Kamp Kenan

jcase

Well-Known Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 27, 2021
Messages
402
Location (City and/or State)
Pittsboro, NC
wh

what type of turtles ? snakes? lizards ? i'd be interested in who is seeing/confirming this ?
It was first discovered in an Australian turtle some Elseya sp iirc.

It's been found in crocodile lizards, Agamid lizards, Uromastyx


I'm sure others too, these are what I recall in a half asleep state. All came from white papers I've read.
 

mark1

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Dec 31, 2015
Messages
1,932
Location (City and/or State)
ohio
i do know all that ...... this is not new to me ....... i told mastershake what it was before he ever told me or any of you , it's on this board ....... reptile/animal diseases have been a hobby of mine forever .......
 

jcase

Well-Known Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 27, 2021
Messages
402
Location (City and/or State)
Pittsboro, NC
i understand , all those cases are old , some date back to the 1980's .......... i'm interested in new turtle , snake, lizard outbreaks ......
I'm only aware of any in turtles (specifically tortoises) recently but Im not in the know. There is no real attention to it, even most vets don't know to look, and people don't want to openly discuss it when people have outbreaks, so I'm not surprised not much is being heard.
 

ZEROPILOT

REDFOOT WRANGLER
Moderator
Tortoise Club
5 Year Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 16, 2014
Messages
28,935
Location (City and/or State)
South Eastern Florida (U.S.A.)/Rock Hill S.C.
I wonder if south Florida's feral population of green iguanas contracted it, they'd spread it like wildfire.
There are absolutely millions of iguanas everywhere here.
 
Last edited:

wellington

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Tortoise Club
Joined
Sep 6, 2011
Messages
49,655
Location (City and/or State)
Chicago, Illinois, USA
i do know all that ...... this is not new to me ....... i told mastershake what it was before he ever told me or any of you , it's on this board ....... reptile/animal diseases have been a hobby of mine forever .......
Wondering why you didnt bring it too everyone's attention? Seems to important to have not shared what it was and what it looked like in tortoises.
 

jcase

Well-Known Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 27, 2021
Messages
402
Location (City and/or State)
Pittsboro, NC
Wondering why you didnt bring it too everyone's attention? Seems to important to have not shared what it was and what it looked like in tortoises.
It has been around for a LONG time, without wide spread impact. There are many other diseases out there that are deadly too without much attention brought to them. It didnt appear to warrant it until it started to spread more.
 

wellington

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Tortoise Club
Joined
Sep 6, 2011
Messages
49,655
Location (City and/or State)
Chicago, Illinois, USA
It has been around for a LONG time, without wide spread impact. There are many other diseases out there that are deadly too without much attention brought to them. It didnt appear to warrant it until it started to spread more.
Well that's real stupid. Early detection and attention usually equals a smaller outbreak. "Usually" if breeders are honest and willing to do the work to not spread it along.
 

jcase

Well-Known Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 27, 2021
Messages
402
Location (City and/or State)
Pittsboro, NC
Well that's real stupid. Early detection and attention usually equals a smaller outbreak. "Usually" if breeders are honest and willing to do the work to not spread it along.
I'm unaware of any way to do early detection on austwickia (but im no expert).

I agree, its being spread because some people don't care.
 

wellington

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Tortoise Club
Joined
Sep 6, 2011
Messages
49,655
Location (City and/or State)
Chicago, Illinois, USA
I'm unaware of any way to do early detection on austwickia (but im no expert).

I agree, its being spread because some people don't care.
I have no idea if there is an early detection. However, seeing it's been around and known about for years, the first time it was detected in tortoises it should have been on red alert. Obviously at that point, if not before, it was known to be able to spread to other species.
 

jcase

Well-Known Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 27, 2021
Messages
402
Location (City and/or State)
Pittsboro, NC
I have no idea if there is an early detection. However, seeing it's been around and known about for years, the first time it was detected in tortoises it should have been on red alert. Obviously at that point, if not before, it was known to be able to spread to other species.
There are a ton diseases in reptiles that are worth a concern. I had cryptosporidium 20ish years ago (thankfully contained due to proper biosecurity procedures), there is herpes which is all too common in tortoises, and dozens of others. The only reason austwicka is worth extra concern right now is because it appears to have an active outbreak that is going unmitigated, primarily in an often abused, released, abandoned, plentiful and cheap species that happens to be a beginner's favorite. Otherwise, it should sit with the rest of them. If people, breeders and keepers, acted responsibility, practiced good quarantine and biosecurity procedures then it wouldn't be that big of an issue.
 

mark1

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Dec 31, 2015
Messages
1,932
Location (City and/or State)
ohio
Wondering why you didnt bring it too everyone's attention? Seems to important to have not shared what it was and what it looked like in tortoises.
here's some virus types all have been found in turtles and tortoises , all contagious and deadly , iridoviradae , flaviviridae , togaviridae , flaviviridae, iridoviridae, adenoviridae, herpesviridae, papillomaviridae, poxviridae, circoviridae, retroviridae, paramyxoviridae, rhabdoviridae, bunyaviridae, picornaviridae...........add to that the numerous types of bacteria found in tortoises and turtles ..... i'm a realist .......


con1.jpg

con2.jpg

con3.jpgcon4.jpg
con5.jpg
 

mike taylor

Well-Known Member
10 Year Member!
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Oct 28, 2012
Messages
13,461
This is why you QT every new animal into your collection. No animals go anywhere near my animals without quarantine. You have to wash hands and tools between enclosures. Only after a quarantine and a vet check does the animals join my group. When buying animals from shows watch how they are handling them. If you see them just handing them from one person to another move on. They're only there to make money flipping animals they probably got off someone else. Ideally if you go to enough shows you learn whom to buy from and whatnot. I haven't seen any case's of this happening here in Houston yet. I got my yellow footed tortoise a year or so ago and it still hasn't been put out in the tortoise shed. Just to give you an idea of how long to wait. It has a clean bill of health but until I put together a good enclosure in my yard it will stay in quarantine. Of course it's still to small for an outdoor setup, but it still isn't around any of my long term animals. Things like giardia will cost you big bucks to get your tortoise over and that's mostly from nasty water. So house keeping for the keeper is a must.
 

Cathie G

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Aug 9, 2018
Messages
14,904
Location (City and/or State)
Lancaster
Wondering why you didnt bring it too everyone's attention? Seems to important to have not shared what it was and what it looked like in tortoises.
Some subjects are kind of off limits because none of us want to scare new and young members half to death with all the concerns. When the truth is Good hygiene is the best when caring for any animal including your children . I wash my hands after petting my cat, rabbit, etc and cutting up and cooking chicken for dinner.🤗
 

wellington

Well-Known Member
Moderator
10 Year Member!
Tortoise Club
Joined
Sep 6, 2011
Messages
49,655
Location (City and/or State)
Chicago, Illinois, USA
Some subjects are kind of off limits because none of us want to scare new and young members half to death with all the concerns. When the truth is Good hygiene is the best when caring for any animal including your children . I wash my hands after petting my cat, rabbit, etc and cutting up and cooking chicken for dinner.🤗
Not quite sure what you are answering/responding too here. My post you quoted was about the disease not hygiene or quarantine.
However, good hygiene is if course a good thing but over doing it can be bad. I know a few families that are not the cleanest when it comes to their homes but are overly clean with themselves and using antibacterial soaps etc and they are always sick. Myself as a tom boy when I was a kind, barely washed my hands when out playing and was never sick same with my son. Happy medium is the key in my opinion.
 

jcase

Well-Known Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 27, 2021
Messages
402
Location (City and/or State)
Pittsboro, NC
Not quite sure what you are answering/responding too here. My post you quoted was about the disease not hygiene or quarantine.
However, good hygiene is if course a good thing but over doing it can be bad. I know a few families that are not the cleanest when it comes to their homes but are overly clean with themselves and using antibacterial soaps etc and they are always sick. Myself as a tom boy when I was a kind, barely washed my hands when out playing and was never sick same with my son. Happy medium is the key in my opinion.
LTTFA (leave them the f alone) is a care technique that works wonderfully with some species, and I believe it is the reason some species struggle in the hands of some keepers.
 

jsheffield

Well-Known Member
Moderator
5 Year Member
Joined
Sep 29, 2018
Messages
3,114
Location (City and/or State)
Westmoreland, NH
I believe that all animals, tortoises and humans included, carry around a legion of parasites and maladies most of the time... my thinking is that many of these are opportunistic and only emerge or amplify when the host is living under stress or poor conditions or diet.

I have no reason to believe that this is the case with Austwickia, but think it's always worth considering when some members of a population are afflicted and others are not.

Jamie
 
Last edited:

jcase

Well-Known Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Jul 27, 2021
Messages
402
Location (City and/or State)
Pittsboro, NC
I believe that all animals, tortoises and humans included, carry around a legion of parasites and maladies most of the time... my thinking is that many of these are opportunistic and only emerge or amplify when the host is stressed by stress or poor living conditions or diet.

I have no reason to believe that this is the case with Austwickia, but think it's always worth considering when some members of a population are afflicted and others are not.

Jamie
Part of LTTFA is the idea that for some species, being kept too sterile allows naturally carried and controlled parasites/bacteria/fungus to go on raging benders when whatever keeps them in check is suppressed by being kept overly sterile (eg opportunistic). I had a former zoo keeper who has worked with Cuora zhoui express similar thoughts contributing to the struggles with that species stateside.

(and likely your statement, i dont think this is the case with austwickia).
 

Cathie G

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Platinum Tortoise Club
Joined
Aug 9, 2018
Messages
14,904
Location (City and/or State)
Lancaster
Not quite sure what you are answering/responding too here. My post you quoted was about the disease not hygiene or quarantine.
However, good hygiene is if course a good thing but over doing it can be bad. I know a few families that are not the cleanest when it comes to their homes but are overly clean with themselves and using antibacterial soaps etc and they are always sick. Myself as a tom boy when I was a kind, barely washed my hands when out playing and was never sick same with my son. Happy medium is the key in my opinion.
I always kind of hesitate to go into for example the herpes virus and other things like salmonella. I think a lot of us hesitate saying anything because of the newer people just joining. Other issues also can be like that too. I'm usually afraid I'll give a new tortoise parent the wrong idea so I don't. And I don't think I'm the only one that does that. 🤗
 
Top