Swollen eyes. Got eye drops but has not helped. I am prob taking him to the vet next week but is there anything i cab do meanwhile? I dont think he has eaten in a week or two.
Swollen Eyes Three toed box
- Thread starter fritz269
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It would help it would help if you sent a pict of the box turtle in its enclosure . A pict is worth a 1000 words .
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Are you using a coil style bulb like this:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00101GDIG/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
A lot of eye troubles have been reported when using these. Take it out and see if there any change
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00101GDIG/?tag=exoticpetnetw-20
A lot of eye troubles have been reported when using these. Take it out and see if there any change
I'm going to tell you of MY experience with box turtles that have swollen eyes. This is NOT the only reason that box turtles end up with swollen shut eyes, but it is the most common reason that I have experienced.
When a box turtle stops eating, for whatever reason, he stops ingesting vitamin A. This causes the eyes to swell and stick closed.
Buy a few jars of Gerber strained carrots baby food. I use the carrots because if you read the list of ingredients, carrots has the most vitamin A content. You can also use squash and sweet potatoes, but the Vit. A content is a bit less.
So, find a little tub that has a small floor space but tall sides that the turtle can't climb out of. Put in a half jar of baby food and then add some warm water bringing the mixture up to the middle of the turtle's sides. If your container isn't small enough, you'll need to use a whole jar instead of a half jar.
Put the turtle into the mixture and leave him in there for as long as you can. An hour is good, or even longer. The turtle may not drink the mixture, but if he does that's even better. Sitting in this mixture allows time for a bit of the nutrients to absorb through the thin skin on the throat and around the cloaca.
You should see improvement in three days. I have never failed to see improvement using this method.
Now that you have his eyes open, you need to figure out why this happened in the first place, or it is just going to happen again...
Is he warm enough. Turtles won't eat if they can't warm up to AT LEAST 80F degrees. This means there needs to be a light over one end of the habitat (if indoors).
Are you offering the types of foods that box turtles usually will eat?
Is his enclosure big enough?
Re-read the care sheet and make the necessary adjustments in your care of the turtle.
When a box turtle stops eating, for whatever reason, he stops ingesting vitamin A. This causes the eyes to swell and stick closed.
Buy a few jars of Gerber strained carrots baby food. I use the carrots because if you read the list of ingredients, carrots has the most vitamin A content. You can also use squash and sweet potatoes, but the Vit. A content is a bit less.
So, find a little tub that has a small floor space but tall sides that the turtle can't climb out of. Put in a half jar of baby food and then add some warm water bringing the mixture up to the middle of the turtle's sides. If your container isn't small enough, you'll need to use a whole jar instead of a half jar.
Put the turtle into the mixture and leave him in there for as long as you can. An hour is good, or even longer. The turtle may not drink the mixture, but if he does that's even better. Sitting in this mixture allows time for a bit of the nutrients to absorb through the thin skin on the throat and around the cloaca.
You should see improvement in three days. I have never failed to see improvement using this method.
Now that you have his eyes open, you need to figure out why this happened in the first place, or it is just going to happen again...
Is he warm enough. Turtles won't eat if they can't warm up to AT LEAST 80F degrees. This means there needs to be a light over one end of the habitat (if indoors).
Are you offering the types of foods that box turtles usually will eat?
Is his enclosure big enough?
Re-read the care sheet and make the necessary adjustments in your care of the turtle.
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That's the kind of help you wont find just anywhere!!
i have an appointment for friday. i will try the babyfood method and hope that helps
