Symptoms:

Common symptoms
are not necessarily obvious or distinctive, and generally include:

• Open-mouth
  breathing or troubled breathing.

• Loss of
  appetite, weight loss, poor general health.

• Nasal discharge
  (more likely for URTD).

Treatment:

• Veterinary
  tests (x-rays, samples) can confirm that it is a LRTD and what the root
  causes are.

• The vet will
  recommend a course of action based on the causes. It is important to
  follow the
  recommendations carefully to have the best chance at fighting this
  dangerous
  disease.

• Any
  medications, such as antibiotics, the vet recommends should be used
  exactly as
  described for the best results.

• Have other
  tortoises checked.

• Disinfect and
  clean the habitat.

• Boost habitat
  temperatures and provide other nursing support.

“Runny Nose Syndrome” or URTD

URTDs
are the
most common forms of ‘Respiratory Infection’ in tortoises and should be
considered much more
serious than the ‘head cold’ or ‘flu’ it is often compared to. It is
thought that
the bacteria exists naturally in many species of tortoise, and that the
bacterial colony will ‘bloom’ under certain conditions. While no one
knows for
sure what triggers the disease, things like stress, increased pathogen
counts
in the habitat (due to poor hygiene or introducing an infected
tortoise), poor
temperature control, poor diet, and so forth are possible causes.

Causes:

It is usually a
bacteria called Mycoplasma that
few antibiotics affect. Other bacteria,
viruses, or fungi, as well as poor diet, temperature control, and
hygiene can
make things worse or cause secondary infections.

Symptoms:

• Discharges from
  the nares (nostrils) and/or eyes.

• Puffiness
  around the eyes. May have difficulty opening the eyes.

• Eroded nares,
  often with grooves developing around the openings.

• Loss of
  appetite, weight loss.

• General poor
  health.

Treatment:

Treatment is
about the same as LRTD above. There is no known specific treatment for
URTD
because the primary bacteria cannot be managed with antibiotics. Most of
the
treatment focuses on treating secondary infections and boosting the
immune
system.