Urgent Care :: Turtle staying out of water

[Tctoos]

Hi all!
Appreciate if anyone can advise me on my turtle's condition.

I have 2 RES, a couple, both 8 years old. They are kept in a water tank (1m x 0.6m x 0.6m, half full), which is linked to a "sand" tank of a same size.
Recently my female RES is behaving weirdly. I'm fairly certain that she is laying eggs, but her behaviour this time really baffles me. For the past two weeks, she has been covering herself underneath a piece of cloth or cardbox in the sand tank and does not move at all until feeding time. We only feed them once a day in the afternoon in the water tank. After eating, she would return to the same position in the sand tank and stay there, even after we turned off the light at night. She does not bask as well.

I'm worried for her; is this normal? Is she having complications from laying eggs? Will she get sick from staying out of the water for such a long period of time?

We do not have a vet in town, and I'm at loss of what to do. Really appreciate any input from you guys.. Thanks!!

[steve]

Is she being harassed by the male? Have you felt for eggs?

[Tctoos]

Hi Steve
She laid 4 eggs just before behaving this way. Unfortunately all the eggs were broken by the time we discovered them.

[steve]

What about harassment? Male RES will develop aggression against other turtles, often requiring separation. How big is the female? Her eggs might not have been viable anyway. It's also not a very good idea to breed RES, but that's another issue.

[Tctoos]

Hi Steve
We are not looking to breed RES, so no worries there. She is around 7 inches long and the male is 1 inch smaller. There does not seem to be any harassment, especially now when they are in different tanks. They only see each other during feeding time, and I don't see any aggression between them.
Recently she seems to be sleeping while hiding underneath the cloth. We had to nudge her to let her know it is feeding time and she would walk towards the water tank. After eating, she would return to the sand tank again.
She had laid eggs several times now. Usually she would just bask, stay out of water or get restless and jumping up and down in the water, but hiding is something new.. Since she just laid 4 about 3 weeks ago, I'm not sure if there are any more coming.
Will she get dehydrated from staying out of water for so long? Should I put a small container with water in the sand tank?
Should I leave the light on 24/7, at least to provide her with some warmth at night?
Thank you!

[steve]

How long is she out of the tank? I'm not sure I understand the tank situation. It would be normal for a turtle to sleep under clothing or a towel.

[Tctoos]

Hi Steve
The tanks are actually connected by a bridge, so they can freely wander around both tanks. The female RES has been staying out of the water tank for days now, only going back when it is feeding time. During this period, the male RES stayed in the water tank and did not cross to the sand tank.
She has never stayed out from water for so long, nor hiding this way. Not sure if she is actually stressed or retaining her eggs?

[steve]

I'd feel for some eggs. At night and when it's dark, if you put her into the water, does she go back out?

[Tctoos]

I'm not sure how to feel for the eggs. For the moment we have separated the male and female RES.
Today she seems to be avoiding water and having difficulties floating. She does not even want to go in the water to eat. We have to put the food in shallow water and she would poke her head underwater to eat. Could it be respiratory problem?

[steve]

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY2pRyQgn9o[/youtube]

When was the last time she ate? How does she respond to treats? If there are no vets near by, are there any rescues or veterinary schools you can speak to?

[Tctoos]

Sorry for the late reply; I didn't have internet access these few days. No, we don't have vet nor vet school here.
She is still having poor appetite, but now she no longer hides. She has been digging around instead. I guess she is really gravid. I'll just wait and see how for the next few days. Hopefully she will be back to normal after laying eggs.

For how long do you think I should keep the male and female separated? Thanks for your help!

[Jeremiah]

I would permanently separate them.

[Tctoos]

Hi Steve
Just an update regarding my RES. You were right; the female RES was being harassed. They have been staying together for years now and seem to get along just fine. Even if they fought, it was limited to pushing and kicking each other at most. However last night when we put them together for feeding, the male RES suddenly turned hostile against her. He went berserk and bit a small part of her tail off!
The bleeding has stopped but the female RES is too terrified to go underwater. And traumatised to even show us her tail. We applied some iodine in the hope of preventing infection. Will it grow back?
The male RES is back in his tank and he has been trying to climb his way to her tank. When he rests, he would face and lean his shell against the side of the tank separating the two of them. They can't see each other from their tanks, but somehow he knows which direction.
Any suggestion? Thank you.

[Jeremiah]

You should dry-dock her for a bit. The wound will heal better that way. Unfortunately, it won't grow back. You can put a little dab of Neosporin on, if you'd like. However, iodine is only good for one initial treatment like you described. Good call on separating them! The male is just going to have to learn the virtues of solitude. He'll eventually get used to it.

[steve]

My male RES will go after the female when out of the tank and on land as well. Sadly, he really needs to be kept away from her forever. How are their setups like now? Can you post a picture?