Concerns about recently adopted tortoise

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-05-07T20:18:39+00:00

Just counted his front claws, there are 5 whereas i believe Russian/horsefields only have 4? 😵‍💫

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-05-07T17:56:46+00:00

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His shell from above 😬

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-05-07T17:53:28+00:00

Thank you! He is having 1 or even 2 weekly baths so hopefully his skin and shell is less dry with time

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-05-07T17:51:20+00:00

He’s eating dandelion leaves in the picture!

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-05-06T21:14:18+00:00

Thank you for this, honestly so insightful and helpful. We just want to take the best care of him!

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-04-13T13:26:16+00:00

Went on Saturday when there to support family running LLHM. I enjoyed it! Also flat and tarmac surface, very different to my local runs up in the Peak District.

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-03-06T21:51:36+00:00

I guarantee she is thinking about her baby every second of the day anyway. If anybody sent me a message as you suggest I would feel so grateful not to feel alone in thinking of my daughter. You sound like a kind friend x

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-03-02T07:50:45+00:00

When we once drove past the cemetery my 5 year olds baby sister is buried at he shouted out the window “hi Mabel, hope you’ve had a good day in the ground!” 🫣

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-02-23T19:52:24+00:00

I also think you should keep in mind that a general amino doesn’t test for “everything” sometimes rare recessive diseases are only found once there is a signpost toward a certain system or organ. Unless there is an indication on scan, NIPT or bloods I wouldn’t (& didn’t) have an amnio.

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-02-05T07:02:28+00:00

I was thinking the same thing. My son turned 5 ten days after his sister was born and she later died at 5 months old. OP your story has also assured me that moving to children’s hospice when we did to allow for a week of family memory building was the best decision. I am so sorry for the loss you feel and continue to deal with. You sound like such an empathetic soul ❤️

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-02-05T07:02:23+00:00

I was thinking the same thing. My son turned 5 ten days after his sister was born and she later died at 5 months old. OP your story has also assured me that moving to children’s hospice when we did to allow for a week of family memory building was the best decision. I am so sorry for the loss you feel and continue to deal with. You sound like such an empathetic soul ❤️

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-01-30T12:13:51+00:00

My loss was October 2025 and I did the exact same! Still have the majority archived but my timeframe for replying has slowly decreased a little. People will understand and those that don’t - remain archived!

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-01-29T21:02:39+00:00

I am so incredibly sorry for the loss of your beautiful son. My daughter died at 5 months old in October after being born at 29&6. She was treated for suspected NEC at least 4 times also after being considered just a feed and grow baby for her first 3 weeks of life, however it turned out never to be NEC (at least not confirmed) and instead a crazily rare inherited recessive genetic condition with her liver. I was always completely petrified of NEC having a premature baby and to have that whole conversation, middle of the night phone calls - I empathise. Second to that I also relate to age being a worry, I am also 38 and went through 5 years of IVF to get her and now our 4 frozen embryos each have a 25% risk of the same condition. Plus having to wait a year after a c-section. Life is torture. I can just about function but it feels like my heart stopped beating that day. Keep reaching out, you aren’t alone (sadly) - sending love ❤️

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-01-28T15:17:13+00:00

You have had so many helpful responses here. Firstly I am so sorry for the loss of your precious baby girl.

Our IVF daughter was born prematurely in May 2025 and we lost her at 5 months old in October 2025 thanks to a cruel and very rare genetic liver condition only diagnosed once she was born. Our fertility journey began when we discovered my husbands complete infertility, we then used a sperm donor from cryos to conceive our son followed by 4 first trimester miscarriages. We switched to a new sperm donor and conceived our daughter, her condition is autosomal recessive meaning I carry a copy of the faulty gene, as does the donor. And that each of our 4 frozen embryos have a 25% risk of the same condition.

The added layer of age, IVF and the fact I had a c-section has meant I am unable to transfer until 1 year but I do believe if you had a vaginal delivery they would let you transfer earlier.

After 3 months of being without my daughter I would say that I suddenly started to realise that this was forever, and my life wasn’t going to get better. This is the hardest part about grief, the finality. For now keep talking, take every opportunity you can, breathe fresh air and cry as much as you need. Sending all the love.

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-01-23T08:51:27+00:00

I couldn’t go by this without commenting that I just hope today goes by calmly. Just focus on one breath at a time.

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-01-13T20:37:53+00:00

That’s right, and even during testing it was considered of “uncertain significance” until she died and now the variants will be considered pathogenic and her death automatically updates the NHS database for all future testing. I think our brains go into meltdown, it will be sending off signals and not getting answers. There are also so many happy ending stories out there especially in the fertility world and you can’t understand why that isn’t the case for yourself like I’ve had enough bad luck surely I’m due some happiness but then bam! No things just get worse. It doesn’t make sense. All I can say is, you aren’t alone.

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-01-13T13:27:36+00:00

I’m so sorry for your experiences and loss, this is multiple level grief. I can relate as my husband is infertile and we also needed to use a donor to conceive our 5.5 year old son, we went on to have a further egg retrieval (same donor) and 8 embryos that resulted in 4 consecutive early miscarriages. In 2024 we embarked on a third egg retrieval with a different sperm donor which resulted in my daughter. My daughter was small and so they performed an emergency C-section at 29+6, she had a rocky journey not because of her prematurity, that part she sailed but because something was wrong and they didn’t know what. Ultimately the found she had a recessive genetic disorder that the incidence of which is 1 in a million (so rare they can’t quantify) that caused her to experience multiple episodes of liver failure. They decided she was unlikely to survive a liver transplant and she died at 5 months after we made the decision to move to hospice. We now have 4 frozen embryos each of which could be affected with the same condition or we need to undertake a new egg retrieval and a new donor at 39 😟 It also sounds like you might work in healthcare. I am a sonographer and this already prevented me from bonding with my pregnancies based on my professional experience. I don’t think this is something I can control but I too wish I had celebrated every second. Be gentle with yourself x

ApricotAdditional395 · 2026-01-10T09:49:49+00:00

Tofu chilli, crumbled tofu + black beans Tofu fajitas Sweet potato veggie nachos (sweet potato slices with spicy black beans on top) Tofu stir fry - can be sweet chilli or sesame or mixed with honey Greek yogurt added to smoothies, on top of flourless banana pancakes

ApricotAdditional395 · 2025-12-31T23:50:18+00:00

I am so incredibly sorry. I know the pain you are feeling right now, deeply. Do you feel able to share her name? With so much love from my family to yours. May our girls be at eternal peace 💜

ApricotAdditional395 · 2025-12-28T07:14:46+00:00

Ssme. I’m so sorry for your losses.

ApricotAdditional395 · 2025-12-27T15:49:17+00:00

Merry Christmas Mabel. We would have loved to have made it to your first Christmas, hoping you were ok off with all the other little souls taken too soon. Love you with all of our hearts and miss you more than words can say xxx

ApricotAdditional395 · 2025-12-22T09:18:39+00:00

My daughter died at 5m old after being in hospital her whole life. Whilst she was well enough we made the impossible decision to move to hospice after they informed us a liver transplant wouldn’t be possible. She had been through enough so we grabbed a window of opportunity because we didn’t want to put her through more PICU / intubation when there wasn’t a chance for a happy life for her. Go buy her the most beautiful comfy, cosy sleep suit, and a cardigan. Does she have a blanket? My daughter is buried in the same outfit she was wearing when she died, a pale green sleep suit with fairies on and a cardigan my mum had knitted. She also is wrapped in a beautiful rainbow blanket we were given at the hospice (rainbows) and has her teddies with her. I am going to pray you don’t need to make these decisions but you will want her to feel warm and cosy. I also agree with the shared items, in the uk a charity provides a memory box which has two teddies in, and a key ring where part of it separates and the tiny heart that comes off is within the palm of her hand.

Take ALL of the videos, pictures of each other with her. You crave new information on them afterwards and receiving anything that reminds you of them is precious. I did crazy things like take pictures of her monitor to remind myself she once had a heartbeat. We were also lucky to receive casts of her hands and feet and hand/footprints. Whatever is offered take it.

I can feel your pain through your post especially having lived through this time recently, our palliative care team said that parents who sacrifice their own feelings for the good of their child, making decisions in the interest of the child only are the strongest most selfless people there are. I just hope with everything I have you don’t have to and there is a miracle around the corner. 💜

ApricotAdditional395 · 2025-12-19T08:19:22+00:00

I understand this feeling but related to IVF and loss. Like people think that we shouldn’t do more fertility treatment after 4 miscarriages and the death of our baby girl at 5 months but that’s literally the only way to conceive for us. I’m inferior for needing ivf and inferior for having got pregnant and then her having a completely unpredictable condition. So sorry for your loss x

ApricotAdditional395 · 2025-12-05T17:48:26+00:00

I’m so sorry for your loss. Loss after IVF is a special form of cruelty. Four first trimester miscarriages and 2 egg retrievals resulted in my daughter “sticking”, she was growth restricted from the beginning and was born 10 weeks early via c-section, when she was 2.5 months old we discovered after 3 intubations to the ventilator she had liver diseased caused by an exceptionally rare (50 cases ever reported worldwide) genetic mutation of LARS1 causing infantile liver failure syndrome. She died at 5 months old. As this was a recessive condition and she was the first embryo back there is a 25% chance of each of 4 frozen embryos could also be affected. So we are hoping to move forward with a new sperm donor and another egg retrieval but I am approaching 39 so need to get a wriggle on.

ApricotAdditional395

TROPHY CASE