New Russian not eating well

[maxwi42]

My russian tortoise of two weeks has not been eating well. The first week i took him to the vet and he was chubby and healthy. I have only seen him eat lettuce 3 times in the past two weeks. He seems to be keeping hydrated by baths and sips of water. I have tried feeding him many different lettuces, flowers, and wild foraged edibles. We have a vet appointment on friday. Does anyone have any advice?

 

[dmmj]

so your tortoise is eating but not a lot correct? what are your temperatures?

 

[Jodie]

Pictures of your enclosure, and specifics on your 4 temps will help us advise. Basking, warm side, cool side and overnight low.

 

[maxwi42]

Hello everybody sad news my tortoise was taken to the vet and he determined it should be taken back to where I got it from for proper care.

 

[dmmj]

did they say why it should be taken back? Any specific reasons?

 

[maxwi42]

My veterinarian basically told me it would cost a lot of money to run tests on him and figure out what was wrong so he recommended I take him back to Petsmart for proper care while this upset me he told me they would figure out what's wrong with him and he'll him up if they tell him so I decided it was the best option

 

[Linhdan Nguyen]

Thats strange that a vet would suggest that. You had your tortoise for only 2 weeks so it could have been still getting use to the new place. Also, if you bought yours from a store like petsmart, he most likely has internal parasites and would need to be checked for worms. Both my Russians had this problem when i bought them from a pet store. One if them did not eat for a month (or a little over) except what was tube fed to him. He had very bad parasites and the stress of moving to a different home weakened his immune system and im sure thats why the parasites took over. I would find a different vet.
A vet should be able to give you an idea of what you (and your tort) may be facing as well as an estimate on costs to conduct these tests (a fecal sample is usually the first thing they recommend). Then once you agree, they would follow through with the procedures. Not tell you "return him to the store".

 

[maxwi42]

My veterinarian did run to fecal sample tests and said they were normal and just suggested that he was not acting the way I normal healthy tortoise would.

 

[dmmj]

that does seem a little unusual. With no obvious underlying health concerns showing and with a fecal test already done. I honestly would put it down to readjusting but it is your tortoise & your decision and of course I don't have to absorb any of the future Vet cost so it's easier for me to say that