Reptile or exotic vet?

TheLastGreen

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I need advice. My tort has a URI and she has been given baytril, I went with the dosage until finished, even after @zovick advice to switch over to fortaz?. Luna is doing ok eating and all but she clearly needs medicine. i.e fortaz etc. I called the vet again and I asked to switch to fortaz. She said no, the antibiotics will take a while to work, and she also needs lots of sun...
I know I am not going to make progress at this vet and I want to make sure I choose the correct vet. What should I look out for and what type of vet like reptile/exotic should it be?
 

ZenHerper

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Why do you think s/he needs medication?

What species is this? Age?
What are the habitat temperatures: ambient, basking, overnight
What is the ambient humidity: Day? Overnight?
Please show a clear photo of the entire habitat, including all hide boxes/plants.
What foods is s/he eating?
 

TheLastGreen

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She has been showing signs of a URI, "coughing" pushing her neck out. The vet also said they drained a lot of water and mucus out her throat.
Species: Kinixys Zombensis
Age: Unknown, she has been with me for three weeks. Aprox 1 year or less old.
Basking: 35C
Ambient: 30C
Night/hide: 27C
All these temps have been raised especially nightime to 31C
Humidity is 60% currently
NB: She has not once walked on her own to the food dish or basking.
I soak her and she drinks a lot of water.
She has eaten carrot baby food in water and crushed mushrooms (store bought)
Here are photos of size20211023_193429.jpg20211023_193439.jpg
Habitat, from basking ambient to hide.
20211023_194135.jpg20211023_194145.jpg20211023_194151.jpg20211023_194158.jpg
 

ZenHerper

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So s/he's not eating well. Does s/he eat any green plants?

Antibiotics are very hard on the digestion, immune system (a large part of which is the bacterial flora of the intestines), and the kidneys. I'd be worried about blowing out the kidneys with another course of drugs since you say s/he is already drinking a lot of water (a sign of renal stress).

Are you able to find a probiotic replacement culture for reptiles? The digestive culture needs replacing and support. Like this:

My theoretical sense of this species is that they need to be Very Warm...not lower than 32*C overnight. For a sick one that is not basking, I'd want an ambient temperature closer to 34*C all over day and night, 24 hours...basking spot optional, since the entire habitat would be warm enough for digestion, metabolism, and immune function. Youngsters especially need more warmth (since they hatch closer to the peak of hotter seasons).

Soaking several times a day will be very important with warmer day and night temps, and to let s/him take in all the water the kidneys seem to be needing. Push the humidity up a bit ~65-70%.

Add baby food greens to the carrot soak...green beans, kale. Or use a blender to liquefy mature leaves of escarole, dandelion, and endive...then add to the soak water to get some more well-rounded nutrients on board. The immune system won't function well without all the co-factors and minerals in their proper balance.

Let's see if some Hingeback/African keepers/fanciers are around this weekend.
@2turtletom @tortadise @Jacqui @Markw84 @Kapidolo Farms @Tom @Yvonne G

The best way to find qualified, experienced medical help is to look for a veterinary college or zoo where staff are working with reptiles every day. Be sure to tell them s/he drinks a lot of water. If this wee one was over-drinking before the antibiotic treatment was started, there is the possibility that the kidneys never formed properly, or are not progressing in their growth. That would mean a very poor outcome regardless of your very caring efforts.
 

ZenHerper

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There is a chicken? on the label...so that should be OK. There may be a few species of buggie missing, but I'd rather you start something sooner rather than later.

Sprinkle a mere pinch in soak water, or on something you know will be eaten according to the package directions.
 

zovick

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I need advice. My tort has a URI and she has been given baytril, I went with the dosage until finished, even after @zovick advice to switch over to fortaz?. Luna is doing ok eating and all but she clearly needs medicine. i.e fortaz etc. I called the vet again and I asked to switch to fortaz. She said no, the antibiotics will take a while to work, and she also needs lots of sun...
I know I am not going to make progress at this vet and I want to make sure I choose the correct vet. What should I look out for and what type of vet like reptile/exotic should it be?
Not sure what the degrees and certifications for veterinarians may be in SA, but in the US, you would want to find a board certified "exotics" vet. Over here, the exotics vets have been trained to treat reptiles as part of their exotics training after they have graduated from a regular veterinary school.

If you don't have such a certification system over there, the very least you should do is try to find a vet who has treated many tortoises and treats them fairly regularly, not just one or two every few months or so.

As ZenHerper said above, if there is a veterinary school near you, they may have an exotics program with residents available to treat animals which are brought to the school. Failing that, the school might be able to give you the name(s) of private practitioners who treat reptiles/tortoises in your area.

Also as ZenHerper said, a zoo might be able to make similar recommendations.

Good luck!
 

ZenHerper

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Yeah. So I'd move forward on the idea that there was some unnoticed bullying from the larger one, just keeping in the back of mind that there may be a developmental issue that makes a recovery all uphill.

Bearing in mind that a lot of handling can be stressful, aim for 3-4 soaking episodes per day. Raising the overall temps will keep you from having to move Baby out of hiding spots all day.

Add the greens into the carrot water slowly over time - you don't want to inhibit drinking with a whopping dose of a New flavor. But hopefully you can get some more balanced nutrients on board.

Keep us posted.
 

TheLastGreen

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I forgot to ask, does anyone know why she pushes her head out like that? We do now know it is a URI but I have looked through dozens of post, with no match? I haven't seen another tort pushing its neck out so dramatically.
She pushes it out (it almost looking like she has no control over it) and then retracts. Also sometimes when she sleeps she opens her mouth in rhythm with breathing.
 

ZenHerper

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That can be a sign of pneumonia or other airway-impeding infection.

Which is why it is so important to keep overall temperatures very warm and humidity moderate...the immune and circulatory systems need to be optimized while you look for qualified medical aid.
 

TheLastGreen

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Good news, was just at vet. Baytril for 21 days orally (0.05g) diluted with water and has electrolytes and vitamins. He has given me enough to last 3 months. He even took a needel, cut the point of and rounded it so that I can easily administer it. He also recomended that I use the syringe to place a bit of carrot baby food in her mouth. I feel this vet knows what he is doing. He also said that baytril burns and that it should be given orally. I also got the probiotics and it has these microorganisms20211026_110908_013_saved.jpg
 

TheLastGreen

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It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of Luna, she was a great tort. Sad that she has been ill for the last three weeks, but now she is at the rainbow bridge. Thank you to all the members that helped me in the process to help make her better, I can never repay what gratitude I have now for the gift of knowledge you have gave me.?
 

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