Hello forum, I haven't posted in a while but do check out postings from time to time.
For those that may not remember me, I have 3 testudo Kleinmanni tortoises (Egyptian tortoises). One adult male that's been part of my family since 1997 (my guess on his age would be around 15-16 years of age) and 2 younger adults (roughly 5 years of age or so) with one male and one female. The two younger ones are kept together, while the older male is kept in his own area. The two males cannot be left alone or else they become aggressive.
Now, the older male has been sick for some time now. I've been taking him to a veterinarian that was highly recommended. They've done cultural testings, fecal testings, X-rays as well as prescription medications that were to be administered. Nothing has worked to this date. The tortoise has been eating normally and relatively active, although he had a clear liquid discharge coming from its nostrils and every once in a while a wheezing/cough can be heard.
I have since moved from the area where I used to live and live several hours away. However, I felt as though the veterinarian was not all that knowledgeable. Not knowing if its an aquatic or land "turtle" should have been a red flag. Having the staff send out lab papers with some saying "sulcata" and others saying "rushan tortoise" also speaks volume of who they hire. They've been told on numerous occasions but simply don't listen.
I'm now located in Youngstown, Ohio and cannot find any recommended vet clinics in my area. I'm hesitant to go to a vet clinic that knows dogs/cats with limited reptile knowledge. So I'm now hoping I can get some guidance on what to do.
I've requested copies of what was done at the other vet clinic.
Past prescribed medications include the following:
Fortaz(100mg/ml) Inj.
Amikacin Sulfate 50mg/ml
Amikacin 250mg/ml Inj.
Panacur (for deworming)
Lab tests on nasal discharge showed the following:
E. coli (moderate growth)
Peudmonas species (moderate growth)
Micrococcus species (light growth)
Other tests also showed the following:
moderate growth of Citrobacter Freundii
light growth of Coagulase Negative Staph.
Recently, as of the last 2 days I found my adult male to be more lethargic than usual. He still eats, but in the past he would empty his plate. I noticed that his left eye seems to be irritated and keeps it close. I've used Clear Eyes brand eye rinse as of last night to rinse his eyes. I'm not entirely sure if this is becoming an infection or if its simply a sand particle that might have caused an irritation.
All of my tortoises have excellent shells, no pyramiding whatsoever. I have a heat lamp that turns on at 7AM and off at 9:30 PM with night time temperature falling to 68*F. A UV light is also turned on at the same time. I figure since these are desert animals that they can tolerate temperture changes. They are kept on play sand substrate and have not had any problems. Food is placed on ceramic dishes to minimize sand digestion. Water bowl is also supplied but I have not seen any of them make use of it. I try to soak them in luke warm water once a week for 15 minutes.
With the info I wrote, can anyone please recommend what I should be doing? Its been frustrating getting them back to the healthy stage as they've been more or less the same for the past 4-5 years.
