Epilogue

Thank you for such kind condolences. It took a long time before I could look at Grandma's blog again and then I found such kindness and compassion from her readers. 

Tortellini owns the whole back yard now. She spent the first summer sitting for hours at the entrance to Grandma's burrow. A year or so later a friend lost one of her horses and described how her other horses reacted. We realized then that Tortellini had been looking for Grandma that first summer. We all missed her so much. 

Tortellini never interacted with people like Grandma did so we promised her we wouldn't bother her and she could live in peace. But a few years later we noticed she keeps track of us "hoomans" inside the house. She listens and watches through a window facing the yard. Maybe we're ok after all, as long as we leave her alone mostly. 

We had no rain this past summer. Not a drop. Record breaking heat didn't relent overnight either. Tortellini didn't even do her rain dance because there wasn't any reason and she dug deeper in her burrow. So we offered water from the hose (tortoises need fresh running water to accommodate their lack of immunity) but she usually walked away in disgust. But in late October she approached us with purpose and we knew it meant "Last Call" before hibernation. We turned on the hose, and she tanked up for a very long time before retiring to her burrow. We really hope she hibernates well and gets to enjoy rainwater next summer. 

RIP: Back under the cordia

This is Grandma's Tortoise Mom. I'm sorry to say she passed away on Sunday, June 14, on the way home from her final trip to Dr. Johnson's office. We surrounded her with love and gave her the chance to go to sleep without any more suffering. In the end, it was the kindest thing we could do for her. She made it to her 50th birthday, but could go no farther. We all knew it, especially Grandma.

We got one more morning of quality time with her, which was a real gift as she hadn't been responsive or alert for many days. On Sat. June 13, Dr. Johnson said Grandma was in the dying process but we could take her home for one more chance to enjoy sitting near her favorite burrow.

She surprised us by rallying Sunday morning. She tilted her head and listened as we sat in the shade and talked with her. She took sips of water from the hose as we told her it was ok to finally let go. We thanked her for all the joy she has brought over the years and for teaching us so much about living a simple, honest, quality life. Who knew a simple tortoise could touch so many hearts, but Grandma sure did.

Then we took her to Dr. Johnson's, a very sad trip, but he went the extra mile to let us stay with her. In the end I do believe she knew how much she was loved.

After she slipped away peacefully Sunday afternoon, we waited until evening to put her back under the littleleaf cordia, in a spot where she loved to graze on all the little flowers that drop like desert snowflakes. We marked it with flagstone and flowers, and said a prayer, thanking God for letting us enjoy her for so long and for making such a hard day easier on her. We couldn't ask for more, except for her to magically recover.

We're sad but also grateful Grandma came into our lives. She made us laugh so much. She also taught  life lessons about love, simplicity and just being yourself. And always living in the moment. No worries about the past or future, and no trying to be anything other than her charming, gracious self.

I miss talking to her all the time, and just saying her name to check on her. I miss monitoring the temperature for her and giving her long drinks from the hose outside. Mostly I just miss how incredibly fun she was. She made me laugh every day.

We didn't expect to spend nearly six years taking care of Grandma's special needs following her bladder stone surgery in 2009. It was a lot of work but also so rewarding. We learned so much more about her specifically, and desert tortoises in general. They are remarkable hard-shell weather stations and know more about the angle and color of light than we can imagine. Grandma gave us the opportunity to see the world from her perspective, and it is truly wonderful.

I realize now that Grandma gave more to me than anything I did for her. She became part of my therapy for my own injuries. She got me writing and laughing again. She calmed me with her peaceful spirit. She tilted her head and listened to my voice so I always had a trusted friend who didn't judge. Grandma reminded me to live in the moment because that's where to find peace. She was a survivor too, and cheerfully adapted and adjusted and didn't give up even as her world got smaller from increasing medical problems. She wouldn't let go until she had completed her bucket list: getting to spend a few days back out in the big burrow, getting one more drink from the sprinklers, and finally, rallying to spend time with us on that final morning in the yard before it was time to go.

There will never be another Grandma the Desert Tortoise. So I don't know the future of this blog. Grandma tried to share her story and what we learned to help others appreciate and take care of their own tortoises better. To be a resource for making comfortable habitats and learning their special needs for survival in a harsh climate. For sharing just how special these ancient, protected creatures are, each with their own personality. We hope her legacy will be inspiring others to learn all they can so their own tortoises have long and healthy lives. These are not short-term pets, but require a lifelong commitment to their well being. But, after decades of taking care of Grandma, I can truly say it's so worth it. RIP Grandma. We love and miss you.

Saying goodbye

I saw Dr. Johnson today and got my eyes opened. Literally. He swabbed and scrubbed and pulled crust from my eyes that finally we can see the damage from the hibernation disaster back in February. All this time I've been trying to recover from what happened to me when flies laid eggs in my sinking eye socket and then hatched out in my eyes and mouth. Who knew this could happen, but it did.

I spent three days in the hospital back in February after they cleaned out the maggots and eggs and then I nearly died back at home when I severely overheated from an improper UV light fixture in the bathtub. But I pulled through and I've been doing my best.

It's been wild weather here, starting last September with six inches of rain in one day, and I got an infection from the wet weather. But I pulled through and then we managed my care indoors until I tapered off my steroid injections for a very short hibernation. My Tortoise Mom and Dad checked my weight and put anti-inflammatory ointment in my eyes every two weeks.

All went well for part of December and January. Then it rained. And rained. The burrow was so wet that I had to stay chilled in a box on the patio until it dried out. My Tortoise Dad used a giant light to dry it out faster so I could go back in the burrow for another month. After several days of keeping me cool enough outside, the burrow was dry and my Tortoise Mom put me back in the burrow. I immediately turned around, looked at her and was so desperate to come back out. She didn't know what I knew, that it wasn't safe for me in the burrow anymore.

A few days later, my Tortoise Mom noticed the humidity was at 100% and the weather guy on tv talked about ground saturation. She got a terrible feeling and put a sensor in the burrow. The humidity was 85%. Dr. Johnson's office said that was way too much moisture for any desert tortoise, especially me.

A week later my Tortoise Mom and Dad checked my weight but when they went to put the ointment in my eyes as usual, they noticed something in my right eye. Tortoise Mom can't see well so asked if it was larva of some type. Tortoise Dad said no, it was probably pollen. So they cleaned my eyes and added more ointment. But Tortoise Mom was very worried. Tortoise Dad promised to recheck my eyes in two days.

That stretched into a few more days and finally he pulled me out of the burrow and brought me in the house and noted that the specks were back in my eyes. Only this time my mouth was bleeding on both sides too. I had an emergency visit to Dr. Johnson's office. He wasn't there so other vets rushed me into an incubator to pull me out of hibernation. I went from 56 degrees in the burrow to 100 degrees in the incubator within an hour. The vet also cleaned all the eggs out of my eyes - both of them by now - and found that three had hatched and were eating tissue in my eyes and mouth. So that's why my mouth was bleeding. This other vet gave me morphine for the pain, but then I couldn't wake up, so that's why I stayed in the incubator in the hospital for those extra days. They said the liver has to process the medication and maybe it was failing, but my blood tests came back saying my liver was fine.

My Tortoise Mom was so heartbroken and insisted on visiting me in the incubator. By that time I had perked up and tilted my head when I heard her voice. That was a positive sign for her so she let me stay in the hospital. But Dr. Johnson wasn't there and the other vets and techs didn't understand all my very special needs and how my Tortoise Mom and Dad compensate for my problems eating and drinking. So I just kept dehydrating even though they gave me fluids. And I haven't been able to eat a lettuce leaf by myself in years. They did their best, just didn't know what I really needed.

Meanwhile Tortellini had been staying in the same burrow with me. But she came barreling out shortly before I was put back in - oh how I wish I could have told my Tortoise Mom it was very bad for me in there after all the rain, even though it had dried out it seemed. Tortellini's eyelids looked puffy and she wasn't acting normal by being out in the yard instead of inside a burrow in February. So she went to the vet too just to make sure nothing had affected her in that wet burrow too.

We both came home that day. She was ok, but I had a very long road to recovery back in the bathtub indoors. But like I said, I overheated due to a replacement UV light fixture that allowed the heat to radiate too much so I couldn't control my body temperature and I severely overheated. They found me foaming at the mouth and gasping for air two days later. So they cooled me down in the living room and finally realized what was wrong with the light fixture. Please, only approved fixtures for tortoises!!! They keep the heat in one spot so I can move under it to get warmer and away to get cooler. But the wrong fixture radiates the heat so there's no cooler place to go.

For the last few months I've been staying indoors but will only eat my Mazuri diet outdoors. So I sit in my blue pan with a temperature sensor nearby to keep me at 85 degrees so I can digest my food. Too cool and I can't, plus I just go back to sleep. Too hot and I overheat in minutes.

May was the coolest and wettest for our area so I was able to go outside when it was warm and dry but went back indoors when it rained and until the ground totally dried out. No more high humidity! Then in the last 10 days or so it started warming up to the upper 90s. I started hanging out at the burrow entrance. The big burrow, you know, my FAVORITE! It's under a giant tree so there's dappled sun in the morning and it's ideal for me to eat my breakfast in my little blue pan. I get my eye drops and then get them washed out when I get a nice long drink. I love the hose dribbling on top of my head to soothe my eyes and I hold my mouth open to get a drink. When I'm done, I turn away and blow the excess out my nose and mouth. So ladylike.

Anyway all was going well and I was getting to spend the day inside the burrow entrance, which made me very happy, but that's only 79 degrees. A big drop for my weak immune system. But it was also warm and dry so we still don't know if that was the start of another infection.

Yesterday I had my breakfast and drink and eye wash and sat basking in the dappled shade of the big burrow entrance like I've been doing lately. But this time I didn't scoot inside the entrance right way. I stayed in outside where it was warmer. My Tortoise Mom kept checking to make sure I could see out of my left eye (right eye has never recovered and isn't visual at all, or even able to open more than a crack), but I seemed happy to be hanging out in the shade at the burrow entrance, so she left me there but kept checking on me in the dappled shade until 2 p.m. I was fine.

Then a terrible thing happened. It was 103 degrees yesterday. Suddenly. And the sun came around to shine directly on me from the west in the late afternoon when I'm usually inside the burrow. My Tortoise Mom was busy inside and didn't remember to check me again until 5 p.m. When she found me I couldn't move and my eyes were both sealed shut, not just closed, but sealed, and I was moving my head back and forth trying to help myself but I couldn't move. She ran me indoors and called the vet, then started taking my temperature with an infrared thermometer and then cooling me down in my blue pan with room temperature water. I immediately peed and pooped and also drank a lot from the clean water she dribbled on my head. Stacey at Dr. Johnson's office said that was a good sign so I didn't have to come in to be checked until today.

I had been scheduled to get a refill on my steroid injections. I've been getting them every two weeks for myocitis. They're supposed to make me hungry, thirsty and build muscle. But I'm not very hungry, I drink a lot but also pee a lot, and I have lost even more muscle so my legs are so weak now.

Dr. Johnson was very sad and says he thinks I'm "failing". He did blood tests to see if it's kidney or liver failure. (Again!) He also gave me antibiotics, a tube feeding and also hydration. He did all the eye cleaning and said my right eye is severely damaged from the fly eggs/maggots and the eye is tilted and hazy. We knew it was not usable, but he doesn't think it's causing infection. My mouth is red and saliva is thick. He thinks it's more than my overheating emergency yesterday. I'm severely dehydrated despite all the drinks I get daily.

So now I'm back indoors in the bathtub with the heat light at 85 degrees. I got so upset that I peed out most of the fluids they gave me today. I need my eyes cleaned tonight and more medication put in them for infection and inflammation. Then tomorrow is another day.

Dr. Johnson will call with test results early this week and then he'll know more. But I already know. No matter how you slice it, I'm weaker, skinnier, and unable to cope with being outdoors on my own. I know what that means.

Today they put my age down as 50. We had planned a celebration but everyone is just sad now. I am so grateful for all the care that added six years of love and special care to my life. If they hadn't opted to save my life with bladder stone surgery in 2009 I wouldn't be a blogger or have had all this extra time to appreciate life. Now we're at the point of deciding quality of life. I really don't want to spend the summer indoors in the bathtub. I love eating outdoors. I love the light. I love to hear the birds and smell all the yard smells. I love just thinking about the big burrow and snuggling in the soft dry dirt to stay comfortable. I really don't want to give that up to waste away in the bathtub all summer too. But I know I can't handle the temperature extremes outdoors, even in a dry burrow. And that's before monsoon rains hit in a month.

Also I've always been such a trooper at Dr. Johnson's office. But I was seriously upset today. Seriously not happy at all. Today's treatment was too much for me. I'm just saying.

So I'll keep you posted and we'll take everything step by step. But even a simple tortoise like me knows there's no coming back to be a backyard tortoise this summer. There's no coming back to grazing, drinking, walking around on my own. Even if I could magically have an 85 degree summer. It will be 107 tomorrow and then only getting hotter and wetter.

Well I thought it would help to get these thoughts off my shell and let you know what's been going on. Thanks for always rooting for me and cheering me on. Thanks too for letting me share my life with you. I am one lucky tortoise. In 1978 someone dropped my brother Charlie and me off at my Tortoise Mom's yard. She never even knew who the people were and wasn't even home when they came. They said we hatched in 1965. They had drilled holes in our shells and chained us up to keep us from eating their garden, but of course that didn't work. Anyway they picked a good home for us. My Tortoise Mom had a tortoise since she was 10 so they figured she could take care of us. Charlie drowned in a pool in 1994 when he climbed a prickly pear to make it over the bench wall to the pool. Tortellini came along in the early '80s when someone found a bulldozer destroying her burrow. Between the three of us, we produced more than three dozen baby tortoises and found homes for all but one. Charlie2. She's just like her dad.

1986 Charlie and Grandma

Anyway I'm grateful for my tortoise buddies and my fans and my sitters and my vets. I'm most grateful to my Tortoise Dad who is faithful to make Mazuri diet just the way I like it (with a little Booster as salad dressing) and do all the heavy lifting. And to the boys who grew up with me in the 1980s. They took me to Show and Tell because my brother wouldn't behave. I was always sociable and ladylike.

But no one is like my Tortoise Mom whose voice always makes me perk up. I always make her feel better about anything. We just have a connection, so calm and peaceful. She says I'm am her favorite friend, and it's true I do listen to her intently whether she's happy or sad. She has always talked to us but I'm the only one who listened.

No matter what happens, it's been a good life and everyone has done their best for me. How many can say that at the end of their life? To love and be loved, to be cared for no matter what. And to only want what's best for me, even when it's so hard to say goodbye. That's love. Maybe we've all learned more about it through the care and feeding of a simple little tortoise with health problems, special needs and a way of touching hearts. In the end only love matters. God bless us all.

Not this again!

We've all worked so hard all summer so I could be a "real tortoise" again, and just slide naturally into hibernation. My blood tests were better than ever after a year of hand-feeding from my Tortoise Mom and Dad, and even my wonderful tortoise sitters (Thanks, Terry, Meghan and Brenda!!!). But I did have trouble with my right eye getting all "squinty" and easily irritated all summer.

Then on September 8, the sky opened up and I thought I was in Heaven because I love, love, love to drink rainwater. Especially now, because it's easier for me to drink water pouring down on my head than to try to suck it up in puddles (myocitis muscle loss). But it rained SIX INCHES and I was too cold to move to higher ground so they had to rescue me. I spent the night in a box in the warm and dry garage while the yard drained. Tortellini weathered the storm in the winter burrow because our favorite big one flooded a little. Seriously, I've never seen rain like this in all my life! Six inches all in one morning! For a while there, I thought I could be a sea turtle!

When the yard drained, I got to go back out and hunker down under my favorite ruellia bush. I even flushed my bladder and left a golf ball sized bladder stone. Yes! But the ground stayed so damp, and my immune system is really sensitive, so I ended up getting sick. My skin and eyelids and even the inside of my mouth turned very pink. Back to visit Dr. Johnson and to start two weeks of antibiotics. When I got better, he got very worried about my eyes so then it was back to visit Dr. Reed, my tortoise eye vet (opthomologist).

See what good hands I'm in? I'm also a very good patient and sit perfectly still while Dr. Reed examines my eyes with special lights and even pushes on them to check the pressure. She says that more muscle or fat loss is causing my eyes to sink in and that keeps my eyelids from working right. So now I get moisturizing eye drops after my anti-inflammatory eye drops. If I don't, my eyelids get stuck and won't open at all. Scary! Who turned out the lights?

Anyway, my multiple special needs are delaying hibernation so I won't get sick, or worse (hey it's hard to shudder in a shell), so here I am, back in the guest bathtub. I didn't mind sleeping in a box indoors at night ever since I got sick in September. But moving to the bathtub with special lights to maintain my core temperature - AGAIN! - just feels so disappointing. But the reality is I can't come and go as I please, like Tortellini, who, by the way, has been hunkered down in the big burrow for 10 days now. I wish I was in there with her, but I have to accept my special needs. I got a steroid injection on Saturday and it has to wear off for 30 days before I can even think of hibernating. Even then, my temperature and eye medications will have to be monitored constantly.

So I'll only get a semi-, pretend, sorta hibernation. Maybe. I'm disappointed but trying to be grateful for such good care too. I'd really like to celebrate my 50th birthday in June. And I know I wouldn't have a chance without all the good care from my Tortoise Mom and Dad. Especially my Tortoise Dad who has been doing all the bending and lifting, and is a real magician when it comes to cleaning my eyes. He doesn't have my Tortoise Mom's voice, but I really like when he talks to me too. I'm really lucky and I know it. (Grateful sigh.)

Celebrating 49!

The birthday surprise was on my Tortoise Dad when he discovered I had switched burrows early this morning instead of waiting for him to feed me like usual. I was out and about on my own, looking for little leaf cordia flowers and anxious to get the party started. Sure enough, I got not only my favorite birthday salad (Mazuri tortoise diet, spring greens, timothy hay, grass, globemallow leaves) but it had Booster and pretty pink desert willow flowers on top. Mmmmm, delicious!!

But the first thing I wanted was to enjoy my own personal tortoise fountain, which I happily did, because it's so hot now and steroid injections make me extra thirsty. I would do a Happy Dance when the drip irrigation system turns on every morning if I wasn't so busy gulping water and enjoying the soothing spray washing out my eyes. So relaxing. But it was even more special this morning because my Tortoise Mom sang to me. I always listen and tilt my head when I hear her voice. 

So I drank, ate, peed, ate some more and then enjoyed a nice cool soaking before going back ln my favorite burrow to stay comfortable on this very hot day. I had a really nice birthday celebration today, and I hear my special friend Terry is coming to visit me tomorrow. We met 20 years ago and he has always been so very good to me. 

I am one lucky tortoise and really appreciate being able to celebrate so many birthdays. Even though I have so many health needs, I'm still happy being me! Sobreviviente (Spanish for living above survival)! 

Birthdays!!

I'm so excited because tomorrow is my 49th birthday! I am so grateful for all the love and care that has gotten me this far, starting with being rescued by my Tortoise Mom in 1978 when I was 13 (hatched in 1965). My previous caregiver had chained me in their yard along with my brother Charlie, but when we get kept eating whatever grew in their yard anyway, they dropped us off at my Tortoise Mom's house because they had heard she loved tortoises. That was more than 36 years ago! My Tortoise Mom never met those people and didn't even know we were coming, but once she saw us she cut the chains off our shells because it's so painful for our living and growing shells. Then she let us enjoy all the grass and leaves we wanted in our new yard. Yay, freedom!

The other thing that I absolutely love is that I share my birthday with one of my favorite girls in the whole entire world. She was born on my 40th birthday, so she'll turn 9 tomorrow. Here is one of my favorite photos of her when she visited me three years ago. While everyone else was enjoying an Easter Egg Hunt, Dayna was more interested in seeing me and how I live in my burrow. She is so interested in animals and learns all about them, including her pet lizard Kermie. She's so smart I think she could be a vet like Dr. Johnson or any type of scientist if she wants. Anyway as I celebrate my birthday, it's fun to celebrate hers every year too, see 2011 post here. Happy Birthday, Dayna!!

I've been holed up in my favorite spot in my favorite burrow all week because it's so hot, but I know my Tortoise Mom and Dad have plans for a special Mazuri birthday salad for me and my Tortoise Dad's favorite cake for my non-reptile friends. I'll be extra hungry tomorrow and ready to celebrate!!

As I was saying...

... before spending all Fall, Winter and Spring indoors in the bathtub. Whew! What an endurance event for me and my Tortoise Mom and Dad! But even though my scary blood tests improved so much back in October - protein levels improved with Mazuri feeding so no more anemia - I was still way too skinny and weak to hibernate all winter. Dr. Johnson thought I might get to hibernate part of the winter, but when he checked me in January, my weight was still too low to risk it. So then I wasn't allowed to go outside until the temperature was at least 80 degrees during the day. And I couldn't stay outside overnight until it was at least 65 degrees at night.

Also I kept having trouble with my right eye that sinks in due to muscle loss. So that meant getting daily eye drops to prevent uveitis, blepharitus and infection. Plus daily Mazuri tortoise diet with greens. Plus soaking to prevent dehydration. And THEN, during the Spring, my Tortoise Mom had eye surgery so she couldn't take care of me, or even see very well, so my Tortoise Dad did it ALL! What a great guy. I am so grateful. He doesn't have my Tortoise Mom's voice that always gets my attention, but I like his voice now too.

The good news is I finally got to go back outside and sleep in my favorite burrow. The bad news is that I got an eye infection almost instantly, but my Tortoise Dad thought I was just sleepy when one eyelid wouldn't open very well. Then my Tortoise Mom had a bad dream about me and marched outside with a magnifying glass and flashlight to help her see better so they could examine me closely. Sure enough, her dream was right about my being sick. So then I got antibiotics in my eye and that cleared things up pretty fast.

Meanwhile she noticed that I really, really like having water pour over my face when my Tortoise Dad is washing off the Mazuri after I eat. Then he noticed I was swallowing the water that poured down into my mouth. He also noticed that I got really big drinks in my blue pan when the water level was higher so I didn't have to bend my neck down to drink. Ever since then, I've been getting big drinks both in the pan and I get to enjoy the sprinklers in the yard too.

When I got my check up with Dr. Johnson, he noted that my neck muscles pull up better than they pull down so it made sense that I was drinking water in a whole new way. (And boy am I drinking water now!) He also said that since tortoises don't have tear ducts and my right eye sinks in due to muscle loss, it's important to keep that eye washed clean every day. "If only there was some kind of fountain..."

Well, folks, thanks to my Tortoise Mom and Dad, there IS!!! Here is my very own tortoise height fountain that washes my eyes out and lets me drink water overhead too. Woo hoo, I am one happy gal!!

Comeback Kid!

My blood test results show no more anemia, yay! Dr. Johnson was delighted when he called, saying, "The great thing about Grandma is she always responds positively to treatment." Yep, that's me!!

The tests show that I do need daily feedings of Mazuri to prevent anemia. Most tortoises don't need that much protein, but I do, so now we know I've been malnourished without it. And that leads to dehydration and anemia and scale loss (hence my unsightly "turtle neck"). And that means one sick and skinny tortoise.

I also need monthly steroid injections to manage the muscle wasting disease Myocitis. Steroids manage this autoimmune disease by reducing immune response, so that means I need to stay very warm to keep mine as revved up as possible to prevent infections. A drop in temperature means a drop in immune function. Hibernation means no immune function at all. Yikes!

I also got lots of help from Dr. Reed, veterinary opthamologist at Eye Care for Animals. She prescribes the eye drops to reduce inflammation in my eyes and prevent infections. She even suggested Omega-3s for my autoimmune disease so I just started on Booster twice a week. It's a gooey orange supplement that I consider a real treat. Mmmm, it tastes THAT good! But I can't take too much of it as it's very rich and oily, like fish oil for people. But Booster is made from red palm oil, who knew? Find it here.

Well now we know what I need to feel better. We are all so grateful that when I get the right treatment, I always make a comeback. I'm feeling better already!

Hot Tub

I got to see Dr. Johnson today. He was glad to see I'm recovering from the respiratory infection, but he's very concerned about my scale loss and says it's a symptom of low protein. So I had another blood test and we'll find out soon if my anemia and protein levels are improving. If not, well, it will be very bad news. Very bad. Especially at hibernation time. Dr. Johnson said if the protein level is not improving after all the tube assist feeding for extra nutrition and vitamins, it would be a sign of intestinal malabsorption, or even worse, liver dysfunction. So we're all hoping the blood tests show improvement.

In the meantime, Dr. Johnson says to keep feeding me and keeping me warm indoors for as long as possible to let my body get stronger before hibernation. Unless I'm a lot healthier, well, let's just say hibernation would be way too hard on me to survive. Gulp. We don't want that. So we're hoping for good news from the lab test results this week. (Cross your fingers and toes, please!)

I've been waking up hungry and alert and really enjoy a nice Mazuri and shredded kale breakfast in my blue pan every morning. Then I get cleaned up and munch on a romaine leaf in the bathtub until I finally get tired and tuck in my little box again. The best part about staying in the bathtub is that's so warm that it boosts my metabolism and immune system. A reptile UV light hangs at one end of the tub keeping it at about 95 degrees, and my little box is at the other end so I can cool down to about 85 degrees. I adjust my body temperature just by moving from one end of the tub to the other. This is working well for now as it keeps me alert and hungry. Poor Tortellini is slowing waaaay down as it has cooled down so much at night and the days are shorter. She comes out to bask for a few minutes almost every day, but she's not very active or hungry anymore. Her metabolism is slowing down right on schedule for hibernation.  

But I'm staying in my hot tub, at least for a few more weeks. I know I'm lucky to get such good care, and get the guest bathroom all to myself (no magazine reading, ahem, with a tortoise for company!).

I'm glad I finally finished all the antibiotic injections - 7 of them over 14 days and hope I don't get another respiratory infection as this was my first in my whole life, and it was really hard to breathe plus I was so sick. I just want to feel better so I can go outside and live the tortoise lifestyle again. I'm sure grateful to Dr. Johnson and all my friends at Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital for not only helping me, but being genuinely kind and affectionate to me too. Thanks too to my Tortoise Mom and Dad and all my friends who are pulling for me. I hope to give you good news about the lab tests. Meanwhile, I'll just keep enjoying my hot tub.

Urgent Care!

Over the past few days, my right eye has been swollen with the third eyelid mostly closed. But this morning it was worse plus there was goop in my eye, and I just wasn't feeling well at all. My Tortoise Mom has been putting anti-inflammatory eye drops in that eye for a few days, like usual when there's a problem, but it hasn't helped this time. I've also been sleeping near the fence during the day, which my Tortoise Mom thought was basking, but noted that it's new behavior when she talked to Dr. Johnson's office.

Anyway, this afternoon when my Tortoise Dad took me in for my assist tube feeding, I had such respiratory distress so they had to stop. Then the vet on duty, Dr. Corcoran, said I was very congested and might even have pneumonia. So they did a choanal flush, much like a netipot, with a steroid, antibiotic and saline solution to help me breathe better. The choana (ko-A-na) is a slit in the roof of my mouth that can get clogged. After they flushed it, they massaged under my jaw to help the medicine work better. They also gave me an antibiotic injection which I'll continue having every 48 hours.

Now I'm staying warm and calm overnight in my little box in the bathtub. My Tortoise Mom and Dad made sure there are no drafts coming in my box and I get to sleep in tomorrow to reduce stress from going inside to outdoors with a big temperature change. If I'm feeling worse tomorrow they'll take me back for X-rays of my lungs. I've never ever had a respiratory infection so this is all new to me. Frankly, it's a little scary for all of us.

I'm all tucked indoors for the night in my cozy box in the bathtub to stay warm and undisturbed. I sure hope rest and all this medicine help me feel better soon. Everyone does.

BReaking BAthtub

Summer's over, the nights have finally cooled down and we found out I have anemia. Again. Another October surprise. So I'm back sleeping indoors in the guest bathtub to delay hibernation while I get special assist tube feeding twice a week from Dr. Johnson's incredible nurses. I don't like sticking my neck out while they insert a plunger full of special food and vitamins (45 ml and 3 ml), but as always, I am ladylike and cooperative. I know they are really saving my life as I can't survive hibernation with such abnormal bloodwork.

Last year I had anemia too, only it wasn't as bad and my protein level wasn't so low that the scales were falling off my legs. So that's when they started me on the Mazuri diet. And it was a little later when they started putting me in the bathtub to stay warmer overnight to delay hibernation. I started a post, "Motel 6," but I was just too sleepy to finish it. This year I'm awake and actually basking during the day and even grazing on cordia flowers again. Must be the special feedings twice a week, and the 80 degree box in the bathtub. I sleep just fine in there, then every morning I sit in my blue pan to get a drink and eat some Mazuri diet. When I'm tired of that, I'm strong enough to climb out and go wherever I want in the yard. Lately I've been hanging out near the fence. I'm not going into the burrows because it's too cool and I get too sleepy. Did you know we can't digest food unless it's 80 degrees? So I'm doing my part to stay warm and keep my metabolism going during the day too.

We were surprised that my blood work showed anemia as I've been perking up ever since the monsoons came in July. And I'm developing some muscles in my jaws from the steroid injections. And I've just been more alert and perky. So, like I said, it was a big surprise, but thank goodness Dr. Johnson planned to see me early for my pre-hibernation check-up just in case I needed 4-6 weeks of treatment to get me strong enough to endure hibernation. It's a dangerous thing for a less than healthy tortoise, so always get those pre-hibernation check-ups.

Well, I'm sleepy again. This plain little box in the bathtub is pretty cozy and I'm grateful to be staying warm overnight. In fact, I'm grateful for all the good care I'm getting from Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital, and from my Tortoise Mom and Dad. I sure am a well-traveled tortoise, with trips to the vet's office twice a week and sometimes there's no time to take me home so I sit in waiting rooms as my Tortoise Mom has her medical appointments. Dr. Lu actually took a break from giving acupuncture treatments to come see me. She greeted me and said, "Nice to meet you." Of course, I was ladylike and polite. I only pee in my box if they hit my overflow button during assist tube feeding. Hey, that's not my fault. You try getting all your food in one plunger and see what happens! But it's already helping and I'm feeling a lot better.

FB Pic 'o the Day!!

Wow, I'm so honored to be featured in a public service announcement, plus picture of the day, on Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital's FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/azeahospital

I am all about education and public service, so this is a real treat! Plus they are helping so much so I can hibernate this year (more on that later), so I'm just really grateful for all the good care I get there. And I have a real soft spot for Stacey who knows just how I think (wink)!

Tortoise Laureate

Cordia flowers fall like snow

Making a carpet of breakfast. 

Grazing morning and evening,

we escape the heat. 

Sudden storms bring hints of rain, 

Monsoon

Monsoon.

--Grandma the Desert Tortoise, 2013

(inspired by Arizona's new poet laureate Alberto Rios)

Assisted Living

This is what happens at least weekly. I get my weight checked and a steroid injection if it's due (down to monthly injections now). I also get eye drops once a week or so to control inflammation so I can see better.

Then twice a week I get a mixture of Mazuri Tortoise Diet (extra protein to help build muscles) plus shredded grass, flowers and organic kale. Mmmm, Tortoise Salad, courtesy of my own personal backyard chef!

My compliments to the chef!

Tomorrow I'll get an early pre-hibernation check-up with Dr. Johnson to make sure I don't need any further treatments to prepare for a long winter snug in my burrow. Road trip! Actually I'm pretty happy riding in the car in my box. I snuggle down in the newspapers until it's time for another weigh-in. Everyone sure is concerned about my weight, but it's a good sign of how much I'm eating and drinking. My weight is down since early summer even though I'm eating every day now, but it's because I flush my bladder every time there's a drop of rain from monsoon storms that suddenly blow in. I feel disappointed when I flush but don't get to refill my bladder when it's so hot that the rain dries before it hits the ground. Hence the weight loss, but losing urate weight is a good thing -- no more bladder stones! Whenever there is enough rain, I drink like there's no tomorrow and actually smack my beak. Mmmm, rainwater is so refreshing!

Grazing and blogging again

Wow, I am one lucky tortoise. I've had such good care all summer, complete with shredded food and medical care to address my neurological/autoimmune disorder that causes muscle wasting. I even had three tortoise sitters checking the back yard at various times of day during the hottest part of the summer (119 degrees -- yikes) when my Tortoise Mom and Dad went on vacation. (Thanks, Terry, Meghan and Brenda!!)

The steroid injections are down to monthly now, instead of weekly, and the anti-inflammatory eye drops are only once or twice a week now, but they have really helped. I can see and I'm downright perky (for me). And hungry! A very good sign for a tortoise who needs to tank up on vital nutrition for hibernation.

This is how Tortoise Dad gives injections. He's fast, I'm patient--a winning combo!

I didn't fare well during boarding at Dr. Johnson's office back in April. I dehydrated so badly that it was downright dangerous. The techs called in Dr. Johnson to help but then he realized that despite their best efforts, you just can't put a 48 year old tortoise in an indoor environment to eat and drink in an all new way. I was so stressed and dehydrated that I lost nearly 15% of my body weight in 10 days. And it took nearly two months of my Tortoise Mom's extra care to help me recover. So no more boarding for me.

So for their next trip, my Tortoise Mom and Dad called on three really nice friends of mine to check on us and the yard to make sure there were no "catastrophic events", as Dr. Johnson called it. That means checking morning and evening to make sure no one accidentally flipped over or got caught out in the heat. We were good and stayed underground most of the time to avoid the extreme heat. I don't remember it being this hot during 99% of summers. It hit 122 back in 1990, but I was in my 20s then and also living in a different back yard. No problemo. This summer has been hard, and even the burrows heat up too much. But it's been cooler for a few days, so I came out to catch you up on the news.

I haven't been blogging because I have been underground so much this summer, and also pretty weak after getting so dehydrated back in April, and then really getting a lot of daily medical care from my Tortoise Mom. But it has all paid off, and I'm feeling a lot better now. I'm even coming out to graze on cordia flowers morning and evening, just like old times! I also get Mazuri diet plus organic kale (mmmm). The best is a Mazuri salad with Bermuda grass clippings mixed right in. Yum! I'm supposed to get 50% of my diet from grass, with Mazuri diet to provide extra protein for my muscles. With more muscle, I start doing laps around the yard. Actually my shell thumps on the patio are I lurch along, so I might need some padding. 

Arizona EXOTIC Animal Hospital, er, Spa

Thanks for taking such good care of me!!! Part of healing is feeling cared about too. I know I'm in the very best hands. Thanks, Dr. Johnson, and all who help me. I don't like being sick, so I'm pretending I'm visiting the tortoise spa instead. Thanks for all the pampering and very caring attention. I'm a pretty lucky gal!

New Treatment Plan!!

Dr. Johnson really put me through my paces yesterday, examining me from stem to stern, and even swabbing my throat-yikes!! But I'm a very good patient because I know I'm in very good hands. Dr. Johnson always goes the extra mile to try to help me and everyone is so nice to me. I don't even fuss when I'm being handled, except for that throat swabbing thing.

I even got three injections, including two given by Tortoise Dad so he could learn how to give them in the muscle under my arm, parallel to my shell. I didn't even flinch. What can I say, he's a natural!

Dr. Johnson consulted with another top veterinarian in Tucson and they believe I have a version of myositis not usually found in tortoises. Dogs get it localized in their head and jaw muscles, but tortoises usually don't. It's an autoimmune disorder called masticatory muscle myositis, which is a long way of saying muscles that affect chewing are chronically inflamed. Since chronic inflammation causes muscle wasting (hence the dip on the top of my head from loss of bite muscles), it's a very big deal. Anyway we're trying a course of steroid injections to see if that relieves any symptoms.  There's no real way to diagnose except by seeing how I respond to treatment so we're going for it. No guts, no glory!

Now I could get a CT Scan to see if I have a tumor causing neurologic effects on muscles or nerves, but there's no treatment available so we all agree there's no point in putting me through that kind of test.

I'm also getting antibiotic injections every other day because my mouth is red and I'm not feeling well so could have an infection too. And then once we have results from that throat swab, we'll know if I have mycoplasma. That's a respiratory infection common in tortoises, especially coming out of hibernation.

And for good measure, because it perked me up last time, I got a Vitamin E shot. The reason for all these injections is I'm not so good at opening my mouth to take oral medications. And at least we know I'm getting the full dose with the injections. Besides they don't hurt, or maybe I just don't mind.

Dr. Johnson said to soak me three times a week and offer Mazuri Tortoise Diet twice a week. Yum. If I could lick my chops, I would! I fairly lunge at the dish my Tortoise Mom brings for me, garnished with globemallow, grass, spurge, wildflowers, etc. The perfect salad.

This morning my right eye opened right up but it didn't blink at all even with my eye drops. Then I  soaked and drank water but just sat looking around wondering what to do as I didn't feel like walking AT ALL. So my Tortoise Dad put me at the entrance of the new/winter burrow so I wouldn't overheat. I basked a little and then tucked inside for the day. I had such a big day yesterday with lots of new medications so I just needed to rest today. Tomorrow is a whole new day and I'm looking forward to it. Thanks, Dr. Johnson, and my Tortoise Dad and Mom, for all you're doing to help me feel better. I really am so lucky to keep getting second chances at life!!

Eyes Wide Shut (Third Eyelid Blind)

Sorry I haven't been able to blog in so long. A whole team of veterinarians - the very best ever! - are trying to help me right now. They're even consulting other vets to help diagnose what's ailing me. Right now I'm battling eye inflammation and infection that keeps me from opening my third eyelids like usual. But a daily round of antibiotics and anti-inflammatory eye drops are starting to help me open my peepers better. Believe me, I'm grateful for any help I can get. I'll see Dr. Johnson again this Saturday and, hopefully, he'll know what to do to perk me up again. Two weeks ago he gave me a Vitamin E/Selenium injection and I was a happy camper for two days although my eye problem had flared up again, and I can't see out of my right eye. But I had that last fall until anti-inflammatory medication made me "visual" again, so we're all hoping that happens again.


Meanwhile I'm also getting shredded grass and wildflowers mixed in Mazuri Tortoise Diet to try to jump start my immune system during early post-hibernation. I am liking that! It's really hard for me to bite and tear my food with so much loss of my bite muscles. The dip in the top of my head is worse than pre-hibernation. Not good. So Dr. Johnson will consult with a guru vet in Tucson to see if I need a steroid for a muscle wasting disease called myocitis or a possible autoimmune disorder. Oh and he'll check for a virus called mycoplasma too.

All I can say is it's a good thing I'm a good traveler in my little box as I go back and forth to see Dr. Johnson and also to visit a veterinary opthomologist. Dr. Reed is taking over my eye care since Dr. Church moved away. I am very good for my vision checks. No eye charts, but my Tortoise Mom tests my vision using food anyway. All agree I can't see out of my right eye, which is a hazard as I wander around the yard, plus I can't see my food.

So I'm sticking close to my burrow and sleeping a lot after basking a bit each morning. But I enjoyed the great weather on Easter (see photo above). The first time I came out of my winter burrow was for a giant drink of rainwater during a storm on March 8. Glug, glug, then back to sleep again. I know I'm in good hands so I sleep very well!

Motel 6

Mazuri Madness

I'm a little nervous this morning. I've been faithfully eating my Mazuri Tortoise Diet mixed with vegetables, but that's all. No yard grazing. I sniff the grass sometimes but I just have no bite strength for it. Anyway I'm a bit worried because my weight is down from this time last year. I only weigh 3160 grams this morning, despite all our efforts. But I have been pooping almost every morning and even left some urates in the little blue pan yesterday morning, so maybe that just means I'm cleaning out my system for hibernation?

Well it's a good thing I'm seeing my two vets this morning to get the whole scoop on how I'm doing. The truth is, I've been feeling a lot perkier and generally happier. Now let's see what the doctors say....

Ready for my close ups

I'm all set to go to Eye Care for Animals tomorrow morning to show Dr. Church how much I've improved after three weeks of anti-inflammatory eye drops. Oh it's been an adventure, starting with getting the medication. The Target pharmacist said he'd never dispensed for a tortoise before, and the Bashas' pharmacist couldn't imagine how my Tortoise Mom would install the drops by herself, "afterall, it's not like she can't pull in her head." There was much hilarity, but I got my eye drops and my Tortoise Mom and Dad worked out a system to get them in my eyes with no muss, no fuss. One, two, THREE--blink. One, two, THREE--blink. It happens so fast I usually don't have a chance to get upset, and now I'm such a veteran that I don't bother to struggle.

The good news is I can see out of my left eye again. In fact, I peek over my left "shoulder" to see if I'm in the clear to escape back into the old burrow. Sometimes I'm more wily than others, but I always get caught. I'm pretty resigned to it. I know the drill by now.

After seeing Dr. Church, we're going straight over to get my pre-hibernation check-up with Dr. Johnson. Hopefully the anemia is gone and I'll be good to go. The only thing worse than staying in the winter burrow is having to stay indoors. Trust me, no one wants to go through that again. Anyway I'm hoping I'll be cleared for hibernation, which means I'm well enough to survive the big drop in immune function that happens when the metabolism slows down so much.

Well I know I'm in good hands, and that helps a lot. I wish I could go where I please, but I did get a treat from my Tortoise Dad this week. He let me "go for a walk" around the yard to get some exercise and maybe perk up a little as I have just resigned myself to sitting in the winter burrow so I don't sit out in the sun at all.

Tortellini got her pre-hibernation check up last week. She's quite a handfull and not as charming as I am, so there aren't any photos to show. But she's in great shape. The funny thing is Dr. Johnson thinks she's 5-10 years older than we thought. We really don't know her age so just guessed it back in 1987. Now it seems she could be a lot closer to my age. We are two tortoises of a "certain age." Except she's so healthy and active that she runs circles around me. And my Tortoise Mom. And she is not happy about not getting fed any more treats this year. But we can't hibernate with any undigested food. Besides treats are treats, not a substitute for grazing in the yard, which she is still free to do. But she'd rather nag at the back door. Give it up, Tortellini. They always do what helps us instead of what we want. (Sigh). But still, we are TWO very lucky tortoises. Your friend, Grandma

Blogging from the winter burrow

The eyes have it

At my last visit in July, Dr. Johnson said to watch my left eye. Well, it suddenly swelled up last week, so this morning my Tortoise Mom and Dad took me to Eye Care for Animals where I got a thorough exam by Dr. Church.



I got the full treatment, including Tonometry, just like people get from their opthomologists. Who knew?



Dr. Church found that my right eye has problems too: red spots on the iris (should be green) caused by bleeding and minor inflammation.



She diagnosed the left eye, the worst one, with a small cataract (but not the usual variety) that releases protein to cause inflammation. As a result that eye has "discoria" which means an abnormally shaped pupil. Plus I can't see out of it.

 

She said the underlying cause is systemic or metabolic health problems, or even anemia (why I'm eating Mazuri Tortoise Diet now).So she'll talk to Dr. Johnson about that, and she prescribed anti-inflammatory eye drops.



Eye drops? Yikes! Having eye drops twice a day means I have to stay in the winter burrow and can't hunker down in the old burrow. You know how I feel about that. But I also know how lucky I am to have such good care from my Tortoise Mom and Dad, and from Dr. Johnson and Dr. Church. I am one lucky tortoise!

Holy Guacamole!

I'm feeling much better since I got to drink rainwater the last few days, enough to add nearly 100 grams to my weight. Yay! And I've been having my new special breakfast in my blue pan that sits near the kitchen table so I can take my time eating and get help with finding my food. The latest thing is eating the Mazuri pellets soaked a bit to make a sort of dip that's spread over shredded kale with a few shreds of carrot for color. It's a tortoise version of chips and guacamole, with the kale acting like chips for the Mazuri dip. Pretty good!

Of course I end up wearing a lot of it so get hosed off back outside along with the blue plan when I signal that I'm finally through eating, but that's not a bad thing either.



Yesterday it was still stormy all day, but no more real rain. Still I felt well enough to march around the yard hoping for some, a big improvement for me. I feel a lot better in the last few days. Eating better helps, plus drinking actual rainwater (Perrier for tortoises), and the temperature has dropped 20-30 degrees with the storms. Whew!! A little relief from the extreme heat sure makes a big difference too.

I sure am grateful that my Tortoise Mom and Dad are taking extra care in feeding me what I can eat better in a way that's easier for me too. Coming indoors means no competing with Tortellini who is definitely a fast eater. With eating in my blue pan, I can find my food easier as it doesn't sink down into the grass where I can't find it. You might call it "The Blue Pan Special." (Tortoise grin...)