M. agassizi, m. testudinem, herpes, and TINC frequency and distribution questions.

Stoneman

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Hello everybody!

I live in in Utah, U.S, and I have geochelone elegans. I am concerned about the health of the tortoises I have. I found some articles about the diseases, however I was not able to find much about the frequency and distribution of the diseases. I know the mycoplasma strains are widespread in U.S. in Europe, but I do not know how probable they are to test for. I know that m. testudinem was discovered much later in 1985. Has there been a collective diagnostic database that has monitored all positive tests of the disease?
I know that to test for everything would be ideal, but if it is highly uncommon, like the black plague in humans, there are other ways to utilize resources more effectively. I have also read that mycoplasma false readings are common.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1090023314002366

https://tortoise.org/archives/brown1.html

In the past I have been advised to test for herpesvirus, and then later advised by another vet that it is not widespread enough, especially in star tortoises. The same vet who advised me of the very low risk of herpes, told me that mycoplasma was a risk, and that so was nuc

I read that tortoise intranuclear coccidiosis was most common in a. radiata, and that there had been low levels of findings throughout the world, that testing is extremely expensive because it requires polymerase chain reaction assay, and detection through an electron microscope, so I am not even sure I could test for this if I wanted. But it seems as though it would be extremely expensive, especially for such low risk of exposure. The person my second set of tortoises came from sells a. radiata, but as an intermediary.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16672578

I received my first group from LLL, they told me they were from Europe but would not give me any contact info for further questions, and they were infested with parasites. Three were from a private owner in California, which is why I am a little concerned about Herpes, and the other four are from "Europe," which is why I am concerned about the mycoplasma, because it has been found in US and Europe. I think that by Europe maybe they meant Indonesia, because of the poor condition they were in and how they were so insistent on not providing me with detailed information. The other two were in bad shape, however they came from U.S., originally from a U.S. breeder, then I purchased them directly from a negligent caretaker. So there is potentially broad distribution of the ones I have.

I want to know if anyone has good journals or articles they have saved, or books they would recommend on the subjects. I am especially interested in frequency and distribution charts. Does anyone have experience on testing for TINC? Is m. testudinem as important to test for as m. agassizi? Do they require different tests or does the test result in a positive with infection of either?

Thank you everyone, I am new to this so there is a lot I do not have solid understanding of.

-Cory
 

Yvonne G

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I don't think the mycoplasma is very common in the Star tortoises. Just to make sure he sees the thread, I'll tap @Markw84
 

Stoneman

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I see a grammatical error in my original post, and would like to edit it, however I do not see a button to allow me the opportunity. It is driving me crazy, because I know in responding to people's posts, those comments can be amended. Am I not allowed to edit the OP or am I looking in the wrong place?
 

Yvonne G

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I see a grammatical error in my original post, and would like to edit it, however I do not see a button to allow me the opportunity. It is driving me crazy, because I know in responding to people's posts, those comments can be amended. Am I not allowed to edit the OP or am I looking in the wrong place?
One can only edit their posts for a few minutes right after putting them up. If you tell me in a private message what you want corrected I can do it for you.
 

Markw84

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I don't think the mycoplasma is very common in the Star tortoises. Just to make sure he sees the thread, I'll tap @Markw84
I think Bill @zovick would be the best to give thoughts on origination and prevalence of these diseases. I recall him talking about sources and species related to TINC in some other posts.

I have been of the mindset to be cautious for many years now, and have chosen to only acquire new animals from sources I trust, and know the history, so I do not have the experience (luckily) to comment meaningfully.
 

Stoneman

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I don't think the mycoplasma is very common in the Star tortoises. Just to make sure he sees the thread, I'll tap @Markw84

Thank Yvonne, although it may be more common in other species of the order Chelonia, I have come across info that stated that, if G. Elegans is exposed to it, they can acquire it. Tortoises are different than mammals in that they have a very simple lock and key structure. So when there is low probability we could get what our dogs and cats get, torts have such a simplified receptor site so that many different species can get plagued by similar problems.
 
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