Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi , What is tortoise poo meant to look like ?
( sorry if this is a silly question )

I also keep bearded dragons , does tortoise poo
look the same as the dragons ?

My little guy poo'd in the bath so looked ok , when he
poo'd today in his tank ( in his food bowl ) it was rather watery ? does this mean he is not well ?

He is a 9 months old marginated tortoise , being feed
on weeds ( different types and always washed !! )

Sara & Turbo

in my expeirence turtle and tortoise poo should look like small dirt clumbs which can also have coloring due to what they were eating

tortoise poo shouldn't be too watery i would say you should keep checking on it because watery poo can be due to poor diet and you may need to feed him something more.
if you are feeding him weeds that have a high water content to them (like ice burg letuice Vs a non watery veg like spiniach) then that can cause diarea or watery poo all things to think about

Runny poop can be due to diet or illness, usually parasites. It's always a good idea to have a new tort receive a vet check that includes a fecal analysis, just in case, because you can't always tell from the poop--my torts have had firm poop with parasites, and runny poop without them, lol.

What are you feeding? As I recall, you're in the UK, so you're probably feeding salad greens, which may be the culprit. Add weeds as you can get them, and sometimes adding finely chopped hay will help, too. But do get that vet check if you can!
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Sohni
Northern California

0.1 Baja de L.A. Rosy Boa
0.1 Okeetee Corn Snake
1.1 Rubber Boas
1.0 Leopard Gecko
0.0.1 Hermann's Tortoise
0.0.1 Marginated Tortoise
1.0 3 Toed Box Turtle (rescued)
plus my kids' herps:
0.1 California King Snake
1.0 Mexican Rosy Boa
0.1 Leopard Gecko

Hi there Thanks so much for your replies

I took my little guy to the vet ( A good reptile vet ) this morning
( He said tortoises do urinate and poo so what I saw was wee from his bladder ! )
My little guy "TURBO" was very helpful and did wee & POO on the vets table lol
So he was pleased and took it off to be tested ( for worms etc ) get the results ASAP .
He also said he does look like he has a little chill so he gave him an injection of
anti-biotics and gave me some more to give him over the next week or so .
I hope he is gonna be ok , i love him to bits and only had him 5 days .
He is eating and moving about good the vet said he looked ok and inside
his mouth was a good colour

Do i need to do anything special now he is on anti-biotics ?
He said to make sure he gets a warm soak every day !

Sohni , thanks for your help I really appreciate it
I am just feeding him on weeds from my garden ( all washed etc)
( yeah i am in the UK ) Its a good time of year for weeds here

Once again THANKS so much and any indive is much appreciated

Sara x x x

It sounds like you are going through what I am going through with you little guy. My vet told me the same thing....a good warm soak everyday. Keep him warm and just watch him. He was up bright and early this morning munching on his food all by himself! I was sooo happy. You tend to get attached very quickly don't you. I don't know what I would do if I lost him. Those shots...if that is what you are giving him....seem to work very quickly. Sam has had three now and seems just about 100%. He still has two more shots left and he should be back to normal. Good luck with your little one!

About the poo....Sams always seems to look kind of like a small slug. Weird to describe it that way but that seems to be what it looks like. Firm, sometimes black or green. My other tort, Ella had softer poo...kind of watery...and come to find out she had pin worms. Hope this helps.
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Becki

1 Husband
4 kids
2 Hermans
1 Dog
4 Finches
1 Betta

Hi Becki thanks for your reply , Yeah it sounds like my
little guy is going through the same as your guy !!
My little one is still wanting to eat ( little pig ) he is moving around lots , its just the little bubbles now and again from his nose that upsets me but he does seem happy

I am so very attached to him he is a sweetheart I love to
sit and watch him eat

Hope your little guy gets well too

Sara & Turbo x x x

I'm glad he is happy. How are you doing giving him his medicine? Do you have to give him injections? We gave Sam his this morning...boy was he mad!!! Does anyone know if torts hiss if they are mad or upset. He was not a happy camper! We have one more shot to give him. I think I will be taking him back to the vets....he still has a loud click sound sometimes and I caught him yesterday breathing with his mouth open like he was gasping for air. Talk about scary!!! He seems pretty good today except when we gave him the shot. I hope he gets over this and doesn't hate me after. He used to let me pet him on the head and touch his little feet but now he just pulls everything in like he is scared of me. Probably afraid I'm going to give him another shot poor little guy! Good luck with yours. I hope that medicine kicks in and he gets well.
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Becki

1 Husband
4 kids
2 Hermans
1 Dog
4 Finches
1 Betta

Hi , Yeah I am having to give my little guy injections
He has only had 1 so far , another 4 to go
The vet did the first one so the one tomorrow i'll do myself !!

(I've never injected a tort before , the vet showed me how to
do it and I have injected a uromastyx I had so I should be ok )

I just hope he gets well he is so precious to me

Sara & Turbo

Hope your guy is ok too x x

I suggest injections only as a last resort. I prefer administering meds via tablet because there is less chance something can go wrong.
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Ed
Tortoise_Keepers-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Trying to keep the fun in Chelonian care

Hi ED , yeah I agree , but this is what my vet recomended & I really hope all will be ok ?!?!?!?

Turbo sees to be ok , not seen many bubbles from his nose today and i've been home and watching him . He seems to really love his food which I'm hoping is a good sign as if he felt really bad maybe he would not really want to eat ??

sara x x

Good luck with those injections. Sam did really good with his first couple of shots. His third one he was not too happy with and after his fourth shot he was down right pissed off. I swear he hissed at me. Do torts hiss? Now he doesn't want anything to do with me. I sure hope he forgets all this very soon. He loved to be handled and would let me pet him on the head...now he wants nothing to do with anybody. Poor little guy.
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Becki

1 Husband
4 kids
2 Hermans
1 Dog
4 Finches
1 Betta