my horsefield tortoise

Question
QUESTION: Hi
im really worried about my tortoise because he is blowing bubbles out his nose...
i rang the reptile room were i got him from and they just said he has a cold and will get better soon.
So ive left it for a few days and he still has it , im really worried. i dont want to phone a vet because i scared it will be too expensive and i wont be able to afford it .
Help me please..
thanks

ANSWER: Hi Caroline,

You were given bad advice.  An upper respiratory infection in a tortoise can't be left alone because it can develop into pneumonia and kill the tortoise pretty quickly.  If it's a true URI, you need to see a vet for antibiotics.  This won't cost too much--just an exam fee and the cost of the medication, which is usually given by injection for about 10 days.

The symptoms of a URI are runny nose/bubbles from the nose, wheezing, gaping/yawning, stretching the neck out to breathe, and lack of appetite/lethargy.  A too-dry environment will also cause a mild runny nose, so if you're keeping your tortoise very dry and the runny nose is the only symptom you're seeing, please post back and we'll figure out if it's his habitat or a problem for the vet.  Please let me know how you're keeping him--type and size of enclosure, substrate, lamps (heat and UVB), temperatures, and diet.  Post as soon as you can so we don't let this wait too long.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: can this URI affect all tortoises?
I'm keeping him a vivarium tank, with glass windows, the hottest temperature i round 83-88. I feed him on a mix of dryed flowers with i bought from the reptile room, and also a 'tortoise dry formula' which is a complete and balance nutrition for all tortoises, i also bought from the reptile room, occasionally i will give him some baby spinach, rocket leaves etc.i have a water bowl in the tank, and i bath him every few days.
i would say the tank is about 15inchs lenght and 8inchs height.
He seems to be active still, and eating. Not really seen him drink though. He seems to have a bad sleeping pattern. Sometimes he will sleep alot in the day and be awake at night, but always settles ok for night time eventually.
I think it could be pretty dry in his habitat, but how would i make it more moist?
Ive seen him yawn occasionally, but i just thought this was normal...

if Theres anything else you need to know, ill tell you.
Thankyou for getting back so soon.
Caroline

Answer
Well, I'm afraid you did get some very bad advice on care and I would avoid taking any more advice from the reptile room.  A viv is not suitable for a tortoise, and even a hatchling needs more room than a small viv.  Vivs don't provide good air circulation and will keep the temperature too hot.  Look for something more suitable--for now, even an old bookcase turned on its back will do, or a large bin.  You didn't say how big he is, but something about 2' x 1' would be fine for a small tortoise up to about 3", and 4' x 3' for an adult.  Keep in mind bigger is always better.

You didn't say what kind of substrate you're using (bedding).  I recommend a mix of coir (bed-a-beast or ecoearth in the U.S.) and playsand.  If you keep it a bit damp it'll keep the humidity level up enough to prevent dehydration from the heat lamp.  You want a basking temperature of 90-95 F under the heat lamp (measured on the substrate, not air temperature), and then a cooler area of 70-75 F.  An even temperature in the 80s is too warm--they need hot and cool areas so they can regulate their temperatures.  You also need a good UVB bulb, which can be a separate bulb or a combination heat/UVB bulb.

The dried flowers sound OK, but get rid of the dry food.  Commercial foods aren't good for tortoises, no matter what they tell you.  Good greens you can buy are (these are American names) turnip, mustard, dandelion, collards, kale, spring mix (baby lettuces here; not too much of these); you can also feed weeds such as dandelion, chicory, mallow, sow thistle, chickweed, hawkbit, clover, etc.

If he's still active and eating, and you're not seeing obvious URI symptoms, I would suspect that making some changes to his environment will stop the runny nose.  If you'd like to post back again and set your answer to *private*, I'll give you my email and we can make sure he gets set up correctly.