Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey guys, i have an indian star tortoise which has been making alot of weird noises recently. There are a various numbers of sounds that he makes, ranging from farting sounds, to sounds that would suggest that he is trying to clear his throat, as well as those which sounds like he is sneezing. Everytime i would go n check him and there arent any discharge coming out from his nose.

That was since abt 2 months ago, however recently he has started vomitting out undigested food (pretty pet pellets). He has since vomitted another 2 times over a period of a month. He is still eating fine and no signs of any discharge out from his nose.

Last week after the 2nd vomitting, i brought him to the vet and he checked the stools and everything and said that theres no worms in the stools. He told me that it shouldnt be a case of repiratory infection, and that it might just be a case of indigestion, and just asked me to observe further.

I have noticed although he is still eating fine these days, he is certainly not as active as before. And is still making those noises even though not as often as before.

I do feed him cuttlefish bone which he often bites huge chunks out of and swallow the whole chunks. Might that be the cause of the problems? Or the pellets? Or anything that you guys can think of?

If it really is just a case of indigestion, what should i do? Just observe like what the vet said? Or should i feed him anything? (my friends actually recommended me to feed plain yogurt)

I know my post is kinda long, but i really do love this tortoise of mine, and i wouldnt want anything to happen to him. Thanx in advance for any help rendered.

How long since being to the vet? What has been the progress since then? If it has been progressively lethargic then it may be a good idea to go back. While a fecal is always a good idea, I wasn't what first came to mind when you described the problem. With that in mind, it is often hard to get a good idea of what exactly is going on without seeing the animal. X-rays of the chest and abdomen, as well as the neck and throat region would be interesting. This could rule out a foriegn body or mass that is causing problems. An example would be if some of that cuttlebone was aspirated or lodged in the respiratory tract. Another would be a tumor or abscess that is growing, putting pressure on the lungs, or the stomach, causing the vomiting. Bloodwork is also a great tool and should be considered manditory when a problem is not easily diagnosed.
Last of all, but definetly not least is husbandry of course. The more perfect you keep your animal the better it is able to overcome illness. This includes all aspects of diet, temperature, humidity, and security.

GOod luck with your tortoise

Thanx for ya prompt reply. The visit to the vet was a week ago. Diet wise what i have been giving him was pretty pet pellets, kaytee pellets as well as hibisucs leaves n flowers, carrots n hay. Of course not all at once. There is a basking light which i on when the temp gets too low.
He is still eating fine and everything else, [bleep] has been fine too, being solid stools. Nowadays i have been soaking him everyday. The only problems are the noises n sound that hes making, as well as not being as active as before. He does move around, but not as much as before.
I am giving him more green leafy vege nowadays, and giving him soaked pellets, and i have taken away the cuttlefish bone. I think i most prob will observe for a few more days, see if there's any more vomitting, before i contact the vet again.
I certainly hope that if its just a case of indigestion, then it should be cleared by then.

First off i would do a bit of research on the dietary requirements of your tort, I think it needs some work in that area (which may or may not help the vomiting problem). Personally, i would ditch both the pretty pets and kaytee pellets, feed mazuri (it has more fiber and doesn't look like fruity pebbles) if you want to feed a pellet.

Second, what are your temps at, humidity level, and substrate? Does the animal have somewhere it can feel safe? Describe its housing in detail, maybe we can help with a bit more info...

good luck
-ian

Well, first of all im located in Singapore. So i assume you guys should roughly know the climate here. Anyway, im housing my tortoise indoors, in a sort of tortoise table/container. So there isnt any worries about the rain. I provide my tortoise with a 40 watt basking light as well as reptisun 5.0 for UVB.
I on the basking light for a few hours every day, as well as whenever it gets colder. I do not have a water source in the enclosure, but i soak them everyday. I have been having these 2 tortoise of mine for around half a year now, but it has been only the last 2 months when the particular tortoise started making the noises. Previously, both of them were good eaters as well as active.

And yes, i do have a shelter for them made from wooden sticks strung together. They usually sleep inside and still do now. Substarte wise, i am just using plain newspapers with rocks and pebbles scattered all around.

I have tried feeding mazuri as well, but they are just not interested in it. Would try feeding them again. Fiber wise, i cut up orchard grass and mix it into their diet.

I have actually been feeding them pretty pet pellets since day 1, and till now the other 1 is ok, while this guy is the only one making all the noises. What i am guessing is that sometimes this "sick" tortoise eats too much too fast.

I have actually been keeping star tortoise for more than 10 years, but this is the 1st time that i am experiencing all these weird noises. My vet actually said that this is a very weird case as well, because he also does not know y its making those sounds. Dietary wise and care wise, i am confident of being able to provide them with good care. But i am really puzzled by the sounds and whatever is happening to this particular tortoise of mine.

Really appreciate any help rendered.

>>Substarte wise, i am just using plain newspapers with rocks and pebbles scattered all around.
_pebbles and rocks on top of oldspapers? just wonder how yer gonna clean them up with all that pee and poops (not to mention them left over foods and scraps), humidity (typical SE Asia) can turn newspaper moldy rather quickly and i hope them pebbles are not small enough to go down his throat...a virgin plank would be the better choice (imo) regarding substrate...

Hi, thanx for your concern. Anyway, i soak them daily and usually they will do their business when i am soaking them. Therefore they seldom [bleep] or pee on the newspaper. Anyway the rocks n pebbles are not covering the whole tub. They are just scattered around. Once a week (or when need be), i will empty everything and change the newspaper. Therefore the paper has no chance of turning mouldy at all. As for all the stuff which i place inside the tub (like my tile and an obstacle made of wooden sticks strung together), i also wash them regulary or when they are soiled.

your discriptions make him sounds like a bamboo whistle (da simple/peasant type if yer know what i mean where a tiny bamboo leaf got slit-up between end of a bamboo tube to make that darn-loud-farting sounds...actually its more of a sheep call resemblance...)
...perhaps your tort's a fan of Rod Steward and stuffed some paper down his tube to make it sounds like...(blah..)

Haha, didnt really get what you mean. But i just hope that hes okay....

I would definately get off the pellets and move to veggies and leafy greens.

I like the lodged cuttlebone theory, and an x-ray would demonstrate that.

Another possibility: where are the hibiscus coming from? environmental pollutants, including car exhaust and pesticides, could easily build up in a tort's system if those pollutants are on the flowers and leaves. that would account well for the vomiting. when vomiting is occuring, poisoning should be ruled out first.

Hi. Yup, i would definately try my best to get them to eat mazuri and give them much more green leafy vege from now on.
I am suspecting it is a lodged cuttlefish bone as well, and if it is, is there any chances of it correcting itself? I would observe for a few more days, giving it soft food and increaseing soaking and basking, and take note of its condition.
I do soak my hibiscus leaves n flowers overnight, as well as making sure i get them all cleaned out before i feed them to my tortoise. So that most prob should not be a prob.
One thing is that, both tortoise are fed on the same food and therefore i do not really believe that the food are the source of the prob. That is why i believe that there is a high possibilty that something is lodged in its throat or something like that.
Thanx for your reply!

Oh and btw, just to be on the safe side. What should i do if the problem is caused by eating lets say, vege that are not fresh? Or pellets that are stale? Would that result in the vomitting as well? But how would that explain the sounds made by it then? And if it was a case of "food poisoning", what should i do? Will the tort just recover by itself?

Unfresh veggies shouldnt cause vomiting, unless there is something on the veggies that irritate the animal.

If the illness is a result of pollutants, there would possibly be neurological consequences, though not necessarily. The noises could be the reult of an obstruction, or a by product of the vomiting (as opposed to it being a seperate symptom). The biggest thing to worry about is the possibility of the animal aspirating vomit. You should find out why he's vomiting, and everything else should make sense.

You are definately going to need to go to a vet. X-rays can rule out impaction and obstruction. Good luck.

Thanx for your reply.
Anyway, i have already been to see a vet just last week. And what he actually told me was that it might most prob be just a case of indigestion. He also said that some of the noises might be him farting, which i believe is true, as i have seen bubbles coming out from the water at his tail area when i am soaking him. I think most prob now i will just follow his advice and to just observe the tortoise for a few more days.
Btw, what would cause tortoise to actually have indigestion? And is there any thing that we can do? My friends have actually told me to feed plain yogurt as that would help in digestion. Is it true?

I believe that my first post still stands as good advice. After reading the following post, I'd like to recommend using thermometers to measure the ambient, hot and cold temps of your enclosure. I'm sure a 40W bulb is enough in SE asia, but you can never get too exact. Measuring humidity is also a good idea, I'm not a star tortoise expert but to high humidity may be a complicating factor in your location.

Indigestion is hardly an exact diagnoses and is often desciptive of a wait and see attitude. This should be fine, but if getting worse, or not better in the next few days, you should take back to the vet for further workup as suggested. Vomiting is never normal in a tortoise, and "indigestion" would result in diarrhea or soft stool. Yogurt is a waste of time, for more info see my post on probiotics in the herp health and breeding forum.

HMMMMM, I guess Pritchard, Highfield and thousands of vets across the nation must bow down to the fact that Yogurt is useless. C'mon man, we agree that Probiotics (Nutribac) whatever you want to call it is ideal but to say that Yogurt is useless is absurd.
True, Yogurt does not have the natural flora that is found in a Chelonians GI tract but I think you would be hard pressed to say that Probiotics have the same type found in different species from vastly different geographical areas.
If you truly want to get down to the meat of it then the only way to re-establish the correct balance and type of Flora would be feeding screened droppings from the same type of animal.