HELP: RT EYE TROUBLE

[annster]

My Russian tortoise's eye is somewhat swollen and discharging. The other eye is seemingly fine but he closes both of them a lot. We've had some issues with this in the past, I stopped using my coil bulb a while ago and that seemed to help a lot. Today is probably the worst. I don't use sand, either. The first 3 pics are of the worse eye. The fourth one is a comparison.

 

[lismar79]

Is your enclosure hummid?

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

can you post some pics of the enclosure? what type of lights are you using?

 

[annster]

some more pics for y'all

 

[russian/sulcata/tortoise]

yea i think he is having those eye problems because there is no humidity in his enclosure, pour a bit of water in the substrate and mix it around. also they enclosure you are using is way to small, russians may be small tortoises but they don't do well in small enclosures. in my opinion the smallest enclosure for a russian is 4ft by 8ft.

 

[annster]

yea i think he is having those eye problems because there is no humidity in his enclosure, pour a bit of water in the substrate and mix it around. also they enclosure you are using is way to small, russians may be small tortoises but they don't do well in small enclosures. in my opinion the smallest enclosure for a russian is 4ft by 8ft.

Well I got the biggest one they had at the store and he seems fine it's around 3 by 2 feet. Thanks for the eye advice!

 

[lismar79]

Hummidity should help

 

[johnsonnboswell]

You need to change that substrate. The substrate needs to hold moisture. Soak him, and use eye drops.

Pet stores sell stuff. They don't give good advice.

 

[lismar79]

Also, anyway you would consider switching your water dish out for a terra cota plant saucer??? They work great and take up less space. Those plastic ones are a flip and drown hazzard I would also suggest adding at least a few more inches of bedding, russians like to dig in. It will also help hold in the hummidity. If you can not find a bigger glass tank consider using a large plasic tote, these work great and xmas is coming so the christmas tree storage totes will be available and that's a perfect enclosure opportunity

 

[TortMomma]

A 50 gallon Rubbermaid rough neck tote would be a much better option. Russians love to dig and bury themselves so I find that Eco earth or coconut coir works well for this. Plus it's relatively cheap so you can make it nice and deep. It's also holds moisture well for humidity. Hope he gets well soon.

 

[4jean]

I just had eye trouble with my Hermanns. Check the distance of your lamp. I had mine too close to my tortoise. He had swollen eyes, kept them closed most of time.

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

Hi, he could be having eye issues for a few reasons. Your humidity needs to be 60-70%, and 0% is really bad, for any tort!
What sort of light is that? If it isn't an MVB, he needs some UVB. Does he go outside?
Ditto to lisamr, please consider switching out that dish! Coco coir old humidity super well, and there are many other great choices as well like organic potting soil and orchid bark. What's his dirt like? How many times does he get soaked a week? You know, the whole rundown
Here's a lovely caresheet-
http://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/russian-tortoise-care-sheet.80698/