Tortoise sick, 4 month old

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dcwolfe

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Well I was hopeing that I wouldnt ever have to post a thread like this but my fairly new Leopard tortoise is sick. He is very small and about 4 months old. I have been keeping him at 86F and 80% humidity. He was doing fine untell I took him outside the other day to get some sun and he was out there for about 6 hours where I maid sure to keep him moist from a lite spray of water. He is very lethargic and dosnt move very much and hardly ever opens its eyes. The only time he really opens them is after a soak in warm water and I am able to hand feed him a little. There seems to be a white film over his eyes and when they are open it seems like he dosnt see much. Before he would shrink in his shell a little when I would go to pick him up, but now he dosnt anymove, I can waive my hand in front of him and I dont get any reaction from him whatsoever. I am worried that he might be blind and might die. I am also worried that maybe he was out in the sun for too long. He is drinking a little and eating a little only when I give it to him, but he dosn't look good. Any advice would help. The other young leopard I have who is raised in with him and is allways together is just fine and very healthy, please help.
 

ChuckandAsh

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Good luck, i wish you guys the best. I honestly dont know what to advise you, but I cannot stop thinking about your poor tortoise. :\ I really hope someone guides you in the right direction, quick. Best of luck with your tortoise.
 

dcwolfe

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ChuckandAsh said:
Good luck, i wish you guys the best. I honestly dont know what to advise you, but I cannot stop thinking about your poor tortoise. :\ I really hope someone guides you in the right direction, quick. Best of luck with your tortoise.

Thanks ya its been driving me crazy I check in on him like every 5 mins. It happend durring the worst time becase its midterms at ASU right now and I cant focus. I hope he will be ok.
 

ascott

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Was there shade available during the entire 6 hours? The area that you put him in outdoors---have you in the last year used any pesticide, herbicides or fertilizers? When this little tort was outdoors, was his partner out there as well? Have you observed any ants/ant hills at all in that same area?

When you say white on the eyes, are you referring to a white milky film? or white gooky stuff?

May I ask if you are keeping the enclosure entirely at 86 degrees and no spot that can be considered a basking spot (95-100) and then a cool dry spot for your tort to retreat do if he needs to cool down?

Also, may we please see a pic of your tort showing the face/eyes and also an overall view that shows his legs and neck area? As well as his partner...

What type of substrate are you using in the indoor enclosure as well as what type of ground is in the outdoor enclosure? Is the outdoor enclosure a yard designed especially for these little ones (outdoor tort table/ plastic outdoor use tub---?)
 

pk2610

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Can you take him to the vet? I remember my little leo had exactly same symptoms - very lethargic, hardly open eyes, did not eat, white film over his eyes, and his shell underneath was soft to touch. I did not know how serious it was until it was too late. Is your leo healthy and eating well before this?
 

dcwolfe

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ascott said:
Was there shade available during the entire 6 hours? The area that you put him in outdoors---have you in the last year used any pesticide, herbicides or fertilizers? When this little tort was outdoors, was his partner out there as well? Have you observed any ants/ant hills at all in that same area?

When you say white on the eyes, are you referring to a white milky film? or white gooky stuff?

May I ask if you are keeping the enclosure entirely at 86 degrees and no spot that can be considered a basking spot (95-100) and then a cool dry spot for your tort to retreat do if he needs to cool down?

Also, may we please see a pic of your tort showing the face/eyes and also an overall view that shows his legs and neck area? As well as his partner...

What type of substrate are you using in the indoor enclosure as well as what type of ground is in the outdoor enclosure? Is the outdoor enclosure a yard designed especially for these little ones (outdoor tort table/ plastic outdoor use tub---?)

there was shade availabale, but he didnt go into it even when he was put there. THere was possible a little fertalize as we seeded winter grass about 2 weeks ago, but the grass is extremly tall and the little guys dont even touch the soil. His partner was out there as well, no ants. There is like a milky film rather then milky gunk. There is a basking spot and a cool side been 84 and 105 basking spot, I have been following toms advise on raising hatchling torts with humidity and warm and cold sides. I use sphagnum moss and cyprus mulch for indoor substrait. The otside I had them in was just the grass yard in a preditore proof cage. I can upload photos tomarrow as they are asleep and dont want to wake him because hes sick. thanks for the reply.


pk2610 said:
Can you take him to the vet? I remember my little leo had exactly same symptoms - very lethargic, hardly open eyes, did not eat, white film over his eyes, and his shell underneath was soft to touch. I did not know how serious it was until it was too late. Is your leo healthy and eating well before this?
I can't take him to the vet due to financial situations. He was eating very healthy and seemed ok, but his shell was allways extremly soft allmost like leather. I wish a vet visit was cheap as one visit can cost me as much as a weaks income for me, been still in collage.
 

ascott

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I have been following toms advise on raising hatchling torts with humidity and warm and cold sides.

Is the cold side moist or dry? It is very important that if you are running the humidity on a constant high end that there not be any cool/cold spots....which means that the tort can not ever dry out....if your enclosure is large enough that you can provide a dry cool spot this is what I am referring to--please don't misunderstand my line of questioning :D if you have a cool dry spot (dry and in the mid to high 70's but dry dry dry) this is a good thing....if you have a cool spot that is moist and not dry then that can create a problem...you see what I mean?

Also, 6 hours of direct sun exposure for a young tort is a dangerous thing---there can be damage done to the eyes--potential overheating which can be dangerous as well--sudden dehydration only takes a short amount of time....I would be sure to do warm water soaks twice a day along with continuing hand feeding him (this is important in the event he is not seeing correctly, when they suddenly lose the ability to see correctly it adversely affects their eating and mobility...I would also allow him to have a place in which he can keep warm but avoid direct bright lights for a few days....and continue to keep an eye on him to watch for any changes...good or bad, you know?
 

pk2610

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pk2610 said:
Can you take him to the vet? I remember my little leo had exactly same symptoms - very lethargic, hardly open eyes, did not eat, white film over his eyes, and his shell underneath was soft to touch. I did not know how serious it was until it was too late. Is your leo healthy and eating well before this?
I can't take him to the vet due to financial situations. He was eating very healthy and seemed ok, but his shell was allways extremly soft allmost like leather. I wish a vet visit was cheap as one visit can cost me as much as a weaks income for me, been still in collage.
[/quote]
I don't know what else to tell you but the signs are not good especially the soft shell. May be I was just paranoid over the loss of my leo as your tort has the same symptoms. Can you separate the sick leo from the healthy one?
 

wallaceandtilly

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Aw this is sad, hope your little torty will be ok, sorry I have no advice as I'm new to keeping torts myself but will keep my fingers crossed
 

Neal

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What is the lowest temperature in your enclosure and how do you measure it?

It seems from your description that the tortoise is in a critical state. Without a vet visit, the best thing that you can do is to keep it very warm 24/7. I would keep him in temperatures in the high 80's and low 90's at night and slightly warmer during the day. Soak him often to keep him hydrated.

Good luck! I really hope he turns around for you.
 

dcwolfe

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Neal said:
What is the lowest temperature in your enclosure and how do you measure it?

It seems from your description that the tortoise is in a critical state. Without a vet visit, the best thing that you can do is to keep it very warm 24/7. I would keep him in temperatures in the high 80's and low 90's at night and slightly warmer during the day. Soak him often to keep him hydrated.

Good luck! I really hope he turns around for you.

The lowest temp in my enclosure is 84, the enclosure has a warmer side thats about 94 and basking of roughly 103. I dont let the enclosure drop under 80 in any parts. I measure this with a axo terra hygromiter and temp gauge. He was doing a little better today as he drank more then I have ever seen a hatchling drink, but he only ate a little. He still has film on eyes but looks like he can see better. He also moved from his spot that he likes to sit at to a new area. Hopefully he is starting to do better and not the last ditch energy before the part. This is also not the same tort that had the staining from the coco choir, that one eats like a pig and is doing amazing.


thanks again for all your guys questioning and helping me brainstorm on what might be wrong. As I am a religious man the little guy is always in my prayers and I am sure he has been in some of yours. Thanks again and Ill keep ya posted.


I also decided to temporarly reduce the humidity as I had normally kept it at 80 percent it is now around 50 just in case it might be a cold of some kind.
 

wellington

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Until he has fully recovered, I would keep him separated from your other one. Never let him get cold, under 80'p, I know you mentioned he doesn't and do as already has been suggested. Some warm water soaks with puréed baby food carrots or squash might help also. Good luck, keep us posted.
 

Neal

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dcwolfe said:
The lowest temp in my enclosure is 84, the enclosure has a warmer side thats about 94 and basking of roughly 103. I dont let the enclosure drop under 80 in any parts. I measure this with a axo terra hygromiter and temp gauge. He was doing a little better today as he drank more then I have ever seen a hatchling drink, but he only ate a little. He still has film on eyes but looks like he can see better. He also moved from his spot that he likes to sit at to a new area. Hopefully he is starting to do better and not the last ditch energy before the part. This is also not the same tort that had the staining from the coco choir, that one eats like a pig and is doing amazing.


thanks again for all your guys questioning and helping me brainstorm on what might be wrong. As I am a religious man the little guy is always in my prayers and I am sure he has been in some of yours. Thanks again and Ill keep ya posted.


I also decided to temporarly reduce the humidity as I had normally kept it at 80 percent it is now around 50 just in case it might be a cold of some kind.




It sounds like your parameters are OK. I think lowering the humidity is a good idea, just keep up with soaking.

I'm not sure about the accuracy of your type of thermometer, but I would suggest taking a reading from a second device like a temp gun or another type of thermometer, just so you are sure you have an accurate number.
 
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