Tooty Booty Blood!

[CherryBlossom]

Hi there,

I am a little worried about one of my 4 year old spur thigh babies. It appears that his tooshie is bleeding a little. It does not happen when he urinates or poo's. It just appears in a little pool with a few little dots around his enclosure. There are no marks or cuts on his tail.
They are fed a mixture of local garden weeds with leafy bags from supermarkets to bulk when weeds are getting bare. They have more than enough exercise as they have the full run of my house and are always out on sunny days. I did wonder if he just 'nipped' his manhood on something as he shows a little too much affection to his brother at times, but it have come home again to a little blood pool and a few more dots and they have been kept apart for now. He is acting normal, but this has happened a few times now.

Any advice would be very much appreciated as I am starting to worry now.

Thank you

 

[Tom]

This can happen with overzealous males. They need to be kept separated. Tortoises should never be kept as pairs. Especially not two male Testudo species. He may have permanently injured his organ, or it may heal with time, but either way, they cannot and should not be living together. Tortoises do not need or want company and the one being mounted most certainly does not wish to live that way.

 

[johnsonnboswell]

That's not affection. Separate them permanently.

 

[Tom]

I re-read your post. It is a really bad idea to let tortoises roam loose like that. It is just a question of time until something bad happens, if it hasn't already. They need to be in their own separate large enclosures. I prefer to have large outdoor enclosures for fair weather, and large indoor enclosures for night time and inclement weather.

 

[wellington]

Ditto all the above.

 

[Yellow Turtle01]

I agree with everyone here! Torts do NOT need buddies and are best off alone.

 

[ascott]

in addition, please do keep his "goods" clean by warm water flushing the exterior area a few times a day (I am sure he will find that fun )...and keep them apart from one another....no male torts or turtles should be forced to coexist in the same living space, just not natural for them...

 

[CherryBlossom]

Thank you for the advice on the 'brotherly love' not being what i thought it was.

However i am seriously worried about the bleeding. I have just given him a bath and while cleaning the area, i noticed his 'bits' were poking out his tail a little but it was bleeding a little every time a little bit peeked out. I kept him in the bath, left him for 5 minutes to come back to what appears to be a clot of blood. It is jelly like and very thick. I have kept the clots in a little tub to take to the vet on Monday the second i can find a reptile specialist in my area. Any advice on this clot of very much appreciated as i am now beyond the freaking out stage.

Thank you

 

[Yvonne G]

This would just be blood that had bled out of the wound and hardened, similar to how a scab forms. It was from the outside blood, not from inside the tortoise. But save it anyway and take it to the vet. He needs all the clues he can get in order to give a correct diagnosis.