Bought animal on here, later found out it is severely impacted.

I recently purchased a tortoise from a seller on this group. The gentleman was very helpful during the transaction, and I was initially very happy with the animal. About a month went by and I noticed that he was not thriving. I took him to my vet, who is a reptile specialist, and he ran the entire spectrum of tests only to discover that the animal was severely impacted. Apparently he was housed in sand at some point during his time before he came into my possession, and he has basically now a giant glob of concrete in his digestive tract. My vet told me this was due to eating sand over time, and having it build up in his intestines. I have also been told that we have about a 50/50 chance of the tortoise not dying. I really do not know what I should do in this situation. Obviously I told the vet to start treating the animal, but I paid top dollar when I purchased him. Since then I have put almost an additional $500 into him in veterinary bills, I am now facing at a minimum another $500 in treatment, and if we are not able to get this blockage to work its way through, a surgery it will cost at the very least three to five thousand dollars. Not to mention at the end of all this, the animal may or may not still be able to breed, which was the reason that I paid top dollar for him. At this point I am just looking for any suggestion on how I should handle this. I believe that the seller had no idea that this problem existed, but at the end of the day the damage was done to the animal before it came into my possession. What should I say to the seller? Should I ask for a refund and offer to return the animal? I have already spent nearly as much as I paid for the animal in vet bills. And I still very much need this little guy, because he is the key to my breeding project at the moment. I would greatly appreciate any feedback from anyone who has gone through a similar situation. Thank you very much for your time.

Have you contacted the original seller?

Was the tortoise eating and passing food well when you received it, and now, after a month, is not? It seems strange that such a serious impaction would not be clear immediately. In your care, was it ever on soil, sand or gravel?

Unfortunately this is often the way this hobby goes. I don't think I'd personally expect a refund this late in the game.

Thank you for the input. He was and still is currently eating. But this problem has gone on so long the vet told me that the bottom half of his GI tract has shut down and the top half of his GI tract is working overdrive trying to dislodge the clog. He is in a massive outdoor enclosure with me, so it is possible that he could have added to the problem here. But my vet said that there's no way it could have accumulated as much as it has in the time since I bought the animal. I have not yet contacted the original seller, I don't even know if I'm going to. I don't even know what I would ask him to do if I did contact him. This is just kind of a bad situation, and like you said it's sort of the nature of the beast. Thank you for taking the time to answer my question.

Originally Posted by tctpa523

Thank you for the input. He was and still is currently eating. But this problem has gone on so long the vet told me that the bottom half of his GI tract has shut down and the top half of his GI tract is working overdrive trying to dislodge the clog. He is in a massive outdoor enclosure with me, so it is possible that he could have added to the problem here. But my vet said that there's no way it could have accumulated as much as it has in the time since I bought the animal. I have not yet contacted the original seller, I don't even know if I'm going to. I don't even know what I would ask him to do if I did contact him. This is just kind of a bad situation, and like you said it's sort of the nature of the beast. Thank you for taking the time to answer my question.

A month is a lot of time to eat junk, outside is a good place to do it. If I were the seller I don't know that I could help you in this case, unless I had noticed problems with the turtle myself (but then again I wouldn't be selling it if I did). It's a tough spot to be in.

Is the turtle not pooping but still eating?

That situation sucks, especially if you're talking a regulated species.


However, I can offer some insight, although it's not what you want to hear.

If the original seller sold him to you as a breeder, you may have recourse. If the tort was represented as a breeder, with a price tag of that of a breeding specimen, it wouldn't be difficult to get a judgement in your favor of returning the tort and getting a refund. You may not be awarded the vet costs, however, because you elected to have those tests ran. You may be awarded vet costs if any life saving procedures were done, but it sounds as if they were just evaluations??

If you just bought the tort from the seller as a tort (no words about it being a proven breeder, will mature to a great breeder, etc)and you were thinking in the back of your mind about being able to breed it, and the seller expressed no guarantee to it's ability to reproduce, then you bought a lemon and essentially a pet. It would be nigh on impossible to prove the seller had knowledge of the impaction and WILLFULLY sold you a lemon. And proving he knew about the impaction would be the only way you'd be awarded the money you've already invested.

The seller may or may not be a schmuck, I guess there's not enough details to determine that.

You could always just contact him, provide him vet proof of the impaction, and ask him how he would remedy this icky situation. You'll get a way better vibe by his answer.

Originally Posted by Occidentalis

A month is a lot of time to eat junk, outside is a good place to do it.

Originally Posted by Magic

provide him vet proof of the impaction

Recovery may not be that easy.

There is an impaction. There is a month this critter lived outside at the buyer's house.
It is possible some of the impaction occurred during that month.
See comparative negligence in tort law (pardon the pun).

Originally Posted by Lucille

It is possible some of the impaction occurred during that month.

I would argue that all of the impaction could have occurred during that month. But mine is not an expert opinion.

Originally Posted by Occidentalis

I would argue that all of the impaction could have occurred during that month. But mine is not an expert opinion.

Originally Posted by tctpa523

But my vet said that there's no way it could have accumulated as much as it has in the time since I bought the animal.

Still, even partial fault may be a bar to some recovery, depends on particulars and jurisdiction.

Thanks for your time. I appreciate the advice.

Thomas, what kind of tortoise is it and how big is it? I assume from context that it is a male.