Sick Leopard Tortoise

Question
Hi, I have a Leopard Tortoise which was attacked by a dog about a month ago.  
He has a puncture wound to the top left of his shell, and one also to the
bottom left.  I took him to the vet and was instructed to clean the wound two
times daily with diluted Betadine.  Our tortoise seemed to heal up well after
two weeks and was eating normally.  On the third week we noticed a declined
appetite, so we tried to give him a vary of different foods, but he still wouldn't
eat.  Then I noticed one day that he had a liquid coming from under his neck.  
I swabbed it and knew it was an infection due to the yellow color and putrid
smell.  I lifted up his neck to find what looked like another hole that both the
vet and I didn't see.  I immediately took our tortoise to the vet.  He would not
allow the Doctor to look under his neck, but the Doctor agreed there was an
infection.  I was instructed to orally give my tortoise Baytrill once daily, rinse
him with saline once daily, and to continue cleaning him with Betandine twice
daily.  I have been following this treatment plan for about four days now and
haven't seen any activity or appetite progress.  Our tortoise will stay in one
spot almost all day, will not eat, and will barely ever open his eyes.
  Our tortoise is probably less than a year old and weighs about one ounce.  
Before the canine accident he was very active and had a good appetite.  We
normally keep him in a 30x20 inch inclosure that is only about two inches
tall, but since he is sick we moved him into a 13x8 inch inclosure.  During the
day we keep in near a window that catches natural day light, and towards the
evening we have him under a 2.0 UVB reptile lamp with a heating pad under
his inclosure.  At night we turn off the light and heater to let the temperature
drop.  We also soak him in luke warm water daily to stimulate him, but lately
that hasn't been helping either.  We try to feed our tortoise an array of
different fruits and vegetables, but he seems to be picky only tending to eat
romaine lettuce while nibbling on other things like french beans, blueberries,
strawberries, hibiscus, extc...  Fresh water is also available in a well reachable
dish throughout the day.
   At this point I'm very concerned because I dont know if I should already be
expecting progress from my tortoise.  I'm wondering if he may be allergic to
the Baytrill, and if I should orally inject food into my tortoise since it has been
two weeks without eating.  I would also like to know if you agree to the
treatment plan we have been on so far.  Thank you for taking the time to read
through my question.  I hope you are able to help.


Answer
Hi Chasity,
This is a very sad one. Im not a vet, but really would like to help. I think he needs to go back to teh vet asap-
It is NOT uncommon for them to be allergic to baytrill so please watch for that. It almost sounds as you are describbing a side effect from a reaction to it. In my research, everything youve stated leans to a reaction. please cal your vet, ask them about if it needs to be seen, Id say yes he needs to be reevaluated. If it isnt eating you can not tube him unless youre experienced. this can be taught but it is difficult and if the tube isnt placed right he will get pneumonia to add to this.
The discharge that you saw odds are is a infection from the dog bite and with proper care should resolve however if it has absessed already then you have to follow a vet regimine.
This being said, If you google leopard tortoise and baytrilll read read read., It will provide you all the facts and shows the odds of allergic reactions.
please keep me posted.

guidedbywolf@yahoo.com