My 55 year old tortoise is poorly!

[mytortoiseisill]

apparently "tortie" has a parasite and if s/he doesn't start eating dandelions again in 5 days has to go to the vet for blood tests.

I didn't even realise tortie had blood in him/her.

Seriously though - how long do tortoises live? Is this old age? Am very fond of tortie (as was childhood pet) but I don't believe in prolonging animal lives unnecessarily.....

What on earth is he eating when you say human food? What species is he? Most tortoises should only eat a diet of weeds

Whilst dandelions are a good food they are usually feed in moderation as part of a varied diet.

He’s historically fed himself from the garden with occasional kitchen treats.
Now I guess he eats salad/fruit leftovers. I.e. food bought for humans like cucumbers

My DM has a tortoise. Called Katy although we think it’s male, so I’ll refer to it as it!
DM has had it for around 57 years. It eats mainly peas, beans, cucumber, and dandelion. A bit of melon and the occasional grape.
Hibernates in a sturdy wooden box in the garage, but did spend a couple of winters self hibernating in the garden years ago.
It has only been to the vet once that I can remember, but I don’t recall what for.
Not the world’s most fascinating pet but interesting in their own way, I guess! 🐢

Poor tortoise. I do hope you get him better soon. This thread is fascinating.

Katy sounds a bit like tortie :)

My surviving parent is unfortunately a bit of an unreliable witness. Will prod more re vets etc......

@mytortoiseisill

Yes we noticed all the Blue-Peter- obeyors are now ex tortoise owners whereas tortie has thrived till this year.. Dad used to put a bit of insulation over the hole if it was a cold April. Tortie lives in Dorset - it’s a local heat-trap. Tortie has good summers and by far the main concern is usually escape.

Tortie doesn’t live with me but I will visit this afternoon.

@mytortoiseisill It's not just the heat that's the issue, it's the UV that's required for calcium and general metabolism.

Your tortoise has had chronically poor husbandry for years

It's takes years for that to show because of their slow metabolism. So no your tortoise has not been fine, he's been coping as best he can with a poor situation that doesn't meet his needs. He's no longer able to cope

Why ask for advice when you've clearly no intention of taking it and think that you know better than the tortoise trust and scientific evidence.

You have a legal duty of care to provide for his needs and you aren't doing that. It's neglect

Essentially he's had:

Inappropriate diet
Limited UV access
Inappropriate temperature gradient
Inappropriate hibernaculum
No parasite treatment or routine care

What about water and bathing opportunities?

You're providing almost none of the legal requirements for duty of care

www.rspca.org.uk/whatwedo/endcruelty/changingthelaw/whatwechanged/animalwelfareact

Hold on, Vetinari. I don’t think she has a legal obligation to her parent’s pet.

She is trying to help out, and the animal has seen a vet (who doesn’t seem to have picked up on enough that’s going on here).

No to human food! Fruit contains too much sugar so it ferments in the gut, please please please find The Tortoise Protection Group on facebook and have a read of their files for an appropriate diet. It should be safe weeds and flowers only. Just sow a patch of weeds in your garden (seed packets are available or just scour your local hedgerow) and you gave tortoise food for free.

*have not gave

@MistandMud

She is trying to help out, and the animal has seen a vet (who doesn’t seem to have picked up on enough that’s going on here).

It's not 'helping' to sneer at properly resourced enclosures and dismiss expert advice

She's had good advice including seeing a specialist vet and proper husbandry guidance and is still trying to argue that a muddy garden in Devon with some kitchen scraps is an appropriate year-round environment and diet for a tortoise.

It isn't

My sister is a member of the British Chelonia Group - that's where she got advice on best methods to hibernate, correct UV lamps and so on. Her tortoise loves his UV lamps on a dull day. OP, it might be worth looking at joining this or a similar group for expert advice on your tortoise's day to day needs.

Do you think your parent is beyond looking after tortie now?

Hope he's better soon.

This is a FASCINATING thread.

My friend bought a house last year in the winter and was surprised to find a tortoise emerge from a hole in the garden in the spring. Former owners had to come back to retrieve ...

Hope your parents little guy is okay OP. What a weird bit of responsibility to have to suddenly assume.

@Backtobacktheyfacedeachother

I’m staggering that Tortie hibernates under the hedge each year, did you never watch blue Peter? I thought everyone put their tortoise in a box!

We put our childhood tortoise in a box in the garage. He didn’t make it. Remember being very sad.

We put our childhood tortoise in a box in the garage. He didn’t make it. Remember being very sad.

I think that was common a few decades ago. Hibernating tortoises need to be kept in a fridge at a specific temperature, and they need to fast before hibernating as otherwise any food left in their systems will rot there. Also they need regular treatment for parasites.

True enough, Vetinari, but it can take more than a few minutes for someone to revise their view from an accepting ‘It’s what mum and dad have always done and the tortoise seemed fine’ to ‘My parents are accidental tortoise torturers and need to buy a uv lamp and a dedicated fridge immediately.’

@MistandMud

True enough, Vetinari, but it can take more than a few minutes for someone to revise their view from an accepting ‘It’s what mum and dad have always done and the tortoise seemed fine’ to ‘My parents are accidental tortoise torturers and need to buy a uv lamp and a dedicated fridge immediately.’

You're right that she doesn't have a legal duty of care to her parents' pet. She's well placed to advise them on their duty of care though, and has specifically asked for advice and then dismissed it.

I think when you have to equate 3 days to 'a few minutes' and imagine other posters are calling the OP inflammatory names to make your point however, you should probably reconsider how well-grounded that point is.

Fair enough. I’d claim it was dramatic exaggeration but it was more that it only took me a few minutes to read the thread and I didn’t notice the date on the OP.

Plus, any change in long established habit in my parent’s household takes bloody years before they reluctantly agree I’m right.

It’s a dry garden in Dorset not a muddy garden in Devon.
Haven’t seen mud there since the 1990s!

Tortie likes water on a tray in a heatwave.

Is there a no strawberries consensus?
Any tips on weeds other than dandelions.

Tortie definitely does fast before hibernating btw. It’s just that he does it naturally in his glorious 1/3 acre kingdom.
It’s like he’s read the thread :)

“Hope your parents little guy is okay OP. What a weird bit of responsibility to have to suddenly assume.”

Thank you Vaguely.
Just imagine all the other responsibilities I must be neglecting whilst participating in a tortoise thread :)
One thing though - tortie isn’t little he’s really big! And fast (usually)! And greedy (usually).

Anyway, here’s hoping for more weed tips.

“Plus, any change in long established habit in my parent’s household takes bloody years before they reluctantly agree I’m right.”

Indeed.