Redfoot Odor

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Torts

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My Redfoot has a very strong odor permeating from her skin and shell. The question I have is if anyone has any experience with using a natural product to help with the odor? No amount of soaking seems to help.:D
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
 

Neohippy

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Hmm... What sort of odour? Can you equate it to anything?
I've always noticed reptiles of all sorts have a similar smell that was unlike other animals, except maybe a freshly bathed bird. Otherwise, I find torts to be scentless as a rule of thumb. It's a rare occasion indeed when I even smell a freshly plopped poop, however faint.
 

Torts

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Neohippy said:
Hmm... What sort of odour? Can you equate it to anything?
I've always noticed reptiles of all sorts have a similar smell that was unlike other animals, except maybe a freshly bathed bird. Otherwise, I find torts to be scentless as a rule of thumb. It's a rare occasion indeed when I even smell a freshly plopped poop, however faint.

She has a musty stale odor to her shell and skin. Her poo is something else too...you could smell it from across the room like very bad halletosis. I first attributed the odor to a partial protein diet but then again I do not have any other Redfoots for comparison. Ruby is our special tortoise that we rescued from a horrible environment. We have treated her on numerous occasions for parasites and infections.
 

Neohippy

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Torts said:
Neohippy said:
Hmm... What sort of odour? Can you equate it to anything?
I've always noticed reptiles of all sorts have a similar smell that was unlike other animals, except maybe a freshly bathed bird. Otherwise, I find torts to be scentless as a rule of thumb. It's a rare occasion indeed when I even smell a freshly plopped poop, however faint.

She has a musty stale odor to her shell and skin. Her poo is something else too...you could smell it from across the room like very bad halletosis. I first attributed the odor to a partial protein diet but then again I do not have any other Redfoots for comparison. Ruby is our special tortoise that we rescued from a horrible environment. We have treated her on numerous occasions for parasites and infections.

Hmm, you may be right. it seems the simplest thing to do right away is cut out all protein. It won't hurt the tort to go a few weeks without a dose.
My torts rarely get animal protein unless they can find it in their viv. Maybe try feeding only 1 or 2 types of greens for a while. There might be something funky that needs to be flushed out of it's system, kinda like when humans eat asparagus and cabbage (we tend to reek afterwards).
 

Yvonne G

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My suggestion would be to go over the tortoise with a fine tooth comb. Pull out each leg and look closely. Look between her toes. Stretch out her neck and look closely. There might be an infection someplace on her body that is smelling. Its not something I would normally do, but because of the odor, you can wash her off with Baby Shampoo and a soft bristle brush before you do the inspection. And maybe even use a magnifying glass. Tortoises don't smell.
 

t_mclellan

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I agree with Yvonne on this one.
You should inspect the animal thoroughly. It only takes a small abscess to make a truly nauseating aroma. I located individual "BAD" animals in import shipments simply by following the smell. I don't mean dead animals ether, I'm talking about animals with small injuries. I have seen animals with plant spines imbedded & causing infection, Infected animal bites, BB's & pellets.
It only takes a tiny untreated wound.

On a similar & also totally different note!
The weather here in South Florida is just a tad chilly at the moment.
Temps have been in the 30's at night & 50's during the day. 31 at my house the last 2 nights.
Needless to say I brought everything inside the other day & it looks like they won't be back outside until Monday.
Ohh yeah my point?!
There are more than a few tortoises inside now & t there is no fowl smell at all.
Although I clean the fecal daily, Even that aroma is minimal.
Also I have seen holding pens long ago that the substrate was allowed to "Sour" in.
If you closed your eyes you would think the folks living under the bridge were walking by.
 

Neohippy

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t_mclellan said:
I agree with Yvonne on this one.
You should inspect the animal thoroughly. It only takes a small abscess to make a truly nauseating aroma.... It only takes a tiny untreated wound.


That's a really valid point. Didn't think of that. But yeah, an abscess would be a real pain in the keester to find, these little guys can be tough, and stubborn. But untreated abscesses in any creature can grow, and do produce an other worldly stink sometimes, not to mention other nasty side effects. 3 years in a slaughterhouse gives one a new respect for those horrid things.

Scope out the tort, and if in doubt a vet check or a simple white count test?
Either way, I hope it's something simple with a quick fix!
 

Madkins007

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So the other torts don't stink, just the Red-foot? Can you share more care and diet info with us? Temps, humidity, housing, diet, etc.? There are foods that can contribute to this, such as eggs making poo stink.

You've treated her for stuff as well- can you share how? Meds often cause smells (although I am not sure what can do it in torts.)

Rescuing it from a bad situation can also mean that there are some heath issues that might make it smell funny until they are cleared up. Any info on old cares might help as well.
 

Torts

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Thank you all for your suggestions. Ruby has been off meds for some time with a miraculous recovery. I think she is fine though since I have taken her to the vet on three separate occasions and she checked out fine (other than her parasites - which were treated). I cross my fingers that it is all cleared up but if no one else seems to have this problem with their Redfoots, maybe she is still battling something internally? It is mostly the poo that seems to create the worst odor but she has had that problem since day one. I guess it means another trip to the vet.
 

llamas55

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don't all torts have bad/strong smelling poo, right up there with pig and skunk/cat poo?
 

Madkins007

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My Red-foots poo only stinks after eggs or a few other meals- usually I cannot tell there is any in there. It might be dietary- which is why I wondered what you are feeding her?
 
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