Reptile & Amphibian Forums

hello .

i have had a red footed now for a few months and we are stumped as to what is wrong with him . when we got him one of his eyes were closed we adopted him and took him to the vet and they said that it was just an infection so they gave us some drops and sent us home a few weeks later the other eye closed up and had some clear drainage , i washed the eye out daily and it is open but dose not look exactly normal it is smaller and a little set in . the other eye has not improved acctually regressed to the point of sinking in a little and i have my doubts if their is aneye at all anymore . he also occasionally has a clear drainage from his nose but dose not sneeze at all . i took him back to the vet and he said it was probally a viatmin defficency of some sort and gave him injections and told me to buy a specific powder to give him . he acts what i would consider normal for a turtle he moves around and sits uder his lights and eats his veggies , any suggestions on what it could be because everything we are trying is not working and i do not think that this vet really knows anything and is just guessing at common things that could be wrong and is using a trial and error method with him i suggested blood work and he said that it would not tell him anything i am worried from what i looked up it may be a form of herpies . has anyone heard of this and if so is it treatable ??

amy

While I don't think of herpies with what you describe you are very correct in assuming this could very well be something that it more systemic, and not just an eye problem. In the opthomology paragraph in Mader, one of the first sentences says eyes are the window into the rest of the body.

If you would like to pursue a different vet, check out www.arav.com for a good state listing, as well as contact your local herp society for who they recommend. You might have to drive a bit, but it's definately well worth it. You'll be surprised just how expert some relatively unknown vets are.

Myself, I would start with cultures of the eye, just as a baseline, but perhaps more importantly, I would do some bloodwork to assess the animals overall condition. Other tests might be needed to pinpoint what is going on. Sometimes the animal is cured with concurrent therapy before the real answer is found.

In the mean time, make sure your enclosure is set up perfectly. Still allow a cooler side, but perhaps bump it up a few degrees from normal recommendations while the animal is sick. Ditto with the hot spot. I normally like particulate substrate for these guys, but again, while sick, stick to paper towels and/or newsprint. Keep the animal in this quarantine style cage until it has been healthy for at least a month.

Good luck, and keep us updated

Ian