Urgent Care :: Turtle Spots - Please help my Ernie!

This is not a substitute for qualified and relevant veterinarian care.
Read this before you post a new topic here.

Post Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2006 8:31 pm   Turtle Spots - Please help my Ernie!

Hello, I'm not really new to the forum persay, more like a lurker - but I've been reading up a lot.

Anywho, I have two baby RES turtles. Ernie & Thor. [ Even though they're too small to determine their sex, I still love their names. ] Anywho, I've had them for .. almost a month now. It was an early christmas gift from my boyfriend, and he brought them in those little lagoons that the pet shops have. But I recently switched my turtles living area into a 10 galloon tank for now, because thats the only tank I have around, and honestly, there isn't enough time in the day to upgrade further than that.

On with the point, my loving Ernie has been REALLY lethargic and sleeping all the time, not eating, and I noticed he has these spots which are scaring me. I feed them pellets, sometimes shrip, krill, pieces of spinach. Thor sleeps a lot but he'll still eat and such. No spots on him. I dechlorinate the water, I put eyedrops in both their eyes for safe sakes. But I have no idea HOW or WHERE or WHY or most importantly WHAT, these spots are.

I wont be able to take him to the vet for a couple of days, so I was hoping for some help and guidance.

Thank you for taking the time to read this considerably lengthy plea. Lovely forum by the way! I love it!


Image

Spot under his eye, and as you can see near his claws. He has some on his left hind leg as well.

Image

Other side.


Thank you once again!

Chantelle
Chants
 
Posts: 2
Joined: Jan 13, 2006

Post Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2006 8:44 pm   

I can't really comment on the spots because I'm not as experienced with illnesses as other turtle keepers but it seems to me that it might be something you'd want a vet to look at.

As for what you've been feeding them... spinach is a big NO NO for turtles as it inhibits their ability to absorb calcium which is needed for their bones and shell. You may want to check out the what to feed and not feed your turtles..


Also, what is the rest of your setup like. You mentioned a 10 gallon tank but nothing else. Do you have a basking area, the proper lighting. What are the water/basking temps? The temperature and condition of the water are one of the leading reasons for illness in turtles. Keep us posted and I'm sure someone else will answer the question on the spots a bit more in depth than I can :)[/code]
Carol
User avatar
cam722
Retired Mod
 
Posts: 2109
Joined: Jun 2, 2005
Location: Northeast PA

Post Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2006 9:20 pm   

We had a turtle that had a eye like this when we got him. My husband :) found a site on the net that said to.....use a solution of distilled water and salt. Do this morning and night. use a q-tip to apply the solution. Steven would take him out of the tank and apply the solution let it dry and then do it again. Then let him dry and put him back in the tank. If not cleared or looking better in 4 days. Go straight to the vet. It worked very well for us and Tiny Tim has showed no problems with his eye. I was also using eye drops that I bought from the pet store. Now let me say this. I personally think that since both of your turtles eyes have it you should take he on to the vet asap!!!
8 RES: Tampa, Bay, Exclamation (Male R.I.P. 2-10-07), Question-mark, Tiny Tim, Pan Handle (Male), Squirt, & Crush.

KI4JAV

www.notyourdaddysguncases.com
User avatar
TinySlider2
 
Posts: 463
Joined: Jul 30, 2005
Location: Tennessee

Post Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2006 9:33 pm   

Thank you cam722! Hm, you're probably right - I had a turtle when I was younger and I used to feed him spinach all the time, and we was okay. But I'll defaintely take this into consideration.

As for my set-up. It DOES have a basking area, proper lighting, heater - if needed, filter, the works. And plenty of swimming area, although they don't really seem to want to swim. At all. The temps are right now about in the low 80s. I raised the temperature a tad.

TinySlider2 - you were so helpful! By any chance, do you have the website saved? Also, what type of salt did your husband use? Oh, and only one turtle has it. Misconception on my part. Sorry. Congrats on your marriage! :D!!

Thank you both!
Chants
 
Posts: 2
Joined: Jan 13, 2006

Post Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2006 10:02 pm   

I meant that the one turtle has it in both eyes. Here is the web site. http://turtleportal.free.fr/turtle_en.html good luck!! It was regular table salt. Thanks :)
8 RES: Tampa, Bay, Exclamation (Male R.I.P. 2-10-07), Question-mark, Tiny Tim, Pan Handle (Male), Squirt, & Crush.

KI4JAV

www.notyourdaddysguncases.com
User avatar
TinySlider2
 
Posts: 463
Joined: Jul 30, 2005
Location: Tennessee

Post Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2006 3:45 pm   

They are able to open their eyes on their own? This looks like some sort of infection and/or nutritional deficiency. You didn't say much about the set-up other than it being 10-gallons, but their diet is definitely lacking. I'd try a bit of plain cod liver oil on the eyelids, once or twice a day. If it is a Vit. A deficiency, you should know it in a few days.

As for the spots, taking them to a herp vet would be the best thing to do. Good luck, let us know what the vet says.
"You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed." -Antoine de Saint Exupery-
marisa
Retired Mod
 
Posts: 12993
Joined: Apr 21, 2005
Location: CT, USA


Return to Urgent Care

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 12 guests