Sweet Hermy

Today I say goodbye to my oldest and most wonderful pet-- my desert tortoise Hermy.

We got Hermy in May 2008 and she has been a delightful addition to our family. We suspect she's between 50 and 80 years old.

Poor Hermy has been very sick with a nasty respiratory infection that hasn't responded to 4 courses of antibiotics. Plus she has a massive urate (bladder) stone and an undefinable mass in her belly. She had a near death experience a couple summers ago where she got herself flipped over on her back in the middle of a hot summer day on our concrete pad out back and she's never been the same since. 

It's time to let my sweet girl go.

Rest in peace, Sweet Hermy. I'll love you forever. 

Reptile Roll Call for January 5, 2017

Here's most of my reptile zoo (minus the 3 ball pythons who didn't want to leave their hides to have their pictures taken; I have Lucy, Sunny, & Bones). Also, Gumby, the MBD leopard gecko didn't want to come out either.

First the Torts. I only have FOUR! That amazes me. 

Georgie, my female Leopard tortoise 

Hermy, my hibernating Desert tortoise

Leo, the happy little Russian tort

Otis, our house tort

And now my beardies-- 

Baby Sawyer, with a little pudgy food belly

Dash, my old man who is shedding

Flame, who is also shedding 

Gen, my big girl who is sorta bruminating

Max, my big boy who is 6 years old

Neville, the latest addition 

Noel, who is looking sickly this morning

Smaug, my big boy who is looking for a home as the ONLY beardie

Tiger, who has been wheezing again :( 

Ziggy, who has pretty much trashed his tank in the last few days 

 And last, but not least, Lady Squinty Dink the Dainty Skink of bluTonguesville!

Couldn't get the lighting right for a good pic 

We also have two dogs (Belle & Teddy) and a hedgehog (Pixie).

Drake & Hermy at the Vet

I took both of my sickies in their "As Is" state (which was SO hard). Drake's eyes were sealed shut and Hermy's nose was coated with snot. 

Neither one of them had a very good check up. :( We've exhausted almost every option with Drake and nothing is working. It took a lot of prying and swabbing to get Drake's eyes open. He hates it. The whole experience was super stressful for him and really wore him out. I brought him home and put him on his hammock. He hasn't moved on his own since yesterday morning. Today I had to really work to get his eyes open, and now, 6 hours later, they are stuck shut again. Plus he's gaping and gasping all the time. 

No drops, shots, cleanings, force feedings have improved him. His blood work is unremarkable and didn't show any obvious signs of illness. My vet and I are stumped. 

Poor Drake. As I've watched him today, I've thought about what Dr Folland told me yesterday. He said the best measurements for deciding if an animal has any "Quality of Life" is whether or not they can eat, move, and drink on their own. Drake can't do any of those. I think the kind thing to do now is to let him go. 

He hurts my heart. :( 

Hermy got another antibiotic shot and is getting antibiotic mouth drops to treat two mouth ulcers. I've forced her to stay near a heat lamp to keep her temps up higher. We'll recheck her in a week. 

Because she's a protected species, I have to seek permission to move or treat her. I sat in the vet's office and wrote an email to the Division of Wildlife Resources supervisor to ask permission to euthanize her. Her decline has been slow and steady over the last 3 years. I think it's time. She has a massive urate stone in her bladder, an egg shaped mass in her belly, an antibiotic resistant respiratory infection, and is at least 70 years old. 

I love my Hermy. She's my oldest living pet and the pet I've had the longest. I'll miss her. 

Sad day at the vet. 

Big Trip to the Vet

Yesterday I took 5 reptiles to the vet. 5! 

And I didn't take a *single* picture. 

Elvira, a very sick Dumerils boa, got added in last minute. She's been on antibiotics for almost two months with no improvement. Sunday night, she regurgitated her meal from Tuesday. Monday morning, she started writhing around. We took blood and let the vet examine her. This morning, she is dying. 

I'm so sad. I'm sad that we couldn't save her. I'm sad that she's been sick so long. I'm sad because she may have a IBD (a horrible, contagious snake disease). I'm sad that her previous owner let her be sick for 8 months and thought her "crackling" lung noises were "cute," like she was talking to them. Ugh. 

So sorry, sweet girl. 

< Deep Breath> 

Hermy, my desert tortoise, was seen because her eyes are swollen. She got anti-inflammatory and antibiotic drops for her eyes. 

Tiger, my daughter's bearded dragon, checked out okay, but is still breathing noisy. I'll continue antibiotics on him for a week. 

Lotus, the chameleon, got her stitches removed from being spayed last month. 

Akime, the chameleon, got a new arm wrap to protect the wound on her arm which is healing nicely. She should have the bandage off totally in two weeks. 

The whole bill came to just under $500. Ay yi yi. Gratefully, I have a good credit card to use for vet bills. I'm hopeful that this holiday season will help me make enough money on Etsy that I can pay it all off. 

Today I'm feeling like Eeyore and can't generate much enthusiasm or energy. I hope to be back up to speed tomorrow. 

Bath Night

Midnight's first bath here. He's not thrilled. 

Hermy- 

Otis-- 

Georgie & Baby Foot-- 

I don't have time to bathe the beardies, but at least the torts are soaked. 

Summer Heat

I'm pretty sure my tortoises are the only ones really enjoying the heat here in Utah. It's been over 100 degrees with a predicted high of 103 for Friday. 

Hermy, as you can see, is quite enjoying the summer sun. 

3 Years with Lil Foot/Baby Foot

These two pics showed up in my FB newsfeed yesterday. Hermy with a very small Lil Foot. 

Today I attempted to recreate the pics. Lil Foot (who we call "Baby Foot" to avoid confusing him with the bigger Lil Foot) did not want to hold still. 

Lil Foot was fairly sick when I got him. His shell was soft and had shell rot. His eyes were goopy and he was just not very healthy. 

He's still rather stunted and his shell will never be shaped normal, but he's very healthy and active. 

Tortoise Roll Call

Otis- 

Baby Foot-

Georgie- 

Hermy- 

Pictures of Hermy

Here's my old girl, Hermy. She's a 70-ish year old desert tortoise. 

She adores sugar snap peas.

She's got the cutest pink tongue! 

I've had Hermy the longest of all my animals and she's my favorite. :) 

Lil Foot's Sleeping Spot

Lil Foot, a red foot tortoise, has decided that the box on the bottom shelf of my reptiles shelves is HIS box. 

When we bring him inside, he walks to the food bowl to eat, walks through the front room and into my bedroom, and climbs into his box. 

Tortoises are smart! Hermy, my desert tortoise, is the same way. She puts herself to bed in the laundry room. 

Hermy's School Visit

Hermy got to be the star of the Earth Day Assembly today at a local Charter school.  

She was unaffected by the noise and attention and took a nap while we waited. Then she walked around while I spoke for a few minutes. 

Once we got in the van, she got to eat her dandelion breakfast and was MUCH happier then. 

Now we are headed home so she can go back to basking in the backyard with the other tortoises.

Hermy

I walked in to the kitchen to find Hermy had gotten herself up. It's always a momentous occasion each Spring when Hermy stops actively hibernating on her own. 

I've drug her out of her corner in the laundry room a few times in the last month, but this was the farthest she's gone on her own. 

Otis had to check her out immediately. She was not amused. 

Then she discovered the heat lights and kicked Tuga out of his favorite spot. She's sleeping there tonight instead of putting herself to bed. 

That's what's cool about Hermy. She gets herself up from her corner and walks to the back door when she wants to go out. At our old house, she walked to the fridge first to eat breakfast and then walked to the back door. 

When we bring her in at night, she walks to her new food area, eats, and then walks to her corner in the laundry room to sleep. She totally trained herself too. Smart old girl! 

Hermy is a desert tortoise that I have a special permit to have. She is between 50 and 80 years old. I've had her 7 years next month--the longest pet I've ever owned as an adult. And, to be honest, she's totally my favorite. :) 

Here's a couple more pics-- 

HER corner!