New Desert Tortoise

[ascott]

I just gave him a soak in warm water and he dunked his head and drank for a good 20 minutes straight only coming up for air 2 or 3 times. It scared the crap outa me so I kept pulling him up out of the water. If i didn't do it I don't think he would have even come up for air once. After he drank this stuff came out of him.. and I'm not sure what it means or even is. I THINK it's urates.. but I don't know because it's tan in color and it looks like sawdust. What does this mean?

The first pic shows that tort likely ingested sand...that is sand being passed.....when a tort drinks water they submerge their head, some will do so entirely and some will only submerge their mouth and partial nostril area....they can stay under water for a long long long time---so resist pulling them up for air...lol...I would be sure to soak this tort a couple times per day for a couple weeks...in long warm water soaks (30 minutes at the least)...I also would offer this tort wet type foods within the entire diet to assure as much intake of water at every opportunity....I would also let this animal have access to space in which he can move about...this tort likely was impacted...and if so, they they will drag their back end....the key is to get that animal cleared out....in my opinion that is....

 

[puffy137]

The first pic shows that tort likely ingested sand...that is sand being passed.....when a tort drinks water they submerge their head, some will do so entirely and some will only submerge their mouth and partial nostril area....they can stay under water for a long long long time---so resist pulling them up for air...lol...I would be sure to soak this tort a couple times per day for a couple weeks...in long warm water soaks (30 minutes at the least)...I also would offer this tort wet type foods within the entire diet to assure as much intake of water at every opportunity....I would also let this animal have access to space in which he can move about...this tort likely was impacted...and if so, they they will drag their back end....the key is to get that animal cleared out....in my opinion that is....

It goes to show that given a chance these creatures know whats good for them. Luckily he was saved by dmarshall just in time.

 

[TigsMom]

Looking forward to seeing the updates in the coming year and more. Your new shelled rescue has great potential to completely turn around into a wonderful success!

Very best wishes for a rapid and wonderful recovery!

 

[dmarshall1991]

Thanks for all the help everyone!!! he's doing good. I ended up not liking his name lol so he now is known affectionately as Desmond the Desert tortoise. Haha. Anyways, He is still kickin. I'm having a lot of trouble with him though because he is insisting on hibernating. I have been soaking him and keeping his habitat very warm with his heat lights but he will NOT eat and he will NOT come out of his little burrow unless I pull him out. I do not want him to hibernate because he's been so neglected that I fear he may not survive. He NEEDS to eat he's thin and weak. How should I get him to come out of hibernation??? Any tips? Am I not keeping him.warm enough? The ambient room.temp is about 75 and the hot spot in his enclosure is about 85. any advice would be greatly appreciated

 

[Ciri]

I'm relieved to hear that he still alive – I was concerned about him. The fact he is not eating is pretty worrisome. I seem to recall that you were going to take him to Dr. Jarchow? Is that right? If so, have you taken him in yet? Since he's so undernourished, I think there's more going on than just the urge to hibernate. When I get turtles or tortoises who are undernourished, they usually want to eat a lot. One thing you could do is to bring up the warm end to 90°F, cool end to 80°F. Have you tried fruit, like strawberries (just to see if he'll eat)? What foods have you offered him?

 

[ascott]

Thanks for all the help everyone!!! he's doing good. I ended up not liking his name lol so he now is known affectionately as Desmond the Desert tortoise. Haha. Anyways, He is still kickin. I'm having a lot of trouble with him though because he is insisting on hibernating. I have been soaking him and keeping his habitat very warm with his heat lights but he will NOT eat and he will NOT come out of his little burrow unless I pull him out. I do not want him to hibernate because he's been so neglected that I fear he may not survive. He NEEDS to eat he's thin and weak. How should I get him to come out of hibernation??? Any tips? Am I not keeping him.warm enough? The ambient room.temp is about 75 and the hot spot in his enclosure is about 85. any advice would be greatly appreciated

You will want to provide a basking spot of 100-115 and an overall temp of no less than 80 degrees...( this overall temp of no less than 80 is suggested ONLY to try to encourage the tort to get an appetite... and not during the normal time of the year)....also, do pull him out each and every day, several times per day actually...and offer warm water soaks for no less than 30 minutes....then at night, the temp should not fall below 80 degrees either....

 

[dmarshall1991]

I'm relieved to hear that he still alive – I was concerned about him. The fact he is not eating is pretty worrisome. I seem to recall that you were going to take him to Dr. Jarchow? Is that right? If so, have you taken him in yet? Since he's so undernourished, I think there's more going on than just the urge to hibernate. When I get turtles or tortoises who are undernourished, they usually want to eat a lot. One thing you could do is to bring up the warm end to 90°F, cool end to 80°F. Have you tried fruit, like strawberries (just to see if he'll eat)? What foods have you offered him?

Yes he's still alive I've been worried about him as well but thanks to you and everyone here we are on the right track. I did take him to the vet. He's malnourished, has got MBD, and was severely dehydrated. They trimmed the nails back just a tiny bit enough so they don't continue to grow into the feet and they want him to naturally file them down over time.
I will focus all of my attention today on bringing his temperature up more. Hopefully that will encourage him to eat. I've tried feeding him collards, dandelion greens, kale, grass, clover, and dichondra. He has not taken a single bite of food since I've had him. All he wants to do is hibernate and stay burrowed. When i pull him out and put him in front of his food he turns around and heads back to his hide.

 

[dmarshall1991]

You will want to provide a basking spot of 100-115 and an overall temp of no less than 80 degrees...( this overall temp of no less than 80 is suggested ONLY to try to encourage the tort to get an appetite... and not during the normal time of the year)....also, do pull him out each and every day, several times per day actually...and offer warm water soaks for no less than 30 minutes....then at night, the temp should not fall below 80 degrees either....

Thank you! I'm gonna focus on meeting these temperatures today.

 

[keepergale]

I do not know his enclosure details. If it is possible maybe you can remove his hide during the day so he can not retreat into all the time.

 

[Ciri]

... I've tried feeding him collards, dandelion greens, kale, grass, clover, and dichondra. He has not taken a single bite of food since I've had him. All he wants to do is hibernate and stay burrowed. When i pull him out and put him in front of his food he turns around and heads back to his hide.

I know this must be tough – knowing he really needs to eat more than anything right now. It's great you're hanging in there. I had a thought – what about taking some of the collards, dandelion greens, kale, grass, clover, or dichondra and putting it in a blender with water. Then if you purée it to a green liquid and add that to his water dish he'll be able to get in some nutrients, and get familiar with what are healthy foods for him. I would suggest starting out slowly – maybe a dozen Dichondra leaves the first time. And then build up slowly, adding more healthy foods. He may be weak enough that he needs to start out drinking his foods, and absorbing them through the cloaca. You could also add a little bit of fruit: a small piece of tomato, or strawberry, just to try to entice him. I hope things go well in his recovery.

 

[dmarshall1991]

I know this must be tough – knowing he really needs to eat more than anything right now. It's great you're hanging in there. I had a thought – what about taking some of the collards, dandelion greens, kale, grass, clover, or dichondra and putting it in a blender with water. Then if you purée it to a green liquid and add that to his water dish he'll be able to get in some nutrients, and get familiar with what are healthy foods for him. I would suggest starting out slowly – maybe a dozen Dichondra leaves the first time. And then build up slowly, adding more healthy foods. He may be weak enough that he needs to start out drinking his foods, and absorbing them through the cloaca. You could also add a little bit of fruit: a small piece of tomato, or strawberry, just to try to entice him. I hope things go well in his recovery.

This is an amazing idea! He drinks water when I soak him so that will be a way to force him to get at least a little nutrients in him. Thank you! I also got him a bigger enclosure today so that I can control the heat more. Unfortunately on the way home it shattered in the bed of the truck so I'm going to have to have the front replaced. So he's not gonna get to go in it right away, but until then I'll be keeping his Temps up high and trying the puree food in the water idea. I'll definitely let you know how it works out!

 

[Momof4]

@dmarshall1991 How is Desmond doing? I was just thinking about him and that curly toenail of his.

 

[dmarshall1991]

He is not doing too well. it's a tough struggle with him. Taken him to the vet 5 times already and about $600 later still not much improvement. He doesn't eat on his own and he just lays still all day. Cant lift his head or move his legs well at all. Going to keep trying though. its going to come to a point where me and the vet are going to have to decide weather or not it's worth the suffering he's going through for us to keep trying or if it's better to stop his suffering. A decision that is going to absolutely tear me apart but I'm not giving up on my little guy. He's a fighter I have hope.

 

[Ciri]

I'm so sorry to hear that he's having such a rough time. It did sound like a really difficult situation – trying to counteract the effects of such neglect by the previous keeper. It brings tears to my eyes to hear what is going through – and you as well. I hope things turn around soon. I'm curious – has the vet done any tube feedings? That's something my vet did when my desert tortoise got really sick.

 

[Yvonne G]

Hi Danielle:

I'm so sorry that you're having such a tough time with this tortoise.

Is it possible to find out what the previous owner was feeding him? Sometimes when a tortoise is used to eating a certain thing all the time, they don't recognize good food as food. So if you knew what he was eating before, maybe you could offer that food to him and him might just try to eat.
You can add a few drops of liquid bird vitamins to his soaking water. That will help get some nutrients into him. And I would put him in front of the food dish every time you walk past his habitat.

 

[ascott]

He is not doing too well. it's a tough struggle with him. Taken him to the vet 5 times already and about $600 later still not much improvement. He doesn't eat on his own and he just lays still all day. Cant lift his head or move his legs well at all. Going to keep trying though. its going to come to a point where me and the vet are going to have to decide weather or not it's worth the suffering he's going through for us to keep trying or if it's better to stop his suffering. A decision that is going to absolutely tear me apart but I'm not giving up on my little guy. He's a fighter I have hope.

I would not put him down....I would continue long long long warm water soaks each and every day....he is likely impacted still with that damn sand (as shown in prior pic)...sand is a son of a b*&$h...it can take months to get it out of the tortoise....I would be more concerned with soaking the tort than eating...until his system is cleared he will not eat.....I would warm him up, I would bug him several times per day, I would do long warm water soaks and bug him while he is soaking--try to get him mobile.....if he is ill and is going to die...then let him do so...but if he has life and is not wanting to let go "I" personally would not put him down...this is a very tenacious species....they can pull through ALOT .....now, that is just my feeling on it and you are the one that is doing the footwork and are the one who is going to decide his ultimate situation in captivity....

 

[dmarshall1991]

PROGRESS!!!! For the FIRST time he is eating! I have tried everything possible and today I got a butternut squash for the torts and my bearded dragon and decided to try and see if he would be interested after his soak. He couldn't bite it because he's so weak so I boiled it for a while and made it nice and soft and he ate several bites. 'm so happy I can't even put it into words. I have been working so hard with him. Vet apointments, injections, tube feedings, soaks 2 times a day, keeping the habitat in pristine condition at the perfect temperature and perfect humidity. And he finally took a few bites on his own today! It was really looking bad the past couple weeks. He was really deteriorating but this is a HUGE step forward.

 

[Ciri]

WOW!!! Congratulations! This is fabulous news. You have done a fantastic job of taking care of him. All that hard work and expense has really paid off. I am thrilled to hear of this wonderful development. And it's great to see the picture of him eating.

 

[TigsMom]

YAY! That is fantastic news! Congratulations!

 

[Carol S]

I am so happy he is eating. Desert Tortoises are such a personable breed of tort. When the weather warms up real sunshine will also do wonders for him. A fast way to cook the squash is to cut it into large pieces and wrap it in paper towels that are dripping with water and then microwave it. I cook mine until it is slightly tender. I also feel that cooking it in the microwave retains more vitamins versus boiling in water. Keep us posted on how he progresses.