TORTOISE HERPES?!?!?!?!?!? Help? Advice?

[Adam90]

After many vet bills I FINALLY got a diagnosis for one of my tortoises. Turns out it had herpes and it's likely terminal. I was sold 2 tortoises from a guy who sells ALOT of cherryheads and unfortunately both of them had it. I didn't see any symptoms until I moved them out of their months long quarantine and added them to my new group. once I did, the animal quickly developed paralysis and drags its legs behind him. This one purchase has put my entire cherryhead group in some serious risk of being wiped out. Including my fancy high reds and very unique animals. Unfortunately the vet said there's not alot of options for treatment so I'm not sure what to do. If ANYBODY has delt with a similar situation I would GREATLY APPRECIATE any advice, information, or treatment methods. I'm just hanging onto hope at this juncture.

If anybody plans to buy cherryheads in Florida and wants to make sure they aren't ordering from the same tortoise herpes factory I'd be glad to let you know pm me @ any time.

I haven't found alot of information on this subject but after I received the diagnosis it made perfect sense. Incase you're wondering the symptoms include dry crusty face, swollen eyes, inactivity, poor appetite, no BMs, and neurological disorders (hence the paralysis)...

 

[Cathie G]

After many vet bills I FINALLY got a diagnosis for one of my tortoises. Turns out it had herpes and it's likely terminal. I was sold 2 tortoises from a guy who sells ALOT of cherryheads and unfortunately both of them had it. I didn't see any symptoms until I moved them out of their months long quarantine and added them to my new group. once I did, the animal quickly developed paralysis and drags its legs behind him. This one purchase has put my entire cherryhead group in some serious risk of being wiped out. Including my fancy high reds and very unique animals. Unfortunately the vet said there's not alot of options for treatment so I'm not sure what to do. If ANYBODY has delt with a similar situation I would GREATLY APPRECIATE any advice, information, or treatment methods. I'm just hanging onto hope at this juncture.

If anybody plans to buy cherryheads in Florida and wants to make sure they aren't ordering from the same tortoise herpes factory I'd be glad to let you know pm me @ any time.

I haven't found alot of information on this subject but after I received the diagnosis it made perfect sense. Incase you're wondering the symptoms include dry crusty face, swollen eyes, inactivity, poor appetite, no BMs, and neurological disorders (hence the paralysis)...

I'm so sorry. Hang in there. I'm not a person to PM but I'll say something. The experts here need to talk with you.🙏

 

[Maro2Bear]

Is this “herpes” the dreaded austwickia?

Many have been tracking this here on TFO, particularily @mastershake

Austwickia chelonae (How To Identify & What To Do - All Turtles

Austwickia chelonae is a very contagious turtle disease that is in the Dermatophilaceae family of gram-positive bacteria.

www.allturtles.com

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Actually, posting your experience and mentioning the vendor by name in our vendor reviews section could be extremely helpful to future keepers and might also help to get that seller or seller/breeder to seek medical help for the future tortoises for sale.
You can also feel free to mention the seller by name on this thread.

 

[MenagerieGrl]

So, I'm not sure how big of a herd you have, But . . I would separate them. If (only) one is infected, then it would infect the rest....
I'm so sorry you and your herd, are being put through this tragic situation.

 

[MenagerieGrl]

Actually, posting your experience and mentioning the vendor by name in our vendor reviews section could be extremely helpful to future keepers and might also help to get that seller or seller/breeder to seek medical help for the future tortoises for sale.

Um, would there be/could there be liabilty issues, I don't know enough about that stuff, just wondering.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

Um, would there be/could there be liabilty issues, I don't know enough about that stuff, just wondering.

It would depend on how it's worded.
That can be edited.
There are dozens of vendor reviews and the vendor always has a chance to respond.
What we usually see is the same vendor doing the same things time after time.
Sometimes it can be a fluke.
Sometimes it can be an unreasonable complaint. But reporting a serious issue is important

 

[turtlesteve]

Perhaps some folks with direct experience can weigh in, but I was under the impression from various articles that herpesvirus could be treated with antivirals with a good chance of recovery. Here’s one such document:

https://www.cabi.org/isc/FullTextPDF/2009/20093019002.pdf

Good luck and hope it doesn’t become an issue for the whole group.

Please do PM me the info if you opt not to make the seller public.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

So, I'm not sure how big of a herd you have, But . . I would separate them. If (only) one is infected, then it would infect the rest....
I'm so sorry you and your herd, are being put through this tragic situation.

It's very contagious from what I've read.
And I have no information about treatment whatsoever.
It seems to be a rare diagnosis amongst tortoises

 

[mark1]

there are documented successes in the treatment of herpes virus in eastern box turtles with acyclovir , fluids and antibiotics ........ here's one of a few i've read ...... in this article these turtles were co-infected with ranavirus ,and/or mycoplasma infections .... of the 12 positive for HV 9 survived ,4 of which were severely ill.......
RANAVIRUS EPIZOOTIC IN CAPTIVE EASTERN BOX TURTLES (TERRAPENE CAROLINA CAROLINA) WITH CONCURRENT HERPESVIRUS AND MYCOPLASMA INFECTION: MANAGEMENT AND MONITORING

 

[mastershake]

did they do actual labs to see what it in fact is? im happy to take a look at it we are in sarasota as well. or you are welcome to send pics. we do have 2 confirmed cases of austwickia in cherry's now and most vets mistake it for herpes. there are only a few labs in fl that can do proper testing for austwickia. can i ask which vet you used?

 

[Jan A]

It's very contagious from what I've read.
And I have no information about treatment whatsoever.
It seems to be a rare diagnosis amongst tortoises

Won't be for long if it's highly communicable, especially if a breeder's got it.

 

[ZEROPILOT]

did they do actual labs to see what it in fact is? im happy to take a look at it we are in sarasota as well. or you are welcome to send pics. we do have 2 confirmed cases of austwickia in cherry's now and most vets mistake it for herpes. there are only a few labs in fl that can do proper testing for austwickia. can i ask which vet you used?

Those symptoms sound so much like ones that get reported here, often.
In any combination.

 

[Beasty_Artemis]

You know what? I rescued a waterturtle that had bumps on his neck as a child? But the symptom went away after a week of my mom and I fixating on it! And he healed up and got better! It was probably just dry skin again on my part, nothing more. I cannot recall if it was a soft shell turtle I had or my cousins red eared slider I saved. But they ended up getting better.

 

[Beasty_Artemis]

I remember what it looked like pretty vividly because I just about lost it! Me and my mom loved that little guy!

 

[[email protected]]

After many vet bills I FINALLY got a diagnosis for one of my tortoises. Turns out it had herpes and it's likely terminal. I was sold 2 tortoises from a guy who sells ALOT of cherryheads and unfortunately both of them had it. I didn't see any symptoms until I moved them out of their months long quarantine and added them to my new group. once I did, the animal quickly developed paralysis and drags its legs behind him. This one purchase has put my entire cherryhead group in some serious risk of being wiped out. Including my fancy high reds and very unique animals. Unfortunately the vet said there's not alot of options for treatment so I'm not sure what to do. If ANYBODY has delt with a similar situation I would GREATLY APPRECIATE any advice, information, or treatment methods. I'm just hanging onto hope at this juncture.

If anybody plans to buy cherryheads in Florida and wants to make sure they aren't ordering from the same tortoise herpes factory I'd be glad to let you know pm me @ any time.

I haven't found alot of information on this subject but after I received the diagnosis it made perfect sense. Incase you're wondering the symptoms include dry crusty face, swollen eyes, inactivity, poor appetite, no BMs, and neurological disorders (hence the paralysis)...

How many days did it take after they received the sample did it take to get the results?

After many vet bills I FINALLY got a diagnosis for one of my tortoises. Turns out it had herpes and it's likely terminal. I was sold 2 tortoises from a guy who sells ALOT of cherryheads and unfortunately both of them had it. I didn't see any symptoms until I moved them out of their months long quarantine and added them to my new group. once I did, the animal quickly developed paralysis and drags its legs behind him. This one purchase has put my entire cherryhead group in some serious risk of being wiped out. Including my fancy high reds and very unique animals. Unfortunately the vet said there's not alot of options for treatment so I'm not sure what to do. If ANYBODY has delt with a similar situation I would GREATLY APPRECIATE any advice, information, or treatment methods. I'm just hanging onto hope at this juncture.

If anybody plans to buy cherryheads in Florida and wants to make sure they aren't ordering from the same tortoise herpes factory I'd be glad to let you know pm me @ any time.

I haven't found alot of information on this subject but after I received the diagnosis it made perfect sense. Incase you're wondering the symptoms include dry crusty face, swollen eyes, inactivity, poor appetite, no BMs, and neurological disorders (hence the paralysis)...

Hi Adam how did they determine it was Herpes? The standard test is a q-PCR test. but there are actually different ways to get results, one test typically gives you results the next day. But the other q-PCR test uses a lot of filters to filter out false positive results. that test takes about two weeks and cost a few hundred dollars as opposed to the other simple q-PCR test which only cost about $20 unfortunately most vets use the simple test.
if one dies make sure to get a whole body necropsy send the complete (not Frozen) animal to a pathology lab.
obviously separate the animals and follow strict disinfection procedures when handling them and going in and out of their cage. Sam

 

[HoosierTort]

I have dealt with HV several times and it is why I quarantine for a full year now. I also have all my Russian tortoises tested when they come in.

First thing to do is isolate the sick in small enclosures. I have enough outdoors that I just give them a 2’x4’ or 4’x4’. Make sure it gets plenty of sun as they will be basking a ton. I can’t think of the antiviral Rx I used, but it did help. I also soaked every other to every day depending on the torts condition and how they tolerate soaks. Minimize any stress to the tortoise. If you have to tube feed, use Critical Care for your food.

PM me if you have any other questions.

 

[Dragon]

im so sorry to hear about your torts!! unfrountly some people just dont care about the animals there selling let alone the animals already in the home. We wore frounite that the place we got my russion tort only sold us a bunch of stuff we didnt need....so far sissy is doing great! even though it took us a while to get everything set up properly. i dont know enough to offer any help but i will most defently keep you and your torts in my prayers!

 

[Adam90]

I'm so sorry. Hang in there. I'm not a person to PM but I'll say something. The experts here need to talk with you.🙏

Well I appreciate it!!
I hope they do!! There's alot of VERY experienced people on this forum. I will gladly accept any information. I've got everybody separated in their own bins for now. I have one of my super nice high reds that has already started slowing down which is NOT good. I recently added a bunch of exceptional animals to add to my group and now they're all at risk. It's a bummer for sure.

 

[Adam90]

So, I'm not sure how big of a herd you have, But . . I would separate them. If (only) one is infected, then it would infect the rest....
I'm so sorry you and your herd, are being put through this tragic situation.

It's pretty catastrophic to say the least. The VERY first thing I did within minutes of receiving a diagnosis was separate everyone into their own bins. I actually stopped at Target on my way home and got a bunch of bins. One of my very expensive high red cherries is showing a pretty substantial decrease in activity which in my experience hasn't been good. I'm not surprised. It went undiagnosed for too long. The symptoms lined up with MBD or possibly RI but it made ZERO sense. i was providing everyone with more than enough natural sunlight, indoor uv, the best diet and sups suggested by the most experienced/intelligent people I could find. Herpes was the last thing I expected but one I looked into it after receiving the diagnosis the symptoms were dead on down to the smallest detail.

Thanks for the feedback!!