ChloeRagusa

New Member
Joined
Jan 11, 2022
Messages
28
Location (City and/or State)
LAKEWOOD
Hey all!

Skrink's mom, back at it again with the worrying.

Skrink is about 8 months old now. Since we got him in January he has grown by about one inch in length and 127 grams in weight. He has daily soaks, good food, good temps.

For the last 2-3 weeks I have noticed he has a wet nose. Not visible, but clear wet discharge can be felt on his nose. I witnessed 1 bubble after he had been drinking in the bath, and 1 bubble while eating some wet escarole. Otherwise no bubbles and I can feel his breath from his nose. He does not seem to be struggling to breath at this time. He eats, poops, and pees daily and continues to gain weight. His activity level is normal. I wipe his nose with a cloth at random times through the day. After bathing, I did try tipping him to see if anything dribbled out but I didn't see anything.

Since I noticed the discharge I have increased his temps to 85 on the cool side and 105 on the hot side under the basking light. His runny nose has not improved over the last few weeks and I am concerned.

Possible issues: We are remodeling and he was accidentally exposed to dust from a cement floor. His cage does have fungus gnats at this time but not too many. He dislikes the hay we give him and eats more greens. It has been chilly lately so he has not been outside as often.

Should I take him to the vet or are there other home remedies I should try? Please let me know what you all think. I'll try to find a safe reptile vet in the Long Beach area in the meantime.
 

TammyJ

Well-Known Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Jun 21, 2016
Messages
7,119
Location (City and/or State)
Jamaica
Hey all!

Skrink's mom, back at it again with the worrying.

Skrink is about 8 months old now. Since we got him in January he has grown by about one inch in length and 127 grams in weight. He has daily soaks, good food, good temps.

For the last 2-3 weeks I have noticed he has a wet nose. Not visible, but clear wet discharge can be felt on his nose. I witnessed 1 bubble after he had been drinking in the bath, and 1 bubble while eating some wet escarole. Otherwise no bubbles and I can feel his breath from his nose. He does not seem to be struggling to breath at this time. He eats, poops, and pees daily and continues to gain weight. His activity level is normal. I wipe his nose with a cloth at random times through the day. After bathing, I did try tipping him to see if anything dribbled out but I didn't see anything.

Since I noticed the discharge I have increased his temps to 85 on the cool side and 105 on the hot side under the basking light. His runny nose has not improved over the last few weeks and I am concerned.

Possible issues: We are remodeling and he was accidentally exposed to dust from a cement floor. His cage does have fungus gnats at this time but not too many. He dislikes the hay we give him and eats more greens. It has been chilly lately so he has not been outside as often.

Should I take him to the vet or are there other home remedies I should try? Please let me know what you all think. I'll try to find a safe reptile vet in the Long Beach area in the meantime.
What is a fungus gnat?
 

MsBijou

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 2, 2014
Messages
70
My tortoise had a runny nose, even less obvious than yours and it turned out to be an infection. I think that they just get sicker and sicker if not treated with antibiotics. My vet said it’s imperative to catch it as early as possible before it gets to the lungs. I would absolutely not hesitate to take him to a vet that is very familiar with treating tortoises (if possible).
 

MsBijou

Member
5 Year Member
Joined
Apr 2, 2014
Messages
70
I just saw the pictures you posted when you first got him. His eyes look very swollen in those pictures. Did he get treated with antibiotics or anything and did the eyes go back to looking normal? If not then it’s likely the same infection and it has progressed to a runny nose. Next will be lung involvement, if that hasn’t happened already.
 
Last edited:

bioteach

Member
10 Year Member!
Joined
Nov 11, 2010
Messages
43
Hey all!

Skrink's mom, back at it again with the worrying.

Skrink is about 8 months old now. Since we got him in January he has grown by about one inch in length and 127 grams in weight. He has daily soaks, good food, good temps.

For the last 2-3 weeks I have noticed he has a wet nose. Not visible, but clear wet discharge can be felt on his nose. I witnessed 1 bubble after he had been drinking in the bath, and 1 bubble while eating some wet escarole. Otherwise no bubbles and I can feel his breath from his nose. He does not seem to be struggling to breath at this time. He eats, poops, and pees daily and continues to gain weight. His activity level is normal. I wipe his nose with a cloth at random times through the day. After bathing, I did try tipping him to see if anything dribbled out but I didn't see anything.

Since I noticed the discharge I have increased his temps to 85 on the cool side and 105 on the hot side under the basking light. His runny nose has not improved over the last few weeks and I am concerned.

Possible issues: We are remodeling and he was accidentally exposed to dust from a cement floor. His cage does have fungus gnats at this time but not too many. He dislikes the hay we give him and eats more greens. It has been chilly lately so he has not been outside as often.

Should I take him to the vet or are there other home remedies I should try? Please let me know what you all think. I'll try to find a safe reptile vet in the Long Beach area in the meantime.
Hello,
From what my tortoise's vet has told me, about 95% of desert tortoises carry mycoplasma (a funguslike bacterium). It is usually asymptomatic; but now and then it may become obvious. Sunshine (my Desert Tort) had bubbles from her nose last summer (after a decade with no obvious symptoms). I did take her in and she was treated. The treatment was costly; but she had absolutely no symptoms afterward had a good winter sleep, and is eating everything in sight, active, and healthy.

The treatment consisted of a nasal flush (which I am sure Sunshine did not enjoy) and then a 2 week course of antibiotics. The vet gave me preloaded syringes equipped with a hair thin needle. Every other day I injected the antibiotic into her pectorial muscle (alternated right/left - so I kept a chart). She didn't appreciate it but it did not hurt her. No more bubbles!

I was concerned that the mycoplasma could eventually cause pneumonia which is a possibility so the fact that she is now happy and healthy was worth the expense, time, and care.

If the bubbles persist, or the discharge becomes cloudy, I would look into treatment for Skrink.
 
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