new to forum with question

ohio sultana owner

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My granddaughter got a sultana tortoise baby last summer at a local pet store. She seems healthy enough but today there is a warning online about not eating romaine lettuce due to a good possibility it is e-coli contaminated. Apparently this outbreak of e-coli in Canada was traced to romaine lettuce and here in states FDA has not issued the official "pull- from- shelves", but is a good possibility. It is one of the things I use to supplement feed my granddaughter's tortoise... per the pet store (they said iceberg had no nutrients for her) Do you know if tortoise can become sick from romaine? We will not be eating it, but I didn't know about tortoises. I cannot find anything on line to address it. Thank-you!
 

Yvonne G

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Just wash it well. Never eat anything straight from the store. Always wash your produce well before you put it away in the fridge.

(just a note on your tortoise's spelling - it would be a 'sulcata' tortoise)
 

ohio sultana owner

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Thank-you for answering while I was still online! I always wash produce, but e-coli doesn't wash off. It's safe to eat cooked (heat kills it which is why you are never to eat raw eggs).. but ecoli attaches itself to produce- you can wash in whatever-vinegar,even bleach and rinse, and it kills germs in water, but I am sure e-coli is one of the things that doesn't wash off. So I don't plan to give to people, but I didn't know if e-coli was something that harmed tortoises.
 

Yvonne G

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Ew. Thanks for telling me that. I had no idea. I don't know if E coli is harmful to tortoises. Let's ask a scientist - @Will ????
 

Yvonne G

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He's at work right now, so may not answer right away.
 

Kapidolo Farms

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zovick

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escherichia_coli

OR

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entamoeba_coli

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/exoti...tiles/parasitic-diseases-of-reptiles#v4632036

It looks like knowing what the "e" stands for would help. In either case it does not look too bad.

@zovick might you have a POV on this?

I don't personally think the romaine lettuce will be harmful to feed to the tortoise assuming it is in good health and not immuno-stressed in some way from some illness or another.
 

kidinabstract

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escherichia_coli

OR

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Entamoeba_coli

http://www.merckvetmanual.com/exoti...tiles/parasitic-diseases-of-reptiles#v4632036

It looks like knowing what the "e" stands for would help. In either case it does not look too bad.

@zovick might you have a POV on this?

Definitely would be Escherichia coli as Entamoeba coli (as the name suggests) is a parasite, not a bacteria. Although both live in the intestine of humans and other animals.

As a general rule of thumb: whenever "E coli" is mentioned in the news or otherwise what is being referred to is the bacteria. If it was the parasite the news would differentiate by saying "parasite" or using the entire genus and species name.

I am, however, quite interested in whether or not the bacteria would negatively affect a sulcata, as I have one, too. I have another food for him (more of a treat, really), but it's too cold to let him eat grass and I don't want to give him the romaine until this E coli thing is sorted out ... I can only assume that the bacteria would kill him just like it could kill a human or other animal if it grows unchecked in the rest of his digestive tract.
 

Tom

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In all of my years and with all the reptile vets I work with, I've not heard of one case of E. coli affecting a tortoise. This doesn't mean it is impossible, but it does mean that it is very uncommon if it does happen.

My wife has a masters in microbiology and did her thesis on E. coli 0157 H:7. I just asked her and she has no idea what it would do in a tortoise.

I texted a couple of my vet friends and I'll let you guys know what they say.

In the mean time, here is a list of foods for @ohio sultana owner
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/for-those-who-have-a-young-sulcata.76744/

And here is some sulcata care info:
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/beginner-mistakes.45180/
https://tortoiseforum.org/threads/how-to-raise-a-healthy-sulcata-or-leopard-version-2-0.79895/
 

Tom

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One vet says that whether or not it would have an effect on reptiles depends on the strain.
 

kidinabstract

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I haven't found anything regarding which strain it is or even which lettuce brand it is. Everything I'm reading simply says "E coli" and "romaine lettuce." It's a little frustrating to say the least considering I just bought romaine this week and it's getting a little expensive since Doughnut has hit a growth spurt recently. I guess I could see if I could find some arugula temporarily as he loves that stuff more than romaine.
 

ohio sultana owner

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thank-you all for your imput. Since I had fed her some the other day and she seems ok, I'll hope the romaine I bought is ok for her- she's not that big yet
 

Tom

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thank-you all for your imput. Since I had fed her some the other day and she seems ok, I'll hope the romaine I bought is ok for her- she's not that big yet

I would not feed romaine anyway. If you must use grocery store foods, favor endive and escarole as your main staples. Use lots of other stuff for variety. Read that first link I left for you for more suggestions.
 

ohio sultana owner

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I have little grandkids living with me and don't get on the computer much, so I will look the link up. . I have a jar of tortoise food that the pet store told me to get-by "Flukers". I followed their instructions-they said no iceberg lettuce-need greener. So I give romaine spinach, kale...and they said she would like fruit, so I have given her apple, pear, strawberry, and blueberry when I can, but she doesn't seem to be a fan of fruit. . At first we didn't know if the tortoise was a boy or girl so she was named Terry. Again, thanks for your help.
 

Tom

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I have little grandkids living with me and don't get on the computer much, so I will look the link up. . I have a jar of tortoise food that the pet store told me to get-by "Flukers". I followed their instructions-they said no iceberg lettuce-need greener. So I give romaine spinach, kale...and they said she would like fruit, so I have given her apple, pear, strawberry, and blueberry when I can, but she doesn't seem to be a fan of fruit. . At first we didn't know if the tortoise was a boy or girl so she was named Terry. Again, thanks for your help.
Pet stores are notorious for giving bad info, like the info you got, and for selling the wrong products, like what they sold you.

Babies like yours have a small margin of error. Please take the time to read those threads and make any needed corrections before it is too late.
 

Alaskamike

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IMO a good supplement to grass & weeds is a product called Mazuri tortoise pellets. You can buy them on line directly from Mazuri & the price is cheaper than in the stores. I soak it for babies.

I’ve used Spring Mix in a pinch , get in grocery store. Just not the one that’s mostly spinach. Variety is what they need. They will gobble up all the good stuff you can find.
 
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