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Desert Tortoise Health


Malnutrition and adverse environmental conditions are at the heart of most illness and injury in desert tortoises kept as pets. Like people, tortoises "are what they eat." If improperly fed, they are sure to become ill and remain chronically ill. Tortoises are not well adapted to the increased moisture, dampness and fog so common along the sea coast and in other areas. Pet tortoises are also not well adapted to dealing with automobiles, lawn mowers and marauding dogs. Many illnesses plague desert tortoises. Proper techniques are available to correctly diagnose these conditions, though some diseases may be difficult or impossible to treat.

Typical Signs of Illness: A sick desert tortoise may exhibit obvious signs of illness, such as inappetence, runny nose, swollen eyes, and/or swollen limbs. Usually, however, signs of illness are more subtle and less obvious, such as a change of habits, lethargy, or just "acting differently." Often, by the time a tortoise begins to show obvious signs of serious illness, the disease has advanced to a life-threatening stage. Owners must, therefore, try to recognize subtle changes in behavior in their tortoises and seek veterinary care promptly when they notice any change (large or small).



Desert Tortoise Diseases/General


Disorders of the Shell: Malnutrition is widespread among captive desert tortoises, with especially devastating consequences to hatchlings. Inadequate mineral intake (too much lettuce and salad items) results in an unhealthy, soft or malformed shell. Injuries to the shell caused by automobiles and lawn mowers are common, especially in the spring, when tortoises come out of hibernation. Great caution should be exercised when dogs are allowed access to desert tortoises. Dogs often cause serious injuries to the shell and the extremities of tortoises. Shell rot (one or more erosions of the upper and/or lower shell) usually occurs as a result of injury to the shell or exposure to filthy environmental conditions. Infectious diseases can also be associated with this disorder.

Abscesses: Bacterial abscesses commonly result from puncture wounds and other injuries. Because tortoises readily develop internal abscesses, systemic antibiotics must be used to treat all abscesses (external or otherwise).

Organ Failure: The ravages of a lifetime of low-grade infections and water deprivation may result in cirrhosis of the liver or kidney failure in aged tortoises. Blood chemistry analysis is necessary to make the diagnosis.

Impactions and Foreign Body Ingestion: Sand impaction is common in hatchlings. Therefore, they should not be kept on sand, but rather on hard dirt or indoor-outdoor carpeting. Surgery to relieve a sand impaction or retrieve foreign bodies from the intestinal tract is a complicated procedure and should only be performed by an experienced veterinarian.

Bladder Stones: Composed of uric acid, require many years to form and may reach unbelievably large sizes (baseball size is not rare). Desert tortoises are prone to this condition because of the urinary bladder's function of storage and resorption of water. Particles of uric acid gradually accumulate within the bladder over years. When these stones become large enough to irritate the bladder lining, mechanically impair urination, interfere with walking or cause pain, most tortoise owners become suspicious that something is wrong. The diagnosis is confirmed with x-rays. Correction involves surgical removal of the stone. The bottom shell must be opened and the body cavity and urinary bladder explored. This is a very complicated procedure and must be performed by an experienced veterinary surgeon.

Iron-Storage Disease: Some desert tortoises suffer from excessive accumulation of iron within the liver. This results in chronic hepatitis and eventually cirrhosis. As in birds and people, this disease is thought to be the result of an enzyme deficiency. Owners should not offer iron tablets to their desert tortoises. Food and water high in iron should also be avoided.

Diabetes Mellitus: Desert tortoises may develop diabetes mellitus, which requires closely monitored medical care. Only an experienced veterinarian should attempt to regulate these patients because insulin has an extremely long-lasting effect in these reptiles.

Eye Disorders: Various disorders involving the eyes and related structures can afflict desert tortoises. Some of these include cataracts, corneal ulcers, infections, puncture wounds and other injuries, conjunctivitis, keratitis sicca (dry eye), and hatchling eye syndrome (vascular scarring). Eye involvement may accompany respiratory disease. Cataracts may result from injury or infection, and some eye disorders are hereditary. Unusual eye color variations are also noted from time to time.

Gular Overgrowth: Older desert tortoises may develop large, overgrown gular projections (forward projection of the lower shell, under the neck). This condition can interfere with eating and swallowing. Correction involves periodic trimming of this projection.

Submandibular ("Sex Gland") Inflammation: During the breeding season, the large "chin" or "sex glands" of the male desert tortoise may increase in size and may drain. The enlargement noted may be normal, but infections of these glands may occur. Laboratory tests can help to differentiate between normal and an infected set of submandibular glands.

Desert Tortoise Diseases/Parasitic


Intestinal Parasites: Small pinworm-like parasites, large strongyle-type worms, and large roundworms can infect captive desert tortoises. Several protozoan (one-celled organisms) parasites (Giardia, Trichomonas) can also cause disease. All can be diagnosed and treated by your veterinarian.

Malaria: A malaria-like blood parasite may be present in more than 90% of an infected tortoise's red blood cells. Appropriate treatment can eliminate this blood parasite.

Myiasis (Maggot Infestation): Fly strike and maggot infestation are very common, especially with wounded tortoises. These animals are virtually defenseless, and flies take advantage of their weakened condition. Any sick or injured tortoise should be housed indoors or otherwise protected from flies within a screened enclosure.

Ticks: Wild or newly acquired desert tortoises may be infested with ticks. These can be carefully removed by an experienced veterinarian.

Desert Tortoise Diseases/Infections


Respiratory Infections: The desert tortoise upper respiratory complex remains the most common and exasperating disease affecting this reptile. Most experts agree that the disease is caused by a highly contagious virus. Some apparently healthy tortoises probably carry the disease and can transmit it to other susceptible tortoises. Some infected tortoises exhibit signs of only mild upper respiratory disease (usually a runny nose), while others suffer severe systemic (body-wide) complications of the liver, heart and/or kidneys, as well as those associated with overwhelming blood parasite infections.

The latter, more serious form of the disease resembles AIDS in people, because it appears that the immune system of afflicted individuals is severely compromised by the infection. Consequently, these tortoises are left virtually defenseless and therefore vulnerable to disease. There appears to be tremendous variability in an individual tortoise's ability to fight the effects of this devastating disease. There is no specific treatment for this disease at this time, though certain anti-viral medications show some promise. All candidates for treatment should be thoroughly evaluated by an experienced veterinarian. This assessment should include a survey blood profile as well as culture and antibiotic sensitivity testing (if indicated and affordable). Treatment of affected tortoises is symptomatic and emphasizes supportive care, including vitamin injections, fluid therapy, nasal flushes, immune-stimulating drugs and force feeding. Antibiotic injections and topical antibiotics to treat the eyes and sinuses are extremely important to prevent and/or treat secondary bacterial infections. Owners of desert tortoises must be alert to the existence of this most serious disease. All newly acquired tortoises should be promptly examined by a veterinarian and quarantined for at least six weeks. Any tortoise showing signs of respiratory disease should be isolated from all others for an indefinite period. Recovered tortoises may remain lifetime carriers.

Internal Infections: A wide variety of bacterial infections occur in captive tortoises. Multiple organs are often involved. Liver and/or kidney disease is common because of the septic nature of tortoise diseases and the filtering action of these two organs. Chronic hepatitis and chronic kidney disease are common. Infections of the heart are also common.

Mouth Rot (Infectious Stomatitis): This condition can be the direct result of injury to the mouth and its lining or secondary to disease elsewhere in the body. Mouth rot should be treated locally (topically) as well as systemically to prevent internal abscesses. Beak and jaw deformation may require periodic corrective trimming.