Sick Russian and need help...sorry long post.

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Posted by George on June 25, 2000 at 00:03:52:

Hi,
On Wednesday, 6/21/2000, my daughter and I found this cute Russian Tortoise that was active and eating well while we were in the shop, she looked well with no external problems that I could see. She was welcoming our touch and had good strength in her legs. We brought her home that night, then on Thursday night, we found small (1/8" long) worms in her stool and took her Friday to a vet that was recomended by the California Turtle and Tortise Club. That vet said she was "emaciated and heavily parasitized with nematodes and protozoan parasites." After finally getting the syring into her mouth he treated her with some meds. Her carapace is about 4.5 inches long and the vet weighed her in at .5 pounds. She has not eaten at home as of yet.

These are my questions:
1. Is she underweight at .5 pounds and 4.5" long?
2. Is it normal for a tortoise not to eat when put into a strange / new environment, and if so how long before we might expect her to become aclimated? She seems totally uninterested in eating and spends most of her time burrowed into a corner of her terraium.
3. Should we leave her alone in the new surroundings to keep from further stressing her, or would it matter?
4. How long and how many treatments can we expect to get rid of the parasites? Are Russians successful in these kind of treatments?
5. Any suggestions to get her to eat? We have tried various fruits (grapes, nectarines & apples) as well as the regular leafy stuff like kale, even an appetite enhancer (with B1).

Thanks a Ton ans sorry for the long post!
George

Follow Ups:

Re: Sick Russian and need help...sorry long post. Eric T 06/25/00 (0)
Re: Sick Russian and need help...sorry long post. EJ 06/25/00 (2)
- Re: Sick Russian and need help...sorry long post. George 06/25/00 (1)
  - Re: Sick Russian and need help...sorry long post. EJ 06/26/00 (0)

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: Hi, : On Wednesday, 6/21/2000, my daughter and I found this cute Russian Tortoise that was active and eating well while we were in the shop, she looked well with no external problems that I could see. She was welcoming our touch and had good strength in her legs. We brought her home that night, then on Thursday night, we found small (1/8" long) worms in her stool and took her Friday to a vet that was recomended by the California Turtle and Tortise Club. That vet said she was "emaciated and heavily parasitized with nematodes and protozoan parasites." After finally getting the syring into her mouth he treated her with some meds. Her carapace is about 4.5 inches long and the vet weighed her in at .5 pounds. She has not eaten at home as of yet. : These are my questions: : 1. Is she underweight at .5 pounds and 4.5" long? : 2. Is it normal for a tortoise not to eat when put into a strange / new environment, and if so how long before we might expect her to become aclimated? She seems totally uninterested in eating and spends most of her time burrowed into a corner of her terraium. : 3. Should we leave her alone in the new surroundings to keep from further stressing her, or would it matter? : 4. How long and how many treatments can we expect to get rid of the parasites? Are Russians successful in these kind of treatments? : 5. Any suggestions to get her to eat? We have tried various fruits (grapes, nectarines & apples) as well as the regular leafy stuff like kale, even an appetite enhancer (with B1). : Thanks a Ton ans sorry for the long post! : George

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