Reptile & Amphibian Forums

However he did get to have Gerber's baby food turkey from a jar fed into the feeding tube.
Nothing entices him to eat but I've noticed that until we got the feeding tube fixed on the day before yesterday, he wasn't pooping like he should. Now that it is fixed he's gone twice, 2 days in a row & it looked 100% normal.
I'm thinking that although he was getting food before the tube was fixed he either wasn't getting enough or he was just not feeling well... & who would after being broken like he was?

My hope now is that once he's reached the weight he should be, he'll feel good then he'll want to eat on his own.
We cut out the Ensure because it was part of the reason why his tube got clogged, it's too sticky.
I've found that the Oxbow Critical Care mixes better in Pedialyte anyway. So far so good, his eyes are bright, he doesn't look at all dehydrated, he's doing as well as can be expected I think.
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PHRatz

I'm sure the vet already discussed this, but once Chip has stabalized his weight and doing great as he appears, perhaps lower the amount fed slowly. He will never want to eat if he's already always full. Also have his favorite treats available when you try getting him to eat; my own experience finds that this will include live and crawling food.

Ian

Yes I think that's exactly it Ian, he's full so he's not going to attempt to eat when he's not hungry.
We need to get him up to a good weight before we can lower the amount of food going into the tube & I'm guessing that it's going to be at least another week before we make it to a good weight.
There is one thing I did forget to discuss with the vet & that's activity for him. He was hurt so badly that he's not done much of anything during the day other than sleep. If most of the front of my body had been broken, I don't think I'd feel like hopping up right away to take a walk around the block anymore than he does.
But now that he's feeling a little better, not taking pain medication, I'm wondering how much exercise he could have each day.
If he can walk around a bit each day then that may also help him to work up an appetite, so I do need to talk to the vet about that soon.
Still all in all I think he's doing fairly well, he's no longer in critical condition, more like serious condition but stable.
I'm happy with his progress so far.
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PHRatz

Your concern about activity is easily addressed. Chip will decide for himself what's the right amount

Ian

>>Your concern about activity is easily addressed. Chip will decide for himself what's the right amount
>>
>>Ian

You know I was kind of thinking along those lines. I've let him out of his enclosure a few times. He's living on towels at the moment & those need to be changed daily.
While changing them I've set him on the floor to allow him to walk, but so far he doesn't do much of that. He'll walk a little but not far so I think again you are right...if he wants to walk he will. At this point maybe I shouldn't bother worrying about it.
He's had normal bowel movement for 4 days in a row now, I may be insane because that thrills me every time I see it. lol
I know that it means he's getting well.
He also gains at least 1-3 grams per day, that's great! The day his tube was redone he didn't get much food so he did lose a little weight but he's up to 364 grams today. When he gets nearer to 400 we should be able to slow down the tube feeding get him to eat on his own.
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PHRatz

To bad the turkey didn't entice him to eat. Hopefully soon he will start eating again!

Remember too... hibernation season is upon box turtles. Instincts sometimes are stronger than you think. His body knows it should be slowing down and reduce activity, feeding etc. even if he's not outdoors in conditions that normally trigger these events.

One turtle we had brought to us in the spring after being hacked with a lawn mower, shell destroyed, lungs exposed, etc. He was originally tubed during the early part of his injury, then later it was removed. Ate fine all summer on his own. However, I had Sugar re-tubed to make sure he got nutrition during the winter cause he wanted to hibernate and not eat and with the extent of the injuries we could not allow him to do that.
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PHWyvern

Wyvern I did forget. That's a really good point I'm sure he does know he should be hibernating.
We didn't go through this with Shell E after she was dog chewed but her injury happened in springtime soon after they wake up, not just before the time they go underground for the winter. Of course with her I didn't have a problem in feeding her, she ate well right away.
I hope this doesn't mean we have to keep the tube in until spring but.. we shall see.
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PHRatz