Too cold for a vet visit?

[Geng]

So I'm planning for my first vet visit this week. My russian has a little bit of clear discharge coming from her left nostril. Some people on this forum told me it wasn't urgent and for now I had to bump up the temp. Today she started blowing bubbles during her soak and made her first (and hopefully last) wheezing like sound. This triggers me to take her to the vet, until it came to my mind it might be too cold for a vet trip. This whole week it's freezing and the temp is around 2 celsius.

I don't have a car, so I must take the bus which is a 40 min trip to the vet. First I have to walk to the metro station which is a 10 min walk. Sometimes I have to wait 5 min in the cold till the metro arrives. Then I arrive at the bus station and there I have to wait another 10 min in the cold. I think it might a bit too much for my tort. So it is really bugging me too take her to the vet this week. Only saturday the temp will bump up to 10 celsius.

So what must I do? Take her to the vet anyway? But how must I transport her? If that won't work I will make a trip to the store to buy some higher watt CHE's for the night. Also I want to cover her enclosure, so if anyone has some tips for material that I can use to make a closing top for her table?

 

[wellington]

Blowing bubbles in the soak could just be from water in her nose. I would keep her temps up. If you see the bubbles and she is not soaking then I would take her in. However, you need to get a ride from someone or buy a bunch of hand warmers. Wrap them in a towel and then put her in a box that can be closed up. Add more towels then her and the warmers. I would do a test run without her with a thermometer in the box before I would take a possible sick tort out in those temps without knowing first if the hand warmers will do the trick.

 

[Geng]

Blowing bubbles in the soak could just be from water in her nose. I would keep her temps up. If you see the bubbles and she is not soaking then I would take her in. However, you need to get a ride from someone or buy a bunch of hand warmers. Wrap them in a towel and then put her in a box that can be closed up. Add more towels then her and the warmers. I would do a test run without her with a thermometer in the box before I would take a possible sick tort out in those temps without knowing first if the hand warmers will do the trick.

Blowing bubbles in the soak could just be from water in her nose. I would keep her temps up. If you see the bubbles and she is not soaking then I would take her in. However, you need to get a ride from someone or buy a bunch of hand warmers. Wrap them in a towel and then put her in a box that can be closed up. Add more towels then her and the warmers. I would do a test run without her with a thermometer in the box before I would take a possible sick tort out in those temps without knowing first if the hand warmers will do the trick.

Thanks for the tip. If it works Im probably gonna transport her in a small rubber maid box. Must I shut the lid to keep out the cold or leave it a bit open for her to breathing

 

[Maggie Cummings]

They sell a product called "Hot Hands". I use them for all my torts when I travel. Wilco, HD, Lowes they all have them. Line the bottom of your box with them, leaving an empty space for the tort to get off the heat. Keep a towel over the packets. They last about 8 hours...

 

[dmmj]

see if you can buy some hot hands they work great. how long has there been discharge from the nose?

 

[W Shaw]

I carry Ronan in an insulated 6-pack cooler. I can wear it around my neck like a Kangaroo pocket, and it keeps him insulated. I haven't needed to do it yet, but I've been planning to slice along one side of the bottom to make a pocket for a chemical bodywarmer (like a handwarmer but twice the size). In the meantime the insulation protects him for the quick trip from house to car and car to vet office.

 

[Aunt Caffy]

I carry my Rowan in a Thermos insulated bag. I place about four large Hot Hands in the bottom, cover them with a dry lint-free towel followed by a moist and heated lint-free towel then a third dry lint-free towel. The bag is a floral print, and I carry it (with Rowan) into stores when I'm traveling with him. I don't want to leave him in the unheated car. I have to stuff all my credit cards in my pocket as it wouldn't do to carry two purses inside. It's also important to note that I carry several additional lint-free towels as well. Rowan has a tendency to poop on his towels, and I have to keep changing out the top towel. I put the dirty ones in a plastic bag until I can get home to clean them.

 

[W Shaw]

I carry my Rowan in a Thermos insulated bag. I place about four large Hot Hands in the bottom, cover them with a dry lint-free towel followed by a moist and heated lint-free towel then a third dry lint-free towel. The bag is a floral print, and I carry it (with Rowan) into stores when I'm traveling with him. I don't want to leave him in the unheated car. I have to stuff all my credit cards in my pocket as it wouldn't do to carry two purses inside. It's also important to note that I carry several additional lint-free towels as well. Rowan has a tendency to poop on his towels, and I have to keep changing out the top towel. I put the dirty ones in a plastic bag until I can get home to clean them.

I've been a little concerned about exposing Ronan directly to the fumes from the chemical hand warmers, which is why I've wanted to make a pocket to put them underneath, rather than in the cooler with him. Might be I'm worried about nothing, but maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to ask a vet?

 

[Aunt Caffy]

I carry my Rowan in a Thermos insulated bag. I place about four large Hot Hands in the bottom, cover them with a dry lint-free towel followed by a moist and heated lint-free towel. The bag is a floral print, and I carry it (with Rowan) into stores when I'm traveling with him. I don't want to leave him in the unheated car. I have to stuff all my credit cards in my pocket as it wouldn't do to carry two purses inside.

I've been a little concerned about exposing Ronan directly to the fumes from the chemical hand warmers, which is why I've wanted to make a pocket to put them underneath, rather than in the cooler with him. Might be I'm worried about nothing, but maybe it wouldn't be a bad idea to ask a vet?

i wonder if there are any fumes. Obviously, there's an exothermic reaction of some kind going on. I need to find out what chemicals are in those things.

EDIT: Just looked it up. Based on the items I saw listed, I don't believe any fumes would be given off. However, the materials would not be good if they were ingested. I put several layers between Rowan and the warmers. However, perhaps I should sew up a sturdy little bag in which to put the warmers in case Rowan decides to go chewing.

 

[W Shaw]

i wonder if there are any fumes. Obviously, there's an exothermic reaction of some kind going on. I need to find out what chemicals are in those things.

EDIT: Just looked it up. Based on the items I saw listed, I don't believe any fumes would be given off. However, the materials would not be good if they were ingested. I put several layers between Rowan and the warmers. However, perhaps I should sew up a sturdy little bag in which to put the warmers in case Rowan decides to go chewing.

I've just noticed that they give off a fairly strong odor when they're active. Nice to know they're safer than I thought!

 

[Aunt Caffy]

I've just noticed that they give off a fairly strong odor when they're active. Nice to know they're safer than I thought!

I don't notice any odor with the ones I use, so they might be different than the ones you use.

 

[sibi]

I'd be more worried about the wheezing sound than the bubbles in the water. If he's still wheezing after you've bumped up the heat in his enclosure, I would take the best advise in wrapping him up with heat pads, secure any exposure to cold air (there's enough oxygen in a cooler bag to keep it closed for the duration of his trip), and take him to the vet asap. He may need antibiotics, don't know, but time is of the essence if he's sick and may be developing pneumonia. Btw, how warm is the temps in the room where his enclosure is?

I had to take a sulcata (an exotic species used to subtropical temps) to the vet on the coldest say of the year here in Florida at 29 degrees F and he survived it.