red lump on russian tort

Question
QUESTION: Our approx. 5  year old Russian tortoise has a rather large red fleshy lump under it's tail...almost looks like it is coming out of it's cloaca!  I think it's probably an infection...but it's Friday night and we can't get her to a vet until tomorrow...is there anything we can do for her now?

ANSWER: This sounds like a penile prolapse- fairly common. It should return to normal on its own- just try to prevent it from getting dirty or damaged (or bitten by other turtles).

You can clean everything off, then wear surgical gloves, lube it with KY jelly, and gently try to re-insert it. If it is badly swollen, soak it in a sugary water solution to help it return to normal size.

If it continues, re-protrudes, or is damaged, you should see a vet.

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

QUESTION: I'm sorry to bug you again.  I am basically 100% sure she is female (she has an astrix cloaca not a slit) and am worried it could be intestines because of the bright red color...she is soaking in sugar water right now.  If it does not go back in on it's own, should we still try to coax it in even if it is intestines?
Thanks so much for your reply, in advance!!  

Answer
Dang, I missed the female pronoun.

If it is still out, I hate to say it but she should see a vet. It takes a lot of careful work by a couple trained people to manipulate everything back into place. The vet also has to identify the organ and try to determine why it prolapsed in the first place. Of course, Murphy's Law made sure this happened on a weekend.

Here is a site, although it does not offer a lot of hope: http://www.chelonia.org/articles/Cloacal_prolapse.htm

I went through my copy of "Mader's Reptile Surgery and Medicine" hoping for some advice, and about all I found you can do at home was this:
- Make the sugar solution more sugary if it is not helping reduce the swelling. (Boiling water can accept more sugar if needed.)
- Using clean gauze and first-aid tape, rig up a 'diaper' to keep the organ clean and undamaged until it can be seen by a vet. A bit of glycerin or something like KY Jelly on the organ will help keep it moist.

I wish I had something more concrete to offer!