tortoise passed last night :(

[NEtorts]

happy fathers day/anniversary to me...... ya to my surprise my largest female greekDarby passed away...... I had no Idea, yesterday she was out walking around the yard nibbling on grass..... this morning I open the shed door and find and egg, stepped on maybe, crack on one end, and darby lying half in a hide half out with legs lying out behind her shell (sprawled out) picked her up and she is dead... I dont know what happened) egg bound? maybe she died laying that egg? I have been checking around the yard for laying spots and have not been able to find any ........ im so so sad.... I cant believe it............... I need feedback from all of you so I can put the pieces back together and make sure this doesnt happen in my future.... I dont kow how old she was because she was given to me a couple years ago but she was quite old i was told. she was so great with SO MUCH personality...............at first I thought well maybe se is in an egg laying trans? but her eyes are sunken in a nd half open, wont use legs and i can touch/ prod poke and no response..... i even tried a warm bath and she won't come too..... It must have happened early this morning... I'll bet I missed her passing by just mere minutes....................why oh why.............. sighhhhhhhhhh thanks for listening TFO you all were the first and only place I have to turn for insight
Chris

 

[GeoTerraTestudo]

Sorry to hear that, Chris. Maybe her time had just come. If she was a hibenating tort, and if she had about 25 discernible rings on her scutes, then she may well have been 50+ years old, which is a normal longevity for a turtle. Maybe she was egg-bound. Did you see her sniffing about a lot? If so, perhaps she was looking for someplace to dig her nest and didn't find one in time. Did the egg you found look normal? Eggs don't usually get stuck in the cloaca, but if it was of abnormal size or texture, then it could have. Anyway, sorry for your loss.

 

[hali]

oh dear i am so sorry - happy fathers day to you x

 

[OllieInAZ]

So sorry for your loss.

 

[NEtorts]

I will count the rings, probably so.... I didnt notice heer searching a ton but I am gone during the day, last year she found a spot and layed 3 eggs i dint know about and they hatched in the gound, nothing much had changed in her shed and pen so I had hoped the same would happen this year, I had been checking for disturbed ground and have dug up a few places with no luck I just weighed her and she had lost a bit of weight that I did not catch, she must have have stopped eating as much but since I have seen her grazing I didnt catch it.........sighhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.........makes me wish I had taken some great pics or video of the old girl.... isnt that the way it always is,

 

[coreyc]

Sorry for your loss

 

[Zouave]

Just terrible. My deepest sympathies.

 

[N2TORTS]

Chris , sorry bout your loss, but as a comforting thought ...and from what I have seen on your posts , seems like your a great keeper of our shelled buddies ....but "passing" is the nature of the beast when housing animals in captivity. Its horrible to loose any torts,Exspecially the ones we tend to favor. I have lost a few myself over the years, and wondered what I did wrong......if anything.
So keep up the happy thoughts,care for your other torts and today with a positive attitude and warm smile ..." HAPPY FATHERS DAY "


JD~ " KEEP ON TORT~N !

 

[Torty Mom]

Chris, I am so sorry to hear about Darby. Hang in there.

 

[Missy]

Sorry for your loss.

 

[african cake queen]

hi, i am very sorry for your loss. i know how it hurts. lindy

 

[dmarcus]

Very sorry for your loss!!!

 

[wrmitchell22]

I am so sorry for your loss Chris. It sounds like you gave her a great life.

 

[Yvonne G]

Oh, wow. That's just awful. I'm so sorry.

First thing that popped into my mind was maybe an egg broke inside her. I don't know how long that would take to kill the tortoise, though.

 

[Tom]

Condolences Chris.

If you really want to know what went wrong, how about a necropsy? I hate to bring up such unpleasantries, but it might give you some peace and help you worry a little less about your other torts.

Either way, I wish you the best and a Happy Father's Day.

 

[Laura]

plenty of calcium in her diet?
Are you going to incubate these eggs? you could have another Darby inthe making...
try to have a good day....

 

[October]

Oh Chris, how heartbreaking. I'm so very sorry for your loss. Darby had an amazing keeper with you though, so we know she was happy while she was here. *hugs*

 

[Maggie Cummings]

Chris...like Tom I was going to suggest a necropsy. If you think you might do it wrap her up and put her into the refrigerator, if not then bury her in a nice place. I am very sorry, but you must know that she had a great life with you. From everything I have read you are a great tort keeper and there's no way you could have known this was going to happen or prevented it. I am not going to make any guesses as to what happened, but it's my experience that when they die their arms and legs are inside their shell, you said she was all sprawled out, so I am kinda confused by that. But please know that most of us here know exactly how you feel and I am so sorry you have to feel this bad. I have recently lost a Western Pond turtle that I loved deeply and I also lost my partner and friend of 16 years Big Bubba, so I know and understand the pain and the tears. But that is the way of life, the ebb and flow. There will be another that you will love that way. Not one to take Darby's place, but one that you will love and laugh with. So please know that most of us here know the pain you feel and send our deep condolences your way...I am so sorry

 

[jensgotfaith]

Chris, I'm so sorry for your loss.

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Sorry for your loss...it's never easy to lose a beloved family member, be they 2- or 4-legged.

Tom/Maggie's suggestion of a necropsy is worth considering, to learn what you might do to avoid future tragiedies. Then again, it may just've been her time.