Poop help?

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

My little sulcata, Karsi, went outside today (and yesterday) and ate some grass. When I got her out for her soak she has grass hanging out of her butt. There was a long piece that passed but she still has 3-4 more piece hanging out. Is there anything I can do for her? Just wait and make sure she passes it on her own? Im just worried she's blocked up. Shes still a baby. Any help is appreciated!

 

[Tim Carlisle]

It's possible she might need her grass cut up into smaller pieces. If she's very young, her digestive system is still developing and might have problems processing the long blades. Keep her well hydrated with plenty of chopped up fibrous greens. I can't say for sure if she's impacted or not, but passing undigested food is pretty common.

 

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

When I give her grass in her bowl I cut it up very small. Im thinking she pulled a few long blades while she was outside :/ She is still eating, drinking, walking around as she normally would. How would I know if she's impacted @Mizcreant?

 

[Tim Carlisle]

When I give her grass in her bowl I cut it up very small. Im thinking she pulled a few long blades while she was outside :/ She is still eating, drinking, walking around as she normally would. How would I know if she's impacted @Mizcreant?

The most common sign is that she poops very little and very infrequently. As symptoms progress, you may notice lethargy to some degree. Make sure her temps are at least 85F. This will aid greatly in digestion.

 

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

The most common sign is that she poops very little and very infrequently. As symptoms progress, you may notice lethargy to some degree. Make sure her temps are at least 85F. This will aid greatly in digestion.

Thank you! Should I increase her soaks at all? They usually poop during soaks but she didnt last night when I soaked her. Im almost home from work, so Im going to check her as soon as I get in and hopefully it already passed. Im a first timer with torts and everythings gone fine so far, but this has me worried.

 

[Tim Carlisle]

Soaks are good! If you want a good natural laxative, try prickly pear cactus finely chopped up and mixed in with her food. Make sure her bath water water remains warm, and keep her ambient temperature at least 85F. Keep us posted and let us know how she's doing.

 

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

Soaks are good! If you want a good natural laxative, try prickly pear cactus finely chopped up and mixed in with her food. Make sure her bath water water remains warm, and keep her ambient temperature at least 85F. Keep us posted and let us know how she's doing.

Any ideas where I could find the cactus quickly? I always keep multiple tubs and switch as the water cools, I keep her water about 90 degrees during soaks. Thank you so much for the help!!

 

[Tim Carlisle]

I order mine from Amazon, but check locally at some of the Mexican grocery stores. They often have it. In desperate cases, I've heard of folks mixing a little mineral oil in the water. I've never done this myself though.

 

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

I know we have a Mexican grocery store close, Ill check there. If they dont have any there Ill get it from Amazon. I just switched the thermostat from 80 to 85, she still has it hanging out but is out and about.

 

[Tim Carlisle]

You can always help it along by gently pulling it out with tweezers.

 

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

You can always help it along by gently pulling it out with tweezers.

I was actually just going to ask that. I was reading this forum: https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/tortoise-constipation-impaction.105747/page-2 and pulling it out was suggested and thats what they ended up doing. Im just scared Im going to hurt her. Should I soak her first/while Im doing it?

 

[Tim Carlisle]

I was actually just going to ask that. I was reading this forum: https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/tortoise-constipation-impaction.105747/page-2 and pulling it out was suggested and thats what they ended up doing. Im just scared Im going to hurt her. Should I soak her first/while Im doing it?

I'd try it before soaking. If that doesn't do the trick, try soaking for 10 to 15 minutes to get her relaxed a bit, and try again.

 

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

Okay, thank you so much for all the help! Ill post in a bit how it goes!

 

[Maro2Bear]

Greetings... you should be able to gently and easily pull the offending long, undigested grass blades out. Right after a warm soak, just gentle...and easy.

Good luck... I’m dure u will have success.

 

[EllieMay]

I know we have a Mexican grocery store close, Ill check there. If they dont have any there Ill get it from Amazon. I just switched the thermostat from 80 to 85, she still has it hanging out but is out and about.

I buy mine at a Mexican grocery store. I asked and they stock it year round here.. plus I have access to a tortillarea that I never knew about. I loaded up on cactus and fresh baked pastries and a pineapple all for $6 and some change

 

[EllieMay]

I was actually just going to ask that. I was reading this forum: https://www.tortoiseforum.org/threads/tortoise-constipation-impaction.105747/page-2 and pulling it out was suggested and thats what they ended up doing. Im just scared Im going to hurt her. Should I soak her first/while Im doing it?

I’ve done this before as well and it didn’t seem to bother my guy at all. I’m sure y’all will be fine!

 

[Tom]

Soak for 30+ minutes and then just gently pull out the grass. I do it all the time. Don't yank it and don't pull hard if it is stuck.

Spineless opuntia pads are called "nopales" at Mexican grocery stores. If you ask for opuntia, you might get a blank stare back.

 

[EmeraldxxEyesx]

Thank you everyone for the replies! Im glad (in a way) this has happened to other people, I felt like a terrible tort parent haha. So after raising the temp to 85, when I went back to soak her she already had it partly out, I gently grabbed the end of the grass with tweezers and it came off halfway through what she already had out. There wasnt any more grass to grab onto (from what I could see) so I waited a few minutes and watched her. She finished on her own a couple minutes later.

Thank you everyone for the help!!

 

[Tim Carlisle]

Yay!

 

[C. Nelson]

Thank you everyone for the replies! Im glad (in a way) this has happened to other people, I felt like a terrible tort parent haha. So after raising the temp to 85, when I went back to soak her she already had it partly out, I gently grabbed the end of the grass with tweezers and it came off halfway through what she already had out. There wasnt any more grass to grab onto (from what I could see) so I waited a few minutes and watched her. She finished on her own a couple minutes later.

Thank you everyone for the help!!

SUCCESS!