Urgent Care :: Pink went berserk!!!

[SpotsMama]

I'll take your word for it.

[Zarjulius & Miaomiao]

Pink is much worse this morning. He is barely moving, sitting on the dock, just twitching his legs constantly and breathing with his mouth. He didn't even open his eyes or respond to me touching him for a while. His eyes are open now. When i hold him near the water, he doesn't respond. I put him in for like half a second to see if he swims but he doesn't. He just starts to sink with all of his legs tucked in. It's almost like he's half paralyzed. My gf is taking him to the vet in about an hour, this time a better doctor.

[SpotsMama]

Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry. I'll keep you all in my thoughts.

[Zarjulius & Miaomiao]

they took his blood sample at the vet today... say he might have a neurological problem or poisoning. blood test results should reveal more information in a few days. we'll see if he gets any better by then..

she gave him some fluid, apparently. she said nothing more can be done. I don't know if i trust these doctors. she said this is a rare condition and it could be this or it could be that. they seem to say whatever is convenient and don't really have any answers except "turtles are problematic". i'm wondering if there are real turtle expert doctors out there, not just general "exotic animal interest" doctors. I'm just feeling at this point that i know more than they do. he's breathing with his mouth, so it could be some kind of RI, he's twitching, so it could be neurological, it could be just stomach pain... anyway hope the blood tests help

[Zarjulius & Miaomiao]

Does anyone know, how long could a turtle live in case he has RI before he begins to get the shots? I'm just concerned that i have to wait for 2-3 days for blood tests... is he gonna make it?

[grey goose]

Any good herp vet would have fully investigated before giving any shots. I was suspicious from the beginning when the first Vet gave him "preventive" shots for worms without doing any tests......
It sounds like Pink is in a bad way.....whether or not the shots caused it is any one's guess. I sure hope he pulls thru......
For now just keep the tank warm 80-82F and away from drafts.
I'm afraid all you can do right now is hang in there and wait for the results......keep trying to get him to eat and hydrated.
Good luck, we're all pulling for you and Pink.

[Zarjulius & Miaomiao]

Thank you for your wishes. Unfortunately and very tragically for us, Pink froze in death this morning. When I woke up, he was moving and seemed to be moving more lively than the whole previous night, and a moment later he just became a stone, with his eyes still open. They never closed.

I tried to do all I could and suffered through this difficult time with him, but nothing helped. I'm almost positive he needed antibiotics for RI because all of last time the symptoms were clearly of RI. He was struggling to breathe and couldn't move the whole time. I went to the emergency pet hospital with him but that particular night was very busy and even if the doctor had time to see him she didn't really know much about turtles. I was hoping that by 8am today the hospital that I always took him to would be open at least for emergencies, but alas they were not, thanks to thanksgiving (no pun intended). So I felt very helpless, even though I knew (or was pretty sure) what he needed.

What's interesting is that those damn doctors took their time very slowly, and didn't really care that he might have been in grave danger. When my gf asked the vet "is he in danger", she replied "he could be." Isn't that great. Also, after hearing from 2 different "herp and exotics" vets that they didn't know what this twitching syndrome that he had was, I read that quite a few people on the forum experienced those symptoms as well and ended up knowing more than the vets. No kidding, if you know this website thoroughly enough, you're probably better off than half of the "herp vets" out there. In my case, they took about 450 dollars from me and left my turtle dead. Whenever I think that they are still analyzing his blood sample right now it just makes me sick to my stomach. He didn't have to die. I know I made some bad decisions in curing him as well, but I really only meant the best, and couldn't have known they were bad at the time. I TRUSTED people that I shouldn't have.

So the point is, whenever we say "seek immediate vet attention", yes, that is true and very important, but you may not be very satisfied with what the vet tells you. TRUST me, DO NOT just let it go. Your turtle will not wait forever even if the vet says he might. READ this forum, investigate as much and as quickly as you can, and let those stupid doctors know what you have found. It could just save his/her life.

Now I just have to make sure my other one, who seems to be doing fine, thrives and has a good life. I sure won't make the same mistakes again...

[madmax1]

Did the Vet confirm that he has parasites? A fecal test is the way to go. Keep trying to get a hold of the vet (holiday weekend is coming), maybe bump the water temp to 78-80F and keep trying to temp him to eat. Try tuna, packed in water, or maybe some pre-soaked krill.
I don't think he is in danger just yet. It is probably just a bad reaction to what ever she gave him (he was eating before, right?).
I noticed you are in NYC. There is an exotic Vet in Staten Island I've used, Dr. Salemi. Here's the website.

http://www.nahnyc.com/location.htm

Do you recall what medication was given? Maybe give them a call and see what they think.

great doctor , i use this doctor also for my turtles i live in staten island -totally recommend ! these doctors.

[madmax1]

really sorry about "PINK"

[grey goose]

Thank you for your wishes. Unfortunately and very tragically for us, Pink froze in death this morning. When I woke up, he was moving and seemed to be moving more lively than the whole previous night, and a moment later he just became a stone, with his eyes still open. They never closed.

I tried to do all I could and suffered through this difficult time with him, but nothing helped. I'm almost positive he needed antibiotics for RI because all of last time the symptoms were clearly of RI. He was struggling to breathe and couldn't move the whole time. I went to the emergency pet hospital with him but that particular night was very busy and even if the doctor had time to see him she didn't really know much about turtles. I was hoping that by 8am today the hospital that I always took him to would be open at least for emergencies, but alas they were not, thanks to thanksgiving (no pun intended). So I felt very helpless, even though I knew (or was pretty sure) what he needed.

What's interesting is that those damn doctors took their time very slowly, and didn't really care that he might have been in grave danger. When my gf asked the vet "is he in danger", she replied "he could be." Isn't that great. Also, after hearing from 2 different "herp and exotics" vets that they didn't know what this twitching syndrome that he had was, I read that quite a few people on the forum experienced those symptoms as well and ended up knowing more than the vets. No kidding, if you know this website thoroughly enough, you're probably better off than half of the "herp vets" out there. In my case, they took about 450 dollars from me and left my turtle dead. Whenever I think that they are still analyzing his blood sample right now it just makes me sick to my stomach. He didn't have to die. I know I made some bad decisions in curing him as well, but I really only meant the best, and couldn't have known they were bad at the time. I TRUSTED people that I shouldn't have.

So the point is, whenever we say "seek immediate vet attention", yes, that is true and very important, but you may not be very satisfied with what the vet tells you. TRUST me, DO NOT just let it go. Your turtle will not wait forever even if the vet says he might. READ this forum, investigate as much and as quickly as you can, and let those stupid doctors know what you have found. It could just save his/her life.

Now I just have to make sure my other one, who seems to be doing fine, thrives and has a good life. I sure won't make the same mistakes again...

I'm so sorry poor Pink didn't make it. Take solace in knowing you did everything you could to help him and try not to blame the vets (some are better prepared and equipped to handle turts than others....thus the reason for finding a good herp vet.
Also I fully agree that if anyone is the least bit suspicious that "something' is wrong with your turtle, you should take him to the vet right away.....It may be nothing, but then again.........

[SpotsMama]

I am so sorry to hear of your turtle's passing. You did the best you could. If it's any consolation, while a sick turtle's chances of making it are greatly improved if they get (the right) treatment right away, even then they sometimes don't make it. It's so sad to see someone like you who really takes care of their turtles and still they lose one. The little ones are especially delicate. Once they grow up, they are much tougher.

I'm not happy either that the first vet gave treatment for parasites without checking for them first. A check for parasites is pretty easy to do, and the cure for different types of parasites is different. The symptoms for some parasites can be similar to the symptoms for RI but still I don't understand why a test wasn't done.