Last month, Tilly began acting as if she might be preparing to lay eggs. She was uncomfortable and not tromping about her enclosure; she had started refusing food. We took her back to the vet, concerned that she was egg-bound. The vet looked at her records, gently felt her insides by pressing a finger around her back legs, then took her for radiographs. There were two views... both showed a mysterious mass... outside of her GI tract. A month later we took her back to the vet because she had not laid eggs and her appetite was decreasing. We took blood for a CBC and found her calcium slightly elevated and white cells on the higher end of average. This pointed toward egg folicles, yet lent no indication as to what was creating the mass. We began weekly tube feeding and hydration in preparation for an endoscopy, which should give a better peek at what was causing the mass. When picking her up from her procedure, the vet said he couldn't get a look at the mass because all her organs were shoved to that side. When he tried to go in through the other leg, he was surprised to see so many egg follicles of varying degree of development. (See above.)
At this point, we are more concerned about getting her to lay the eggs - freeing up enough room to stimulate appetite - then trying to readdress the mass. The vet thinks Tilly's mystery mass has been with her a long time. It hasn't grown in the past year, so likely it is something which occurred prior to obtaining her. We'll keep you posted with developing news! Update: July 2017 - Tilly still hasn't laid eggs. The radiograph shows no sign of follicles; likely they have been absorbed into her system. She is eating, active, and back to a healthy weight.
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In Late August, Tilly began acting strangely; she was lethargic, her eyes would swell (indicating discomfort) and she would only eat if hand-fed. We rushed her to the vet for a radio-graph which revealed gas pockets in her intestines. The hope was that between infant gas drops, increased heat and soaks, her appetite would increase. The vet also prescribed OptiOmega, a terrific blend of nutrients which boosts activity and appetite. It worked, but not as it had in the past and not to the degree we were hoping. She was eating more; however, her eyes puffed more frequently, especially when walking. The vet suggested a follow up visit for blood work, but first wanted to take another radio-graph to rule out Tilly being gravid (egg bound.) After a couple minutes, cheers came from the back room. Our vet returned with a large smile and led me to the surgical suite, where an x-ray hung from the lightbox. This was by far the best news we could have received. Not only was the mystery solved, but babies were probably in the future. A couple weeks later, she still retained eggs. It was mid-September and there was no option to induce her. Three eggs were expelled; one simply didn't want to come out. The vet sent us home to incubate the eggs and wait for the fourth. Two days later, Tilly pushed out the fourth egg...then proceeded to step on it. The others were already incubating. Fast forward the minimum 55 days and we're waiting for babies.
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AuthorThe Tort Resort is a Whidbey Island based project dedicated to rescue and rehab of smaller tortoise species. Archives
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