Poorly Squirt - please help

[neilbirdy]

Hi

My hermann tortoise Squirt has been injured in battle. His front leg is not being used properly and is inflamed. The vet has said that his leg has a fracture (and the x-ray suggested that) and could have been caused by a calcium deficiency. The vet said that Nutrobal can be given to boost calcium and i can give as much as required. Now i don't really trust what she says as my breeder has warned me about the random advice vets can give!! I have been reading postings surrounding Nutrobal and reptavite and it is soooooooo confusing, does anyone actaully know if you can give too much too often. How much is safe to give, he is only 20 months old and was purchased from a reputable breeder?? The vet said if i gave him Nutrobal everyday for 6 weeks then his leg should get better and he should be using it properly.

I would normally be giving the suplement 3 times a week, but now the vet has said that i am in 2 minds! He is fed dandelions, clover and all other wild foods as displayed on the tortoise trust website, so technically he is getting lots of natural calcium.

On another note to all those who have lost Tortoises recently, Squirts friend Gonzalez, died during hibernation. No idea why, all guidelines were followed and he was hibernated the same as Squirt. It was a complete mystery, even the breeder could not identify why when i phoned him for advice. He was alive up until the week before we took them out as we checked them every week.......

[sarah]

Hello and welcome what other form of calcium do you use?

hi

sorry to hear about your poorly tort i have moved the post to vets and heath

where i think you may get more advise

linda

[neilbirdy]

None - my breeder who i bought him from just mentioned reptavite and nutrobal. He advised that these foods offered were good enough combined with sun. he has breed over 2,000 tortoises and is a registered breeder, so took his advice.

[sarah]

I also use limestone flour every day on my tortoises food and also nutrobal 3 - 4 times a week. Its a great natural calcium.

[neilbirdy]

yeah i have read about this limestone flour, does it have a 'brand name' so that i can purchase some???

how much should i apply? i was advised by the vet to put the food in a bag with the suplement and shake it around. Seems to coat the food in a lot of it and was worried about giving too much and harming him??

[sarah]

I sell 500g which is quite alot for £3.80 including postage in my ebay shop (see my signature for link). Yes shaking in a bag is a good idea. Personally i would just stick with using nutrobal 4 times a week.

[neilbirdy]

sorry i missed the link last time!! i brought some nutrobal from you off ebay last week which is how i found the site! Do you think it would be a good idea to give everyday until his leg is better?

Is the vet right in saying that this extra calcium will 'make his leg better' in a few weeks or is it more complicated to heal than that??

is the limestone flour good or is nutrobal sufficient, given the natural wild food diet??

hi

are you wasting the nutrobal if you stick it in the bag and shake ???

you could use a salt or pepper pot to sprinkle the nutrobal over the weeds or a little tea strainer to dust over the food

[sarah]

Well some say that there isnt enough calcium in nutrobal alone so also use the limestone. I have had brilliant results using limestone flour (smooth growth). I am no vet so cannot comment. But limestone flour is calcium so you will be getting extra into your tortoise so cannot do any wrong.

Also some offer limestone on a plate and their tortoises eat it as and when they need. Also cuttlefish bone can be offered as extra calcium.