sick babies! PLEASE HELP!!

[tortoise007]

Your temp are a little cold, and temperature is the most important thing in keeping a tortoise healthy. Please read through this entire thread. It should help you quite a bit. Have you tried baby food soaks? Just mix carrot baby food 50-50 with nice warm water and soak the tortoises in that for AT LEAST 15 mins twice a day, even if they try to get out. The baby food and the water will soak up in to their body and they will get some vital nutrients and energy. Just make sure that is high enough so it comes up just passed the bottom of their shell.
Here is the thread I wrote on how to care for sick torts: http://www.tortoiseforum.org/thread-70438.html

 

[jojomo]

thank you 007. i actually have read that thread you suggested almost immediately after posting my temps. switched up their lighting fixtures with the ones from my beardies and got all new lights and made adjustments to their enclosure. also have been using the method of temp reading suggested in the thread....the one with the toothpicks, to get an accurate air temp reading...very clever. i now check several spots, several times daily and moving the toothpicks around constantly. i keep an ambient temp at about 90 with a basking spot in the low 100's and night time is 80. also keeping it covered to keep in more humidity. i give them the babyfood soaks morning and evening for at least 30 mins. their little orange poops tell me it's doing the trick.

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I had a sick baby with a paper thin plastron that was almost transparent. I got some metronidazole (flagyl) and had to force feed this antibiotic to him. I did baby food soaks. He surprisingly survived. Now after a good amount of months, his plastron is "normal" and has been for awhile now.

I did take mine to a vet after about 4 days of not eating and not really moving and keeping his eyes closed.

Sounds like 2 weeks is quite a bit further down the "sick road" than mine. Not really sure if at this point Flagyl would be worth it or not. Force feeding a baby tortoise isn't the best of times for the person feeding nor the tort. You are right that super soft plastrons don't usually have a success story but I am thankful that mine was a success story, and maybe you might get one too.

thanks mightymizz,

i've taken mine to the vet four times now. the first time i took them, they were still eating. however, my vet gave them an antibiotic called "baytril" which i later learned on the forum is for respiratory issues which they showed no signs of so i stopped giving it to them. i stopped taking them in fear that the stress was doing more harm than not or that my reptile vet was perhaps not the best. i've researched flagyl a bit since reading your post. did your little guy show any symptoms other other than the soft plastron? i'm sure he would write me a prescription for it without taking them back but would want to know if thats what they need. i have plenty of experience syringe feeding baby beardies but think the tiny tort would be even more difficult. how'd you get it's little mouth open?

 

[diaboliqueturtle]

My Ornate boxie was prescribed Metrodinazole to treat giardiasis, a gut parasite. He would eat but then poop undigested food so a fecal exam was done.
Baytril is also prescribed to treat other infections, it might be a good idea to keep up with it.
I had to give that Baytril orally to a baby barely bigger than a quarter... Nerve wracking to say the least! You have to use subterfuge. I was lucky enough that she was eating, so I would keep the syringe at the ready, literally against her food so that when she opened her mouth to bite, I would stick it in and squirt. (Very carefully, of course ;-) I would also hold her and put the syringe against her beak, rubbing it, gently knocking and ever so slightly pushing so as to annoy her so she would open her mouth in protest and voila! She's forgiven me for it and is all better now

 

[tortoise007]

You are sooo welcome! I'm so happy that my thread helped someone! AND that they used the toothpick method for measuring temps! A lot of people when their tort is sick, get a lot of good advice from the people on TFO and then don't change much. Usually that doesn't end well... I'm so glad you took action! I'm also very glad to hear that your doing baby food soaks... and they're working! One thing tho, you stated that you move around the toothpick probes a lot. Just make sure that you give the tape on the end of toothpick time to get to the same temp as the air. (I usually wait at least 5 mins) Are your torts starting to improve?

 

[jojomo]

My Ornate boxie was prescribed Metrodinazole to treat giardiasis, a gut parasite. He would eat but then poop undigested food so a fecal exam was done.
Baytril is also prescribed to treat other infections, it might be a good idea to keep up with it.
I had to give that Baytril orally to a baby barely bigger than a quarter... Nerve wracking to say the least! You have to use subterfuge. I was lucky enough that she was eating, so I would keep the syringe at the ready, literally against her food so that when she opened her mouth to bite, I would stick it in and squirt. (Very carefully, of course ;-) I would also hold her and put the syringe against her beak, rubbing it, gently knocking and ever so slightly pushing so as to annoy her so she would open her mouth in protest and voila! She's forgiven me for it and is all better now

good to know...i shall resume the baytril then. up until now the vet suggested just dripping it on their beaks and they should lick it off...they don't and they hate it. smells bad even to me. i was nervous about trying to pry their tiny beaks open but i will try your rubbing, knocking technique and see what happens. or i could just stalk them and wait closely with a syringe for them to yawn

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You are sooo welcome! I'm so happy that my thread helped someone! AND that they used the toothpick method for measuring temps! A lot of people when their tort is sick, get a lot of good advice from the people on TFO and then don't change much. Usually that doesn't end well... I'm so glad you took action! I'm also very glad to hear that your doing baby food soaks... and they're working! One thing tho, you stated that you move around the toothpick probes a lot. Just make sure that you give the tape on the end of toothpick time to get to the same temp as the air. (I usually wait at least 5 mins) Are your torts starting to improve?

yes. i have four toothpicks in at all times. i take the temp and then move them and repeat an hour so later...sometimes almost obsessively

hard to say if they are improving or not. i like to think they are. they certainly come alive in their soaks and when i first get them out in the sun. their eyes seem to be opening more quickly and more frequently now but still not eating. gosh i miss watching them eat.

i notice the bible verse at the bottom of your posts. perhaps you could pray for my little Milton and Mahoney :shy: seems i've tried everything BUT prayer.

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P.S. i'm overwhelmed with appreciation for this forum and everyone who's a part of it

 

[tortoise007]

I would love to pray for you and your torts!
If our God is for us, who can be against us.

 

[jojomo]

I would love to pray for you and your torts!
If our God is for us, who can be against us.

AMEN BROTHA!

 

[jojomo]

good news friends! after their morning babyfood soak, i offered them food as usual. i'm overjoyed to say that at least one has been chowing down on romaine for an hour and still counting. it's been over two weeks off food. god i missed watching them eat

 

[mightymizz]

Good to hear!

Flagyl is sort of a multi attack approach. Can attack the gut parasite, other bacterial infections too, especially if it is not a RI issue (at least visibly).

To feed, I used an 18 gauge needle with the sharp point cut off. The baby would retreat into his shell, but would eventually slightly open his mouth enough to ship the needle in and administer the antibiotic. Of course, it can take some time and patience and remember to administer the proper dose. For my baby tortoise it was .02 of a MM. Very small amount to work with so it made it even more difficult.

 

[WinterRose]

I prayed for u guys too!! Stay strong i know its exhausting when Lil ones are sick.

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[tortoise007]

Just look what Maybe 20 mins of prayer can do...

 

[jojomo]

Thank you so much 007 and winterose! Really appreciate it. The world needs more kind thoughtful folks like you my heart is yearly warmed

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Truly

 

[tortoise007]

How are they doing?

 

[jojomo]

More good news!!! Mahoney has eaten now for five consecutive days and Milton FINALLY started eating last night and again this morning after nearly four weeks off food. I'm overjoyed and relieved. Couldn't have done it without this forum and all you amazing folks who have helped me along the way, giving me advise, tips and encouragement. Shells are still very soft but keeping a positive attitude and surrounding them with those vibes, I'm hoping for a full recovery. Thank you all

 

[turtleluv88]

Glad to hear that things are looking up. I know about the struggle. I had one of my box turtles very sick with a RI and softening of his shell. He wouldn't eat on his own for months. He was on antibiotics and liquid calcium. I had to force feed him baby food and soaked pellets for months, then I started with small pieces of earth worms and bugs. Eventually he fully recovered, although his shell is permanently caved in at the back. I did not know what else to do and I didn't know about this forum.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Also I would love to see some pics of them.

 

[WinterRose]

Yay!!! That IS good news! Thanks for letting us know... You made my day!

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[mike taylor]

That'd awesome news been keeping up with this tread.

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[jojomo]

thank you friends for the well wishes. sadly after three days back on food, Milton's little body was just too weak and he died yesterday here is a photo of them both eating about an hour or so before he passed. Milton is on the left and Mahoney on the right. pray that Mahoney makes it through. he always seemed to be the stronger of the two.

 

[turtleluv88]

So sorry for your loss.

 

[pam]

So sorry for your loss I pray that Mahoney makes it through