Is this normal?

[ainfalt]

He is eight years old according to the person I got him from. It is possible that he could have ingested a rock but I did not see it. Hopefully these are better pictures of his feet.

 

[Tom]

Nails are fine. Eliminate that possibility.

Our remaining possibilities are:
1. Ant sting? Is he still doing it? Ant sting would have faded by now.
2. Toxic plant ingestion. Did he have access? A hungry sulcata will eat things they shouldn't sometimes.
3. Impaction. Are you soaking? Is he pooping?
4. Metabolic bone disease. Has he been out in the sun much for the last few months or years? What has his diet and calcium supplementation routine been?

These seem like the most likely culprits to me.

 

[ainfalt]

I don't think it was an ant sting. I only noticed the ants a couple days ago but he's been doing this for about two weeks now.

He did have access to a lantana. He was digging under it and very possibly could have eaten some of it, I'm not sure if he are it or not. He was definitely digging under it. I cut them down as soon as I realized they were poisonous and they have been gone for about one week now. If that was the issue then would I start seeing a change by now? He is definitely eating more now that they're gone but the weak walk is still there.

He is pooping about every two or three days. I was putting him in the water for soaks but it wasn't warm. Since you told me it should be warm I'm now doing that. How often should I soak him and for how long? I'm not sure how they react when getting soaked but he is completely still and barely moving.

I believe he has been housed in that person's backyard for quite some time now. He did not tell me if he was giving him calcium supplements or not. I am sprinkling calcium on his food and he's taking it now.

I am trying to identify all the weeds in the backyard to see if any of them are harmful to sulcatas.

 

[Tom]

Well, eliminate number one.
Three isn't likely if he's eating and pooping.
Four isn't likely if he's been living outside.

My best guess, based on this info, is either he ate something toxic, or he's got some sort of injury that will hopefully heal in time.

If this were my tortoise, I'd soak him two or three times a week in warm water, make sure he continues to eat and poop, and just keep an eye on him.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Yes, it's likely skeletal if he's not getting the right diet with enough sunshine; or it could be an injury.

Redfoots are also susceptible to lameness in their hindquarters if they're not getting enough animal matter in their diet, since they are somewhat omnivorous. Sulcatas are pretty dedicated grazers and browsers, so that's not likely the issue here. However, they do scavenge carcasses occasionally in the wild, so I thought I'd mention that in case it might help him.

 

[ainfalt]

Thank you so much! I did some research on the poisonous plants and realized our neighbor has a eucalyptus tree that is dropping leaves all over our yard. So we went out there and picked up and raked up as many as we could find.

 

[morloch]

Look at those stompers!! Hope all is well!!!

 

[ainfalt]

Just wanted to update on Tank. He is doing so much better! I have been soaking him a few times a week and I also brought him a bowl of water which he drank three of right away. He did not like the cut down baby pool at all so we scrapped it and followed a suggestion that someone on here gave; we are using the plate that goes to a pot for a plant. I think this poor guy was dehydrated. He is very happy now! He grazes the yard like nobody's business, he owns the place! He's been drinking out of the new water dish and I can just see that he is happy and healthy. As I'm writing this he finished up some lunch and came to me on the patio and decided to take a nap right next to me. Adorable!

Thank you to everyone for the well wishes and great advice. I'm so lucky to have found this wonderful forum.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Glad you're seeing improvement. Interesting that dehydration would cause problems with locomotion in the hind legs. Not sure why that would be.

 

[ainfalt]

I'm not sure. Maybe it was overall lethargy?

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

I'm not sure. Maybe it was overall lethargy?

Dehydration can cause muscle cramps, because it's harder for the muscles to contract when they don't have the right ion balance. Maybe your guy was just having trouble walking due to pain or spasm from cramping in his hind legs. If he's well-hydrated now, then his muscles can regain normal function.

As mentioned above, dehydration can also lead to kidney stones due to an abnormally high buildup of uric acid, which could be painful. Did your sulcata eliminate a lot of urate when he peed after you rehydrated him? That might also improve his ability to move more comfortably.

 

[ainfalt]

He urinates a lot! I had never seen that before so it was a bit alarming but I looked it up on the Internet. It was white(ish) which is what was alarming.

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

He urinates a lot! I had never seen that before so it was a bit alarming but I looked it up on the Internet. It was white(ish) which is what was alarming.

It's normal for tortoises like sulcatas to have some white (urate) in the pee, but if there's a lot, it means they're either dehydrated, or else they're getting rid of urate that had built up while they were dehydrated. Sounds like it's the latter in this case. Keep giving him plenty of water, bathing him, and giving him moist plants so he can build his body's water content back up. The urine should start getting more dilute as your tortoise recovers from the dehydration and getting back to normal. Keep us posted on his progress (or lack thereof, if need be).

 

[ainfalt]

Urinated*

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Will do, thank you!