weezy sounding air going out of him?

[paperjamila]

so pretty much, tonight i came home and noticed a "pfft" sound coming from our baby sulcata. and at times a tiny weezy sound escaping as well. my boyfriend removed a tiny bit of lettuce from his nose area but i still heard it. the "pfft" sound. im gonna go back and see if i hear the weezy sound.

we DID put a new plant in his enclosure. the one from the post in the enclosure forum about plants and what not. someone said it was called "jade or crassula" ...that it was ok. could that be causing it? the thread is called "photos of plants wondering if ok " if u want to see the picture

or could he just be dry?
and need a soaking?

just a little worried :/

any advice is much appreciated

 

[N2TORTS]

Could be the start of RNS.Keep temp up 24/7 watch close. If not clearing up within few days.... might need some antibiotics.
I have had very good results with Baytril.
*warning* antibiodics are very risky to give to young torts. Their own immune system has not yet developed, and trying to figure accurate dosage for such small torts is tricky too! Plus some torts have alergic reactions to such meds.
But sometimes one might have to go to these extremes.
*Ask your vet.:shy:

 

[paperjamila]

so i looked up RNS and it involves...discharge of the nose? its called Runny Nose Syndrome right? right.

this is what a site said
"Symptoms of URTD include a persistent nasal discharge, conjunctivitis (inflamed or puffy eyes), and in some cases, an inflamed and reddened mouth. Symptoms of LRTD are open mouth breathing as the animal struggles to breathe, a foamy or thick mucus discharge from mouth, ‘gurgling’ noises and other signs of respiratory distress, including the head being held at an unusual angle or increased movement of the front limbs. Either hyperactivity or lethargy may accompany the condition"

sometimes i think his eyes look weird ish...but i honestly cant tell. his mouth is black ish..HMMM. I WONDER WHY so that seems ok. the only time his mouth opens is when he yawns or something. theres no discharge although just right now i looked at his right eye and it seemed to be a teensy bit watery beneath it but the left looked ok. his heads never at an angle and hes been sleeping in lately but its been cold here. also hes been staying up late. he just wont go to bed. its crazy. party animal. i swear. ive tried to make him go to sleep early. anyway

so. i dont know what to do. im a little worried... maybe should i mist down his home tonight? before he goes to bed?[/i]

---

okie dokie so i sprayed down his home. he doesnt seem to want to go to bed now that ive been inspecting his eyes. and touching his things.

he keeps going back n forth between the areas ive touched.
so.

his mouth is ok..eyes are ok for now. i sprayed down his home, like i said, because i think that might be from dehydration. the substrate we use doesnt keep moist at all. lemme tell ya.

so. my partner is telling me it was just the lettuce piece that was stuck to his nose area. and thats what the weezing was

phew?

i'll continue to keep an eye on him

thank you.

 

[Tom]

I noticed a few things in your posts that give me cause for concern.

1. You say he won't go to sleep. Do you have your lights on a roughly 12 hour on/off cycle? Is he still walking around in the dark? This isn't normal.

2. Your statements about his eyes worry me too. Eyes are often a good indicator of health and/or problems in chelonians. You know not to use any of those florescent coil bulbs, right? A tortoise walking around in the dark and sniffing things you've touched could indicate blindness. Don't want to alarm you, but it is a possibility.

3. You say its been cold there. If your set-up is done right, this should not have any effect on your tortoises enclosure. He needs to stay warm, around the clock, regardless of the season or climate here in North America. The temps in his living quarters should not be dropping below acceptable ranges because of a cold spell outside. I'm sure you know this one, but its worth saying just in case, anyone out there doesn't have a firm grasp on this concept.

4. I'm not familiar with that plant species, but anything I ever put in with my sulcatas was quickly eaten. When you bring a plant home from the nursery, you have to assume that its covered with heavy duty pesticides. Almost all nurseries and nursery suppliers do this as the public will not spend good money on bug eaten plants. So it takes me several months of heavy water spraying, outside weather exposure and new growth, before I'll put a new plant into a closed space with a small animal.

5. You asked about soaking. Everyone has their own way, but I like to soak little ones every day or every other. Usually they'll poop during the soak, so this helps keep the enclosure cleaner, and reduces the dreaded (ha ha) "black mouth".


I'm certainly not trying to pick on you, but "breathing noises" from a small tortoise should be cause for concern. When you couple that with eye problems, it usually spells trouble. Better to catch it early. Can we get some pics of your enclosure and little tort? We all love to see pics and we might see something that would help US help YOU help your little TORTOISE.

 

[matt41gb]

When this has happened with my young tortoises I always treat with Baytril. I have never had a problem with this drug in young tortoises as long as it's dosed properly. Keep the temps up in the 80s and 90s, take your sulcata to a reptile vet. Baytril usually clears up a respiratory infection after one dose. I always keep a TB syringe with Baytril at home just for this purpose. It's always worked like a charm. Don't let it go too long. It will work its way down to the lungs and turn into pneumonia. Good luck!

-Matt

 

[Yvonne G]

Just a note of clarification:

URTDS (upper respiratory tract disease syndrome) is usually referring to the micoplasma caused disease that is killing off the desert tortoises in the wild. While RNS (runny nose syndrome) is usually just a regular respiratory infection.

 

[Stephanie Logan]

I hope little Bulby gets better soon!

But Tom is right...we really do need to see photos of your little guy! How can I admire his cute little self without pictures? I don't think you've posted photos of Bulbasaur in forever...you do know there's a TFO requirement of at least one tortoise photo a month, right?