Tortoise pee green slimy substance

16rash

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I soaked my hingeback tortoise this morning and noticed green slimy thing in the tub...can someone please help what is this ? is this concerning ? he is not eating much these day too. Please advise.
 

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ZenHerper

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So...a few things to consider.

Is this undigested leaf matter?

Or is it urinary in origin? If it is a day-glow green urate blob, then your tort may have liver disease.


In your place, I would refrigerate this sample (don't freeze) and have it analyzed as soon as possible by a veterinary office that sees reptiles regularly (or wildlife). They will probably send it to their outside laboratory.
 

TeamZissou

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Do you use moss at all? Are there any plastic plants in the enclosure?

It does look conspicuously bright green.
 

16rash

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So...a few things to consider.

Is this undigested leaf matter?

Or is it urinary in origin? If it is a day-glow green urate blob, then your tort may have liver disease.


In your place, I would refrigerate this sample (don't freeze) and have it analyzed as soon as possible by a veterinary office that sees reptiles regularly (or wildlife). They will probably send it to their outside laboratory.
i am not sure if it is undigested matter or urinary related. I have kept the sample in the fridge and will try to get a vet appointment tomorrow. its hard to find a vet for reptiles where i live but i will take him to his usual vet and see if they can diagnose something. Appreciate your response.
 

16rash

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Do you use moss at all? Are there any plastic plants in the enclosure?

It does look conspicuously bright green.
no, i haven't kept any moss in his enclosure its coco coir , soil and dried leaves..no plastic plants too..only live plants.

I did notice that he is not eating well from last couple of weeks , just nibbling some fruits not even eating earthworms. I took him to vet last week. he did loose some weight (1.9 pounds) and vet noticed a soft tissue damage near the beak which is being treating now. my tort is on antibiotic these days(7 doses of fortaz 50mg, every 3 days). now i am worried about him , will try to get the sample tested tomorrow .
 

ZenHerper

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i am not sure if it is undigested matter or urinary related. I have kept the sample in the fridge and will try to get a vet appointment tomorrow. its hard to find a vet for reptiles where i live but i will take him to his usual vet and see if they can diagnose something. Appreciate your response.
They can always have the sample sent to the outside laboratory to have it analyzed as to it's identity (stool or urate) if they are uncertain.

If they suspect this is urate in the office, a blood sample can be sent to the lab to screen for metabolic disease.

Veterinary offices that don't see a lot of exotics or wildlife routinely consult with the reptile department at the university where they graduated, or with the nearest zoo herp vet. Don't hesitate to ask if this is a possibility.
 

16rash

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Updates on the tort continued... during my 1st vet visit i was told that the microscopic cytology of the green slimy thing reveled its just plant matter and no parasite or anything alarming. As per 1st vet recommendation, i have him complete dose of antibiotic and hoping to see some improvement but i did not.

Someone recommended me another hospital (NorthCoast Bird & Exotic) , as this hospital specializes in reptiles and have the lab to get the sample tested or blood work done. so i took him to 2nd vet on 1/6 . They did the initial examination and told us -

1. Noticed a lesion near his beak which is not healing well .
2. Did the radiography and said nothing significant noticed in there .
3. Did the blood work , His glucose level is very low and WBC count is very high,so some infection is going on.
4. His Kidney and lever seems to be ok .
5. Mentioned that they couldn't test the sample of green slimy thing i got . But that could be due to him not eating for so long (which doesn't made any sense to me ) .

2nd Vet recommended me to hospitalized him at least for 3 days and so that they will provide him basic care like some fluids, vitamins, minerals and tube feed him. that will help him recover and heal. So we left him there.

Zura was hospitalized for 3 days and we got him home on Monday (1/10). Vet asked me to do some changes in his enclosure like adding a basking light and temp should be in upper 80s, increase the humidity and give him daily soaks for a week. He is again on antibiotic for 9 days. Trying to feed him what he loves to eat and he hasn't shown any interest at all. I really hope he starts eating again .

Any suggestion are always appreciated .
 

Shutterbug

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Updates on the tort continued... during my 1st vet visit i was told that the microscopic cytology of the green slimy thing reveled its just plant matter and no parasite or anything alarming. As per 1st vet recommendation, i have him complete dose of antibiotic and hoping to see some improvement but i did not.

Someone recommended me another hospital (NorthCoast Bird & Exotic) , as this hospital specializes in reptiles and have the lab to get the sample tested or blood work done. so i took him to 2nd vet on 1/6 . They did the initial examination and told us -

1. Noticed a lesion near his beak which is not healing well .
2. Did the radiography and said nothing significant noticed in there .
3. Did the blood work , His glucose level is very low and WBC count is very high,so some infection is going on.
4. His Kidney and lever seems to be ok .
5. Mentioned that they couldn't test the sample of green slimy thing i got . But that could be due to him not eating for so long (which doesn't made any sense to me ) .

2nd Vet recommended me to hospitalized him at least for 3 days and so that they will provide him basic care like some fluids, vitamins, minerals and tube feed him. that will help him recover and heal. So we left him there.

Zura was hospitalized for 3 days and we got him home on Monday (1/10). Vet asked me to do some changes in his enclosure like adding a basking light and temp should be in upper 80s, increase the humidity and give him daily soaks for a week. He is again on antibiotic for 9 days. Trying to feed him what he loves to eat and he hasn't shown any interest at all. I really hope he starts eating again .

Any suggestion are always appreciated .
Hows Zura doing?
 

Lyn W

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Antibiotics can affect and reduce appetite and he's been on them for quite a while hasn't he?
 

16rash

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Yes, he has been on antibiotic since December ..7 doses in December for the lesion near his beak. during the 2nd visit, vet observed that the lesion hasn't healed yet, so prescribed 9 additional doses.. 3 more doses left.

That wound really concerns me now .Its been 1.5 months but it is not healing. Just noticed couple of hours ago when tortoise was making squeaking noise. it still looks fresh and bloody.

I have taken him to 2 vets near my area , 4 visits so far but he is not showing any recovery in terms of eating or healing of the wound . I am feeling helpless now :(

Can someone recommend a good vet in cleveland(Ohio) or near cities ? or any expert on tortoises who can take a look ? please advise.

Appreciate your help.
 

16rash

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Hows Zura doing?
No so good..His lesion(on right side) is not healing and observed the similar kind of wound on the left side of the beak , near the ear. i am taking him to vet tomorrow , not sure whats going on with him. Even with almost 14 doses of antibiotic, no recovery. this concerns me :(
 

zovick

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@Cathie any recommendations for vets in Ohio?
Some other members with medical knowledge may be able to help @zovick @mastershake
What species of hingeback is this tortoise?

Have you tried feeding it some live earthworms or pinky mice? Forest hingebacks (K. homeana and erosa) both love those items, especially the wiggly fishing worms. Maybe the motion will stimulate a feeding response.

My hingebacks also liked frozen mixed vegetables which I thawed in warm water and gave them on a paper plate. Many of them would pick out the corn kernels and carrot pieces first, then eat the other contents.
 

16rash

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What species of hingeback is this tortoise?

Have you tried feeding it some live earthworms or pinky mice? Forest hingebacks (K. homeana and erosa) both love those items, especially the wiggly fishing worms. Maybe the motion will stimulate a feeding response.

My hingebacks also liked frozen mixed vegetables which I thawed in warm water and gave them on a paper plate. Many of them would pick out the corn kernels and carrot pieces first, then eat the other contents.

Thanks for responding. Zura is home's hingeback tortoise..have him from last 6 years..he loves earthworms and mostly fruits..difficult to feed him greens and veggies .occasionally see him feeding on greens.. But he has stopped eating since October and that was the primary reason i took him to vet...but now this lesion on both side of the beak is concerning me more . I will try to get the picture uploaded if i could ..he is very shy and hide most of the time..let me try.
 

16rash

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Latest Updates on Zura - i took him to Vet on Thursday. he took the biopsy sample from lesion and also put feeding e-tube and asked us to feed Oxbow critical care herbivore food diet for 2 weeks. Biopsy results may take up to 2 weeks and next visit will be based on the results. Zura has been resting since he got home, whole night he was pacing around the enclosure , i guess e-tube must be bothering him :( feel so bad for him .

During the visit, Vet confirmed that the lesion has spread around the left side of the head too and the old lesion hasn't healed yet.What surprised me is that the Vet did not put any ointment on the lesion or did not give any medication . Just asked me to wait for Biopsy results .

Other things that is concerning me Clinic is not sharing any reports with me..last visit they did xray & blood work , when i asked for the reports i was told that its all in the system and if needed Clinic can share it with other Vets when requested . yesterday , i asked them to take pictures of the lesion so that i can post it here for opinions ,but they did not take any and told me that lesion was not visible on the picture . I might be over thinking but do they really know what they are doing or simply charging me for the procedures :( he is not getting any better too.
 

Cathie G

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@Cathie any recommendations for vets in Ohio?
Some other members with medical knowledge may be able to help @zovick @mastershake
I had a hard time finding one in my area of Ohio. And Cleveland is a long ways away from me even though it's the same state. But I'd almost bet there's some good ones around Cleveland. That's an area famous for at least people medicine. Maybe a college around there could recommend someone.
 

16rash

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I had a hard time finding one in my area of Ohio. And Cleveland is a long ways away from me even though it's the same state. But I'd almost bet there's some good ones around Cleveland. That's an area famous for at least people medicine. Maybe a college around there could recommend someone.
So i reached out to the rescue center where i adopted Zura and they recommended Dr. Riggs @ Barberton Vet clinic ,Norton and Dr. Frank Krupka @ Avon Lake.
 

Cathie G

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So i reached out to the rescue center where i adopted Zura and they recommended Dr. Riggs @ Barberton Vet clinic ,Norton and Dr. Frank Krupka @ Avon Lake.
Good. I hope they'll work out good for you.? Just keep reading here though to be able to recognize if you are hearing old school medicine. Old school can be really harmful. I finally got a vet just last year after 13 years of having my Tortoise. From being on this site I knew she's a keeper.
 

16rash

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Finally he was kind enough to let me click few pics of the lesion around his neck..the dark color patch on his right side ...does it look bad?

Haven't heard back from vet on biopsy results yet..continuing tube feeding. He isn't showing any interest in eating. He is urinating and pooping every day. While urinating, i still see green slimy matter..
 

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