Tortoise Diaries - Day Summary

Joined
Feb 4, 2019
Messages
35
Location (City and/or State)
Kansas
Feb. 15, 2019

I have mainly decided to start posting these "tortoise diaries" so I can look back on what happened and be able to help other people. So with this post I am not really wanting a response about how to care for hatching failure syndrome, but I do thank you all for the help you have given to me thus far.

So today had many ups and downs. One up is that for the most part he acted like a normal tortoise! He was active and his eyes were wide and bright. His squeaking has gone away and has been replaced with a clicking which I am very happy about. I also got him to eat tortoise food instead of lettuce, since it is very nutrient rich compared to lettuce.

But today wasnt all perfect. He did once go into what I like to call his "coma" states. Its where he is all tense and his eyes are swollen shut, and you can see him trying to move but he cant. If he magages to squint open an eye it appers he just gives up and falls back 'asleep'. This was right at feeding time and today I was determined to get real nutrients in him. I first just offered him the crushed softened pellets, and he just went back 'asleep' after squinting open his eyes. I had read that if sick babies went off food it meant they had given up. I wasnt taking no for an answer though.

I took a roll of ductape and placed a cloth over it to form a shallow cup. I propped my little baby up inside of it so he was sitting at an angle. I then squished up soaked pellets into a mush and loaded it on to the end of a q-tip without the cotton on it. After doing this a pushed it up against his beak a couple times and after about five minutes he opened his eyes and took a bite. It took a few more minutes of reluctant eating, but after that he was really into it. He would wiggle his leg up and down as he waited for me to load up the q-tip and then proceed to use my finger to pull himself towards the food. Once he was done (aka once he wouldnt sit still and was more interested in exploring) I put the cottony end of the q-tip into water and wiped up his face. My little tort is such a character.

Afterwards the results of that little boost was shocking! He wandered around and was even trying to get a drink without me putting him in the bowl! Later on in the night he had a calcium soak to help with his pyrimiding and afterwards crawled right into his heated "burrow" and went right to sleep at lights out. I really think he can make it. But it has been made clear from what I've read that I shouldnt get too excited too fast.
 
Joined
Feb 4, 2019
Messages
35
Location (City and/or State)
Kansas
Feb. 16, 2019

Today we tried to start my little fellow on some medication. It was a really bad choice, and I don't know if I want to continue his dosage. He is supposed to get .05 ml of amoxicillin each day, and after his dose this morning he hasn't done any better. He was given it because of his early signs of an RI. He just seems so miserable, but I keep thinking that just 1 more dose and he will improve. I still haven't made up my mind on what to do.

It was a really rough day overall. I just couldn't bear to leave him, so I stayed by his cage all day. I barely got any pellet down him before he gave up, and he didn't move all day, so I made sure to rotate him around the enclosure so he could get all he would have gotten if he was walking. In the afternoon I gave him 2 pieces of lettuce as a pick me up, and he was so happy!! He was chomping and chewing and his eyes were bright! But once back in the cage he soon fell into his comatose state. I've given him 2 long soaks, and I plan to give him a short one before bed. I really hope tomorrow brings improvement. I can't bear to lose my little buddy.
 
Joined
Feb 4, 2019
Messages
35
Location (City and/or State)
Kansas
Feb. 17, 2019

Yesterday I did decide to continue with the meds. He didn't look as miserable today, and he seemed to open his eyes more and be a tad more alert. He ate his mush and soaked happily. Today was OK for him. Mainly the struggle today was with me. I kept doubting if I was doing the right thing and if I was overreacting and if I just had a normal baby whom I was mistreating with thinking he was sick.

His condition though really weighed on me and I started desperately looking for more answers, answers which no one seemed to have. I started thinking that his symptoms don't line up with any illness I've read about, but every just thinks he is probably ok or just has hatching failure syndrome. They chalk his weird and unique symptoms up to common ones. I know they are trying to help but it is frustrating when you're looking for answers but you just get the same thing over and over again.
No one really understands his symptoms, including me. They are so odd and severe that it is something that you have to watch to understand. But still, that doubt inside me is making me second guess his condition and wondering if he is normal. But do normal tortoises throw themselves off of things with their erratic jerky movements, and do normal tortoises refuse to eat unless hand fed?

EDIT:
Shortly after this, a ton of helpful patient people here confirmed definitely that it was HFS and frankly informed me that he is probably not going to make it. All I can do is offer the best conditions and pray. I guess it just took me freaking out for the facts of his condition to finally seep into my brain.
 
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Joined
Feb 4, 2019
Messages
35
Location (City and/or State)
Kansas
Feb. 18, 2019

Today was a dramatic day here on tortoise forum. If you can't tell from yesterday's post I was having a nervous breakdown after getting so many contradicting responses to my posts. So I officially am done posting about him, all except this 'diary' to document his life. Since people don't read this diary I'm not worried about what I say on here. Tomorrow I have to go back to school, and all day I'm sure I'll be worrying about him. Today was good for him though! The medicine is really working and he is really perking up. He had a Pedialyte soak (I had my grandma pick some up) and he ate a whole bowl of food. He hasn't gone to bed yet, but I am busy for the rest of the night and I doubt anything else interesting is going to happen. The plan for his recovery is simple. Until Sunday he will be taking medicine and getting 2 soaks a day, one normal and one Pedialyte. Then I will take him off all treatments and see how he does.
 
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