Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Alright... One of my female Deserts died.. most likely yesterday, just noticed today.. I didn't examine the corpse.... but I did notice some things

Entire body, completely bloated far beyond normal size,
feces hanging outside the rear end, and possibly the head itself, her face was not recognisable, even in the basic shape

She was housed with my other female..

Anyone have an idea? The only things I can think of is possibly constipation/digestive track problems which caused extreme pressure build up and eventual death.. I feed her grasses from my yard (Pesticide, etc free), greens, carrots, grapes, and I recently tried a exoterra pellet.. yes I know this isn't the proper diet for Deserts, but it's what I work with.

I'm scared, disgusted, and feeling really bad about it..
She's obviously adopted and I've had her since September she was not even a yearling... Going to have trouble telling the breeder what happened .

Answers extremely appreciated, thank you.

Note: Posted it here as well, I know I don't search health on average.. and I'd prefer people who might have had this problem as well to help if they can.. I'd like to atleast identify the problem and make sure my other female won't share the same fate
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2.4.1 Leos
1.1 Beardie
1.0 Burm
0.1 Common Boa
0.2 Desert Tortoise hatchlings
Wish for: Candoia Sp, Frilled D, BTS

http://forums.kingsnake.com/viewarch.php?id=237314,237314&key=2003
Found mine the same way they did.
Also something I didn't add before, They were temporarly housed in a cage that held a bearded dragon, I was cleaning their cage out at the time.. I understand Beardies have a high amount of coccidia in their feces and it's possible my little girl could have ingested some.. would this have an effect similar?
The bloating I believe might have been from the heat.. it's awfully hot where I live and the lights aren't helping, but would the heat have killed her? She wasn't malnutritioned or emaciated.
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2.4.1 Leos
1.1 Beardie
1.0 Burm
0.1 Common Boa
0.2 Desert Tortoise hatchlings
Wish for: Candoia Sp, Frilled D, BTS

You would have to get fecal tests done on your beardies to assess if coccidia is a problem. While this may be detrimental to your tort's, (mixing animals in this way is not recommended) I don't think it would cause death in a short period of time. There would have been symptoms prior too. See also my post in the health forum.

Alright... One of my female Deserts died.. most likely yesterday, just noticed today.. I didn't examine the corpse.... but I did notice some things

Entire body, completely bloated far beyond normal size,
feces hanging outside the rear end, and possibly the head itself, her face was not recognisable, even in the basic shape

could be anything. a pathological exam is needed to know for sure. any chance that your tortoise got over-heated?

the "symptoms" you describe are most likely the result of post-death bacterial action and redistribution of body fluids. bacteria (and not necessarily pathogenic bacteria) will take off and turn food, blood, and tort tissue into gas. this has a tendency to push gut contents out of the cloaca.

watch your other female very carefully. i'd suggest checking in on her more frequently and make certain temps can be regulated adequately.

good luck,

matt

How can you assume that these tortoises are females if they are/were only hatchlings? DT's must be several years old before accurate sexing and even then many experts have been proven wrong.