swollen rear end on 3 toed box turtle

[yettie]

This is one of the box turtles I rescued from a pet store 2 months ago, it has been eating and doing really good. three days ago I noticed it was walking fuuny, I noticed her tail area is swollen, and kind of hard to the touch. can anyone tell me what this might be. I am including pictures.......

 

[tyrs4u]

Try taking the photos at an angle. Because right now; i believe its gravid.. (With eggs) By the look of the lump butt...

 

[thea lester]

Yeah that's my 1st guess too. Is she pooping okay? Best thing to start with is a good long soak in warm water. Not hot, like body temp. I would do about 4" deep. If you can get a pinky or ring finger gently into the socket where her rear legs pull into her shell and the area feels hard (like eggs are in there) then she's gravid. Don't worry about this part if she's really shy about it.
If she's not pooping okay, soaking is the best bet and a trip to the vet is in order if she doesn't poop soon.
Thea

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PS If she is gravid then it's very important that she has a nice place to lay her eggs. Deep moist warm substrate. Is she indoors? Outdoors? Is she walking around a lot, like pacing?

 

[yettie]

Thank you for your replys! I will try soaking her, I had her in water this morning and she usually poops, but not today.. She has the run of the yard and after being in a 20 gal. fish tank with 4 other tortoises for at least 6 months, she has been very happy. Could she be egg bound because she was only being fed iceberg lettuce? I am going to get some peat moss, and enclose her in a large area in the yard, I will keep an eye on her, but I found a vet in Modesto, that seems reasonable, and I will take her in if necessary.

 

[thea lester]

I only wish there were more replies to your post! I'm so glad you were able to find a vet, it really seems like, hate to say it, but if she's not pooping and from your pix her cloacal area looks quite swollen, beneath and before her tail, she needs to see a vet. It may be that she's eggbound, or possibly an egg has broken inside her and she can't pass it. They can go septic from that. It is very serious. Brace yourself.
You are doing wonders for her world! Horrifying how they're often kept by stores etc...
I'm relatively new here too and I wish I had a better idea as to how to get you some more replies as this is a pretty serious case. I'll see what I can do. In the meantime, all my best wishes to you and yours,
Thea

 

[Yvonne G]

Put some warm water into a small tub that the turtle can't climb out of, and position a light over a portion of it. Just leave the turtle soaking in the tub for a long, long time. If possible, you might even put a little heating pad under part of the tub.

Warm water soaks do wonders for turtles that aren't feeling well.

Just be vigilant to be sure she doesn't tip over in the water. Keep checking on her.

If this doesn't alleviate her swelling, then you'll need to take her to a vet who has knowledge of turtles.