

fordohio, if you have been following the forum you know Danny (Egyptiandan) knows his stuff. If he suggests bloodwork I would get him to the vet asap and get it done and tell them you think he may have septecemia, or a kidney infection. Sometimes Vets tend to try and put you off like you know nothing. Be persistant. This is the life of your tort.

 

[fordohio]

Ok, So my wife reacted a little fast about the pink on the feet/legs. It seems one of the pieces of slate had some redish dust and it just kinda stained him. It came of with a toothbrush and some water.

Yesterday the noise I hear when he is breathing was almost non existent. This morning my wife said she heard it. I checked when I got home tonight and I didn't hear it. So maybe thing are on the up and up.

Todays question is... When your tortoise breathes do their legs move? His seem to be moving less. And most times just the front legs now.

 

[egyptiandan]

I'm glad it was just dust

It's very normal for the front legs to move when a tortoise breathes.

Danny

 

[turtlemom]

Whew! That was stressful I'm relieved it was dust, too!

I lost a golden greek to septicemia and it can become fatal very quickly. In our case it was about 12 hours and unfortunately it was during the night.

Danny is right, if you suspect septicemia, you must get vet care ASAP.

I hope Titus is doing better today.

Donna

 

[Crazy1]

Glad to hear it was dust. Wow, that was scary for me I can imagine what you two were going through. Glad to hear you don't hear anything. Hopefully he is on the upswing and things will get better soon. Good thoughts to you and Titus.

 

[fordohio]

Well just wanted to write a positive post since there seem to be alot of negative/sick posts in the leopard thread.

Titus had to go thru another round of injections after they actually got the anesthetics(sp?) to work. The test results said he had a pretty strong bug. He had to have a combination of shots and nose drops. It has been almost 3 weeks with no shots. He isn't making his clicking noises. And he has been extremely active. He has been less shy. At some points actually walking around like he owns the place. I can't wait for the temps to improve here so he can go roam around outside.

 

[Yvonne G]

This was originally posted almost a year ago. I'm so glad you came back on and gave us an update. Its good that your tortoise is becoming more outgoing and active. That must mean he feels better. As an additional note to your treatment protocol...I have found that the antibiotic always works better on an upper respiratory infection when it is combined with the injection AND the nasal flush. If you get a chance, send us a picture. We don't get many leopard pictures!

Yvonne

 

[Jacqui]

Posts like this just make my day! So very very happy for you and of course the tort too! You stuck to getting him the best care and went way out of your way to do so, you deserve very high praise. It sounds like with this hurdle past, the two of you can move on to better, happier moments.

 

[fordohio]

I was really just posting to try and motivate others not to give up!!!

We don't get many leopard pictures!

Here you go.

 

[Yvonne G]

Oh! What a pretty tortoise!! And I had to laugh out loud at the tortoise/baby picture! Because I've raised 3 children from babies, I KNOW that sometimes babies just open their eyes really wide for no reason, but this picture is too precious. Its like, "Yipes!! What is that thing on my head?"

On a side note: I receive quite a few tortoises because the owner or owner's wife became pregnant and they worried about salmonella for the baby, so they were giving up their tortoise. I always caution people with babies and small children to wash their hands before handling babies or toys. Salmonella isn't restricted to tortoises, its actually found in quite a few different places, but safety first! In my opinion, if you are careful, there's NO REASON to give up your tortoise just because a baby has been added to your family! And I'm glad to see that you are keeping that beautiful leopard tortoise.

Yvonne

 

[fordohio]

Salmonella is definetly a concern. Titus and the boy(Will) have not had any direct contact yet. There is sanitizer next to the enclosure. Any time we handle Titus we immediately sanitize after. Between that and my wonderful wife that loves to keep things clean we are hopefull there will be no problems.

 

[Crazy1]

fordohio, Yeah, for you and Titus. And just look at that new little boy you have there. What a wonderful pic. I love Titus sitting on the couch watching over Will. Congratulations to both you and your wife for the wondersful happenings in your family.