- Joined
- Jul 30, 2011
- Messages
- 16
Hi, I am new here and looking for some immediate advice and some long-term advice. Tonight, our neighbors contacted us and they had a Russian Tortoise (pretty certain that's what she is) literally show up on their doorstep - yep, walked right up their wheelchair ramp to say hello! We are in West Michigan, so clearly this beautiful creature is NOT a local native.
She is now home with us (animal-crazy, homeschooling family that we are) so her safety is assured for the time-being. The kids already raided the garden for some Buttercrunch Lettuce, and she quite happily received a solid soaking (definately livened her up a bit, and her skin looks WAY healthier already), but my IMMEDIATE concern involves 2 large cracks in her shell. She has one on the top, near the front of the shell, and one very large one on the back quarter of her shell, about 1/2-3/4 of the way across. They do go all the way through her shell as far as I can tell, but they don't seem to be debilitating, and I don't have the faintest clue how to go about dealing with this.
We have 2 aquatic turtles already, but we've had those two since they were babies so we've not had to deal with injuries like this on a turtle. Could this get infected? Is there some home-remedy we could use in the meantime to help prevent infection/illness or to help facilitate healing... or even something as simple as Neosporin? Are there *specific* foods we should be concentrating on feeding her to promote healing or shell growth? Certain temperatures or other environmental concerns we could address to help promote healing or prevent further injury/infection?
We acquired a general list of edible foods and toxic foods for her, and we do have a good many of them already in our garden or in our yard (mostly "organic" maintainance yard, not chemical-sprayed or anything), so general food isn't a problem. We put together a temporary enclosure in a storage tote with a metal grate to discourage our kitties, and will go first thing in the morning to pick up some sand (the only substrate we have is a shredded bark substrate we use with our pet toads, and our occasional snakey visitors), but what other immediate concerns should be addressed here? (especially in light of her injury....... should she have access to deeper water? something besides a water dish? should she be under UV lights? Would outdoors be best? Also, what kind of "shade" or security should she have access to? Something she can go under, or will she bury just fine if the sand is deep enough?? Indirect light better than direct sun I assume....correct?)
I should note here, that we ARE interested in finding a potential owner, if one exists......however.....I will admit, I'm a bit leery of this search (vs. the typical "stray dog getting home safe" search) for a variety of reasons, including the injuries in the first place. Is there a way to tell how recent those injuries are? Do you think it's more likely she was abandoned or released, rather than a recent escapee? Our home and yard is a total wildlife refuge, but it IS smack in the middle of the city. Fairly wooded neighborhood with some "drainage creeks" and such nearby.... Plus we have a small pond in our fenced in yard that a lot of urban wildlife & local feline-wanderers use as their personal water-dish (poor frogs hate that!)....is it possible she's surviving on her own? Could she get around without being spotted by anyone? Could a tortoise like that even survive a Michigan winter if hibernating? Any thoughts on this one?
On a side note, is there a reliable way to tell approximately how old this girl is? We're pretty sure she's female, based on web searches, but I haven't yet seen any info on age-determination. She's currently being held to the name "Luna" and she's really a gorgeous, gorgeous creature. Regardless of whether she is returned home to an anxious owner, rehomed to another happy family, or becomes a permenant member of THIS spoiled zoo, I am honored for my family and I to get to know her.
I know there's a lot of questions and uncertainty here, and I'm sure some of it will get answered over the next day or two as we continue searching for answers, but in the meantime any help you can provide would be awesome - especially on the immediate injury, safety and feeding concerns. Thanks in advance, feel free to holler if you have any other questions.
She is now home with us (animal-crazy, homeschooling family that we are) so her safety is assured for the time-being. The kids already raided the garden for some Buttercrunch Lettuce, and she quite happily received a solid soaking (definately livened her up a bit, and her skin looks WAY healthier already), but my IMMEDIATE concern involves 2 large cracks in her shell. She has one on the top, near the front of the shell, and one very large one on the back quarter of her shell, about 1/2-3/4 of the way across. They do go all the way through her shell as far as I can tell, but they don't seem to be debilitating, and I don't have the faintest clue how to go about dealing with this.
We have 2 aquatic turtles already, but we've had those two since they were babies so we've not had to deal with injuries like this on a turtle. Could this get infected? Is there some home-remedy we could use in the meantime to help prevent infection/illness or to help facilitate healing... or even something as simple as Neosporin? Are there *specific* foods we should be concentrating on feeding her to promote healing or shell growth? Certain temperatures or other environmental concerns we could address to help promote healing or prevent further injury/infection?
We acquired a general list of edible foods and toxic foods for her, and we do have a good many of them already in our garden or in our yard (mostly "organic" maintainance yard, not chemical-sprayed or anything), so general food isn't a problem. We put together a temporary enclosure in a storage tote with a metal grate to discourage our kitties, and will go first thing in the morning to pick up some sand (the only substrate we have is a shredded bark substrate we use with our pet toads, and our occasional snakey visitors), but what other immediate concerns should be addressed here? (especially in light of her injury....... should she have access to deeper water? something besides a water dish? should she be under UV lights? Would outdoors be best? Also, what kind of "shade" or security should she have access to? Something she can go under, or will she bury just fine if the sand is deep enough?? Indirect light better than direct sun I assume....correct?)
I should note here, that we ARE interested in finding a potential owner, if one exists......however.....I will admit, I'm a bit leery of this search (vs. the typical "stray dog getting home safe" search) for a variety of reasons, including the injuries in the first place. Is there a way to tell how recent those injuries are? Do you think it's more likely she was abandoned or released, rather than a recent escapee? Our home and yard is a total wildlife refuge, but it IS smack in the middle of the city. Fairly wooded neighborhood with some "drainage creeks" and such nearby.... Plus we have a small pond in our fenced in yard that a lot of urban wildlife & local feline-wanderers use as their personal water-dish (poor frogs hate that!)....is it possible she's surviving on her own? Could she get around without being spotted by anyone? Could a tortoise like that even survive a Michigan winter if hibernating? Any thoughts on this one?
On a side note, is there a reliable way to tell approximately how old this girl is? We're pretty sure she's female, based on web searches, but I haven't yet seen any info on age-determination. She's currently being held to the name "Luna" and she's really a gorgeous, gorgeous creature. Regardless of whether she is returned home to an anxious owner, rehomed to another happy family, or becomes a permenant member of THIS spoiled zoo, I am honored for my family and I to get to know her.
I know there's a lot of questions and uncertainty here, and I'm sure some of it will get answered over the next day or two as we continue searching for answers, but in the meantime any help you can provide would be awesome - especially on the immediate injury, safety and feeding concerns. Thanks in advance, feel free to holler if you have any other questions.