My poor little hatchling

NolaBillie

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Hello all,

Sad that this is my first post here (after enjoying many of your posts for the last three months), and it's to mourn our little red foot Uno.

We came back from vacation in late August (the torts had stayed with a friend while we were away) and after picking them up, I noticed Uno was _very_ lethargic... got him in to a good herp. vet the next morning. She kept him for a week. I was hopeful when she said she could go home, but she told me it didn't look great. He was so little, and she thought he'd developed MBD.

I worked with him a lot in the last week and a half - lots of outside time, lots of soaks. He was eating, pooping, and gaining weight. I thought it was all on the up - until Saturday. He was basking too much, then not moving. Suddenly he wasn't walking upright in his shell, falling forward. Then Sunday and Monday he didn't eat, and I sort of realized it may be because he's in pain.

I took him back to the vet today, and we euthanized him. He was only with us since May, but I'm sure you guys know how I felt. Here's to Uno. He loved soaks, outside time, and oddly enough little garden snails. I was shocked the first time I saw him snatch one of those up.

uno.jpg
 
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Merrick

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I am so sorry for your loss it do you know what happened did you get a necropcey
 

wellington

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I am so sorry. They steal your hearts right from the get go. It's hard no matter how young.
 

Carol S

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I am so sorry for your loss. It is so devastating to lose a pet.
 

dmmj

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so sorry my condolences

sadly when they are that little and start to go down hill. Thereis very little that can be done to save them looks like you did everything you could I hope one day you will open up your heart to another one not to replace your beloved pet but to fill the hole he left in your heart
 

NolaBillie

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Thanks so much, everybody. I think that was definitely part of the problem, that he was SO SMALL! He only weighed 35 grams! I think he had some failure to thrive issues, and we just couldn't bring him back.

We "have" a second red foot that is currently at large in the neighborhood - he's a master escapee who spent four months in the "wild" this spring/summer, but that's a story for another time. I've been doing all I can to track him down in the last two weeks. Finding him would certainly ease the pain of Uno's death.
 

Yvonne G

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Darn it! That's just a real shame. And what a pretty little thing he was.

I've heard this story a few times...baby lethargic, goes to the vet, seems to get better, is eating and growing and all of a sudden just dies. You were correct in assuming he was in pain. MBD is very painful. I'm so sorry you had to euthanize your pretty little tortoise. And I truly hope you are able to find the wild one!
 

lilT

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Oh my gosh, I am so sorry about your little guy. He looked just like my little Red Foot.
 

Pearly

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I am so sorry for your loss. Uno was a cutie. I bought 2 babies for my daughter and use this experience as one more way of bonding with my sweet child. One of the babies was tiny when they arrived I not eating very well. God knows how many nights I had spent reading and learning about the Northern and Eastern Redfoot tortoise. Tried everything under the sun diet/food consistency wise, and creating best environment for them. Right now I have keep them in humid, warm closed chamber, food is very finely chopped or blended if not soft enough for their little mouths and we take them outside few times a week for supervised exercise. Our little picky eater is eating like a champ now, but I can definitely relay to the worry you had gone through trying to care for sick baby tort. I recall the first time Tuck-tac showed true interest in his meal, for me winning a jackpot wouldn't make me feel better than that feeling of great relief I got when I saw him finnaly EAT. I also hope you find Scratchy very soon. Good luck
 

NolaBillie

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I'm so glad you turned it around with Tuck-tac, Pearly! Go you!! Ah the diet thing - I was smearing everything with banana, feeding him in direct sunlight to try and increase appetite, and in the last few days (when he actually stopped eating altogether) doing carrot soaks.
It's been a few weeks now, and the pain is less. Thanks for the kind sentiments:)
 

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