Hello from Paris, France. Sasha needs help.

[Riddhima]

Hi! My friend Linda bought two gorgeous horsefield testudo babies about 18 months ago. Sonja grew to be a nice big healthy tortoise whereas sasha, the initially more active baby, remained the same size. I babysit them when Linda travels (quite often), so i have come to care for them as my own babies.
Recently in the pasttwo months, sasha has had problems with her eyes, which kept watering a lot, and since the past couple of weeks she odesnt open her eyes :-( shes been eating much less ever since, and is low on energy. We cant get an appointment with the reptile specialist before next thursday, so i'm wondering if anyone here had had a similar experience and has any advice or suggestions.
This afternoon we bathed her in a warm bath, which seemed to give her some energy and appetite, and its a good sign, but she eats with her eyes closed. It looks like shes trying to open them, but the eyelids seem "stuck"
:-(
Any advise would help until we can see the vet.
Cheers
Riddhima

 

[wellington]

Hello and Welcome. First are you using a coil type bulb? If so get rid of it, they cause eye problems. Second, if not that kind of bulb, is it a new bulb?
As for the growth, are they housed together? If so, separate them. There is probably bullying going on and the smaller one is not being allowed to eat much, bask much, etc.
also be sure they have the correct temps and humidity. A pic of them and the enclosure and a list of all their equipment and diet soakings, etc will help us better.

 

[ascott]

There is probably bullying going on and the smaller one is not being allowed to eat much, bask much, etc.

Likely some going on...

 

[sibi]

In the meantime, soak Sasha in warm water with carrot baby food and some electrolytes (sometimes you can find Pedialyte for babies in a pharmacy or drug store.) This will gave the baby some energy and nutrients. Separate them as suggested, and make sure there is not one of those coil bulbs for UVb. Coil bulbs have been known to cause eye problems in torts. It's better to use a regular incandesce bulb than one of those coil bulbs. Also, is the temp still warm enough during the day for the torts to get some sun? If so, even if it's for an hour or two, I recommend you give them some sunshine during the day. Keep us posted. Btw, welcome to the forum

 

[Riddhima]

Hi Wellington,Angela and Sylvie,
Thank you all so much for these insights and your support - so nice to know that this forum is such a great place for tort lovers to support eachother.
For the moment, as they are in transit (they will move to belgium in tendays) during which time im babysitting them. So their current habitat consists of two separate boxes with hay. No coil bulb since a week now - only indirect sunlight. The temperature is around 20-22 degrees, and they are near the heater to heat them for a couple of hours each day. They are soaked in a warm bath every ten days. I take them out of the box to walk around the apartment for an hour or so duing the day when i can watch. They eat lettuce, rocket leaves, raw squash and goji berries from time totime as a treat.
Ive taken a few pics but not sure how to upload them in this message :-(
Gonna try posting a new one if i cant figure....
Thanks a ton everyone. Will keep you posted!
Riddhima

 

[Riddhima]

A pic of them and the enclosure and a list of all their equipment and diet soakings, etc will help us better.

Finally managed to figure out the reply format that allows me to post pics. As i shared in my post a few mins ago, they havent been exposed to the bulb since a week now as theyre in transit. It was indeed a coil bulb :-(

Enclosures here - two seperate ones like these - are temporary, next to the heater, and i let them walk around for an hour or so everyday. Otherwise they have been raised in one single terrarium together with the likeliness of bullying indeed! For the moment, they get indirect sunlight and have 20-22 degrees of temperature on average. Humidity levels arent very high, and they get a soak in warm water every ten days.

Seperated they shall remain! Thank you!

 

[Yvonne G]

Welcome to the Forum!

 

[sibi]

I think you may want to give 2-3 warm soaks a a week. Every 10 days is too long to wait. Torts need soaks to stimulate defecation and urination. Also, they drink water mainly from their soaks. When you make the move to Belgium, expect the torts to be stressed out. They may not eat, or they may act strangely. Remember to give warm soaks as soon as they get to their new home.

 

[Riddhima]

Hi all,
Your help and advise and cAre just warranted a response. The owner finally took sasha to the vet, who kept her under observation and fed her through a tube for about a week. After a week, she died. We mourned her for a couple of months now. She was a very special tortoise, always very social and curious to explore new corners of her babysitters' houses!
But she never grew, and it looks like she was sick from birth as the doctor observed.
Anyways, thanks again for your advise - it was very useful and supporting thru her illness.
Cheers
Riddhima

 

[wellington]

So sorry for you loss