Impaction advice

[x-sully-x]

Well today was the day and it's fantastic news!! I am thrilled to say that the vet has given Sully the all clear and there was no need for a feeding tube or any of the other drastic measures. Just good old soaking has done just the trick
The X-rays were much clearer with only one patch which she thought there may still be some woodchip and wind, but she was not concerned by this. She could not believe the amount of woodchip she had passed when we showed her the bag.

The vet was a maturer lady and we could tell that she had good knowledge and wasn't driven by making money out of us. She also works with tortoises in a small zoo.
The X-rays from before she was treated, which showed her lungs- you could actually see the gut pushing on them- which must have been horrendously uncomfortable and I felt awful know that it was me who had left her on the wood chip thinking I was doing the right thing- well never again!

The only thing that the vert was concerned about was her anaemia- CPV? was 10- which she said was extremely low but that a tortoise could handle this and bounce back. We are having the blood test repeated in around 4 weeks as she said this is how long it could take to right itself. We have been told to watch her behaviour and look at her tongue to check its nice and pink.

We also came away with a of advice and she said that we could give sully timothy hay? Also young freshly cut grass and dandelions. We are also planning drastic changes to her viv to make it more like what she should have- we have only just bought the viv so for now we are going to make the best of what we have.

Thank you for all your advice, tips and support it was really useful

 

[Zamric]

WOOHOO! Glad to hear all is well! I have never had to deal with impaction on any of my animals and hope I never do. You did a good job!

 

[reticguy76]

pcv is packed cell volume, it is used to check dehydration or anemia status (as a quick reference), also, shows protien levels as well as potential cancer indicator.

10 is low, the problem is that we dont give blood transfusions to reptiles.

Most likely she will recover and her pcv will rise again, but ultimately its dependent on what the actual cause of the anemia is.
whether its related or caused by all this, or if it was an incedental finding on the bloodwork and something underlying is going on

 

[x-sully-x]

Fingers crossed that it does rise over the next four weeks- I will be keeping a close eye on her and if anything changes it will be back to the vets for further investigation... Thanks for the info... Everyone has been fantastic

 

[Laura]

just as a 'gut' feling. Id start with soft, bland foods.. not course dry hay.. unless its a really soft type... some can be more thick and stemy with sharper ends.. make sense?
fresh picked green grass, spring mix, canned pumpkin ?

 

[x-sully-x]

Ah right okay, I shall have to be careful then... The vet said to hold off on the hay for a few weeks anyway until we get her back on track but just offer small amounts of it if we do... I think I am going to be sourcing foods which are more of what she should be eating, she is on a diet that consists of too much succulent foods... Need to increase the fibre a little bit.

For now it's a small amount of what we have previously been giving her to get her going again.

 

[reticguy76]

canned pumpkin is a great suggestion. its soft, has moisture and is a natural laxative to help keep instestinal motility

 

[ascott]

So happy to hear!!!! Soaking is an amazing aid to many ailments....you and your tort did perfectly...

 

[x-sully-x]

1st meal since she has been poorly- she was like lightening when she saw it and it didn't last long!!!