Does my tortoise have RI

[Lanutheleopard]

HI, I have a 15 month old leopard tortoise. When I received my baby, the first few days, she had some bubbles coming out of her nose. I soaked her and kept her warm for several days and it seemed to go away. On occasions, I have noticed some squeaky noises. I have had her 6 weeks and overall, she seemed healthy, active, eating, drinking etc, The last 2 days I have noticed she is more lethargic. She tends to hide a little more, but is still eating, soaking, pooping and doing a couple of laps around her enclosure, but not near as much as normal. Her temps overall have stayed the same. I am waiting on a smart enclosure. So on occasions her temps spike and her humidity has dropped as low as 73 at times. I take her outside when the ambient temp is around 80 or above, but use a temp gun on grass, rocks and her shell to make sure she is not too cold. The ground and shell are usually mid to hight 80s. Today when I took her out, her eyes were a little watery, she had tiny little bubbles around her mouth and a little squeaking, but she motored around for a while and then wanted to snuggle into me. Is this RI? My vet is 3 weeks out, so if it is RI, is there anything I can do until I can get a vet appointment? Oregano? Any thoughts and suggestions. After an hour of being outside today, she went into her enclosure and has been sleeping for 3 hours. Worried... I can try to make an ER exotic vet, but not sure if that will cost me my car... and it is 1-2 hours away... I will if I need too. Thanks

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Hello!
The initial bubbles could’ve been stress from the new move, and likely were if it went away.

It’s hard to comment on the squeaky noise without hearing it firsthand, if you’re able to get clips to upload that would be handy, but I understand if it’s tricky to get on camera.

Her behaviour outside reads as though she may have been feeling stressed, which isn’t unusual when placing a tortoise between enclosures, they get very used to their territories.
Do you use indoor uv? Or is that why you bring her outside? Cause if you have uv indoors, I’d keep her inside till we can gauge if she does have an RI a bit better. Try and keep temps in the 85 range.

I don’t think a few days being a bit less active is anything too concerning rn, especially if she’s eating pooping etc, and she still sounds mine and alert, if the squeaking was constant with her breathing I’d be more worried.

Let me tag these guys to see what they think, perhaps they’ll offer different advice;
@Yvonne G @Tom @zovick @turtlesteve

 

[Lanutheleopard]

Hello!
The initial bubbles could’ve been stress from the new move, and likely were if it went away.

It’s hard to comment on the squeaky noise without hearing it firsthand, if you’re able to get clips to upload that would be handy, but I understand if it’s tricky to get on camera.

Her behaviour outside reads as though she may have been feeling stressed, which isn’t unusual when placing a tortoise between enclosures, they get very used to their territories.
Do you use indoor uv? Or is that why you bring her outside? Cause if you have uv indoors, I’d keep her inside till we can gauge if she does have an RI a bit better. Try and keep temps in the 85 range.

I don’t think a few days being a bit less active is anything too concerning rn, especially if she’s eating pooping etc, and she still sounds mine and alert, if the squeaking was constant with her breathing I’d be more worried.

Let me tag these guys to see what they think, perhaps they’ll offer different advice;
@Yvonne G @Tom @zovick @turtlesteve

You're my angel. I think I am just waiting. Maybe I have stressed her out. The other day, is when I noticed a slight change in her activity. And it was because I rotated the coconut coir. I took the coir that was underneath and dry and mixed it with the top layer that has been moist. It did have a sulfur smell. I let that air out a little, not sure why it gets that smell ( She does her business while soaking- I spot clean if I see anything) but I soaked repti bark in hot water, put that in and switched out a fescue grass plant that was dying and put in another bunch of grass pods of a different type of grass. Since then she hasn't walked around near as much. I took her outside, ambient temp was 78, but the grass was 85, in order for her to get some exercises. Yesterday, after walking she did her business. I want her to get some exercise, before it gets too cold. She does have a T5 HO Arcadia 12% linear UVB. Temps right now are low 90s in the basking area and mid 80s in the cooler side. She is in the basking area. She ate this morning. She soaks 30 minutes every morning and then I put in fresh water and her food ( Mazuri pellets, soaked timothy hay, dandelion, mixed leafy greens, romaine with 3x weekly sprinkles of calcium) But not only have I changed her enclosure a little bit, I have been trying to handle her a little more. She will walk around for a little bit, but then come to me and snuggle in. Which I love, but not sure if she is stressed, frightened, sick or just showing some bonding. Anyway, If there is a way I can donate to you, send a gift card, please let me know.

Am I doing the substrate okay?
I am trying super hard to keep humidity up until I get mark's enclosure... It has dropped below 80 at times.
Temps are usually well above 80, infact, I have to turn my heat down. I may need to switch bulbs.
I have the plastic canopy and taped, sealed, but heat and humidity still escapes
I am becoming less worried about her lack of activity. She still eats, but I am trying not to be overly stressed when she eats less.
Her bubbles in her nose are not all the time. I have noticed them off and on since having her. The discharge is clear.
Yesterday I noticed her eyes seemed minimally watery and I noticed a cluster of tiny bubbles around her mouth. So, by going on the internet, everything seemed like I needed to take her to the vet. Overall, she breathes normal, but on occasions looks like she is breathing heavier, yesterday was one of those times. I noticed all this while outside. So maybe that is stress. ???
If you think I should continue with taking a short video, like this morning she seemed fine, I can do that when I see her symptoms, otherwise, right now I am letting her bask, rest and do her thing for today.
I GREATLY VALUE YOUR WISDOM AND INPUT. I have a TBI and I worry. She is my first and she snagged my heart. Once I get the hang of this and get Mark's enclosure, hopefully I won't be so stressed. Thank you!!! This means a lot to me!!! Have a wonderful day!
I was thinking of buying some fresh oregano leaves, and have some good immune booster qualities.

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

You're my angel. I think I am just waiting. Maybe I have stressed her out. The other day, is when I noticed a slight change in her activity. And it was because I rotated the coconut coir. I took the coir that was underneath and dry and mixed it with the top layer that has been moist. It did have a sulfur smell. I let that air out a little, not sure why it gets that smell ( She does her business while soaking- I spot clean if I see anything) but I soaked repti bark in hot water, put that in and switched out a fescue grass plant that was dying and put in another bunch of grass pods of a different type of grass. Since then she hasn't walked around near as much. I took her outside, ambient temp was 78, but the grass was 85, in order for her to get some exercises. Yesterday, after walking she did her business. I want her to get some exercise, before it gets too cold. She does have a T5 HO Arcadia 12% linear UVB. Temps right now are low 90s in the basking area and mid 80s in the cooler side. She is in the basking area. She ate this morning. She soaks 30 minutes every morning and then I put in fresh water and her food ( Mazuri pellets, soaked timothy hay, dandelion, mixed leafy greens, romaine with 3x weekly sprinkles of calcium) But not only have I changed her enclosure a little bit, I have been trying to handle her a little more. She will walk around for a little bit, but then come to me and snuggle in. Which I love, but not sure if she is stressed, frightened, sick or just showing some bonding. Anyway, If there is a way I can donate to you, send a gift card, please let me know.

Am I doing the substrate okay?
I am trying super hard to keep humidity up until I get mark's enclosure... It has dropped below 80 at times.
Temps are usually well above 80, infact, I have to turn my heat down. I may need to switch bulbs.
I have the plastic canopy and taped, sealed, but heat and humidity still escapes
I am becoming less worried about her lack of activity. She still eats, but I am trying not to be overly stressed when she eats less.
Her bubbles in her nose are not all the time. I have noticed them off and on since having her. The discharge is clear.
Yesterday I noticed her eyes seemed minimally watery and I noticed a cluster of tiny bubbles around her mouth. So, by going on the internet, everything seemed like I needed to take her to the vet. Overall, she breathes normal, but on occasions looks like she is breathing heavier, yesterday was one of those times. I noticed all this while outside. So maybe that is stress. ???
If you think I should continue with taking a short video, like this morning she seemed fine, I can do that when I see her symptoms, otherwise, right now I am letting her bask, rest and do her thing for today.
I GREATLY VALUE YOUR WISDOM AND INPUT. I have a TBI and I worry. She is my first and she snagged my heart. Once I get the hang of this and get Mark's enclosure, hopefully I won't be so stressed. Thank you!!! This means a lot to me!!! Have a wonderful day!
I was thinking of buying some fresh oregano leaves, and have some good immune booster qualities.

That sulphur smell has happened to me back when I was learning how to maintain humidity, it’s when there’s been slightly too much standing moisture at the bottom that didn’t get properly absorbed with the substrate, it can be a learning curve maintaining it and gauging exactly how much water to add, I’d suggest mixing the substrate every time you do a water pour, the more often you do the mixes, the less chance there is for moisture to become stagnant at the bottomit boosts humidity too without even needing to add water.

Those few days of inactivity could be because you’ve changed things up a bit. I know it’s super tempting wanting to handle her to bond, but I’d suggest picking her up as little as possible, they definitely prefer a hands off approach, there’s certainly things you can do to bond still, like hand feeding(don’t make that a habit because they can become divas who refuse to eat unless served by hand lol) and sitting in her outside enclosure with her, her snuggling in sounds like she’s looking for a place to hide, is it quite an open space where she is outside? Babies like lots of coverage to feel secure.

Your temps sound great if there is any potential RI brewing, so that’s good. Whilst humidity is important for babies, temperatures definitely take priority, it’ll be less of a battle with the smart enclosure

If you noticed the breathing heavy and the bubbles only when she went outside the other day(barring the odd occasion you’ve seen it before) I think it could’ve been stress. I’ll see what the others think. Try and grab a video if you can, but don’t stress if not.

Continue to monitor her, if these symptoms persist, get worse, or more show up, she might need checking out. But yeah for now, best you can do is let her chill and do her thing, I’d suggest leaving her in her enclosure for a few days at least(baring her soaks), hopefully the warm ambient temps and time to settle will help

You can certainly try oregano, but most find the smell a bit off putting lol

 

[Lanutheleopard]

That sulphur smell has happened to me back when I was learning how to maintain humidity, it’s when there’s been slightly too much standing moisture at the bottom that didn’t get properly absorbed with the substrate, it can be a learning curve maintaining it and gauging exactly how much water to add, I’d suggest mixing the substrate every time you do a water pour, the more often you do the mixes, the less chance there is for moisture to become stagnant at the bottomit boosts humidity too without even needing to add water.

Those few days of inactivity could be because you’ve changed things up a bit. I know it’s super tempting wanting to handle her to bond, but I’d suggest picking her up as little as possible, they definitely prefer a hands off approach, there’s certainly things you can do to bond still, like hand feeding(don’t make that a habit because they can become divas who refuse to eat unless served by hand lol) and sitting in her outside enclosure with her, her snuggling in sounds like she’s looking for a place to hide, is it quite an open space where she is outside? Babies like lots of coverage to feel secure.

Your temps sound great if there is any potential RI brewing, so that’s good. Whilst humidity is important for babies, temperatures definitely take priority, it’ll be less of a battle with the smart enclosure

If you noticed the breathing heavy and the bubbles only when she went outside the other day(barring the odd occasion you’ve seen it before) I think it could’ve been stress. I’ll see what the others think. Try and grab a video if you can, but don’t stress if not.

Continue to monitor her, if these symptoms persist, get worse, or more show up, she might need checking out. But yeah for now, best you can do is let her chill and do her thing, I’d suggest leaving her in her enclosure for a few days at least(baring her soaks), hopefully the warm ambient temps and time to settle will help

You can certainly try oregano, but most find the smell a bit off putting lol

Okay, thank you!!!! She seems fine today, eating, walking a little but basking on the warmer side. I can't thank you enough. If there is anything you want, amazon card, please let me know. I really appreciate it. I'll get a video maybe later. I am letting her do her thing for a couple of days. If anything increases, I'll try to get a video. I can't wait for my smart enclosure, thanks to your recommendation. I really appreciate you!! Ill stir up the coir more, because the humidity increases when I do that too. Thank you!!! Ill be monitoring. I am good at that. LOL--- Yes, I take her outside in the backyard and it is a lot of open space. It has been the first time she has come to me... It is cute, but I understand that it may be more hiding of her trying to feel secure... melted my heart though. I'll try hand feeding on occasions, so she doesn't become a diva. LOL. THANK YOU!!!!!!

 

[Littleredfootbigredheart]

Okay, thank you!!!! She seems fine today, eating, walking a little but basking on the warmer side. I can't thank you enough. If there is anything you want, amazon card, please let me know. I really appreciate it. I'll get a video maybe later. I am letting her do her thing for a couple of days. If anything increases, I'll try to get a video. I can't wait for my smart enclosure, thanks to your recommendation. I really appreciate you!! Ill stir up the coir more, because the humidity increases when I do that too. Thank you!!! Ill be monitoring. I am good at that. LOL--- Yes, I take her outside in the backyard and it is a lot of open space. It has been the first time she has come to me... It is cute, but I understand that it may be more hiding of her trying to feel secure... melted my heart though. I'll try hand feeding on occasions, so she doesn't become a diva. LOL. THANK YOU!!!!!!

No problem at all, us tortoise parents got to stick together