Urgent Care :: RES eating rocks

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Post Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 7:19 pm   RES eating rocks

My two year old RES is picking up small pebbles and eating them. She's hungry 24-7... whats wrong with her?
1 RES 2yrs old named Genetic. Aka The princess of the house.
1 Ornate Boxie named Angelface
1 Russian Tortoise named Mr Dillback
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Post Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 10:27 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

First thing I'd do is remove the rocks.

Next thing I'd do is call the vet especially if she is not eating pellets or anything else she is supposed to.
1 RES - A girl named Sheldon
1 feeder fish - affectionately named Fishy - RIP 5/27/12
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cutepanda86
 
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Post Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 10:30 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

She eats her regular food ive just notice that shes starting to pick up tiny pebbles. I didnt think she was eating them till we were cleaning her tank, we put her in the tub with water and when we went to get her there were two tiny rocks in the tub also...
1 RES 2yrs old named Genetic. Aka The princess of the house.
1 Ornate Boxie named Angelface
1 Russian Tortoise named Mr Dillback
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Post Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 11:02 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

Yes I would definitly call the vet and do some internet research. The sooner you figure out why she's doing that, the better.
1 RES - A girl named Sheldon
1 feeder fish - affectionately named Fishy - RIP 5/27/12
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cutepanda86
 
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Post Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 11:39 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

RES are opportunistic eaters.... would probably eat nonstop if possible.

Remove gravel ASAP. Keep the bottom bare and over the next couple of weeks scoop out poop/gravel. You can then leave it bare, or try sand or river rock.

viewtopic.php?f=5&t=12532
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steve
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Post Posted: Sun Mar 04, 2012 11:54 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

Im removing them now. Thank u soo much for posting that. Ive seen ppl use sand...is that good for them?
1 RES 2yrs old named Genetic. Aka The princess of the house.
1 Ornate Boxie named Angelface
1 Russian Tortoise named Mr Dillback
SButler88
 
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Post Posted: Mon Mar 05, 2012 1:21 am   Re: RES eating rocks

Sand works well for many people... it's worth a shot.
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steve
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Post Posted: Mon Mar 05, 2012 9:38 am   Re: RES eating rocks

^^Does it have to be a special kind of sand?
1 RES - A girl named Sheldon
1 feeder fish - affectionately named Fishy - RIP 5/27/12
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cutepanda86
 
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Post Posted: Mon Mar 05, 2012 12:59 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

Sand FAQ: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=17268

Easiest... pool filter sand. Cheapest... play sand.
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steve
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Post Posted: Mon Mar 05, 2012 2:12 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

Thanks very much! :)
1 RES - A girl named Sheldon
1 feeder fish - affectionately named Fishy - RIP 5/27/12
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cutepanda86
 
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Post Posted: Fri Jun 30, 2017 4:56 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

My RES turtle (Clarence) also eats tiny rocks from his basking area that fall out into the water. Until we get him a new bask, he has to stick to this pebble bask, or use his old bask which is way too small for him and doesn't provide a dry area. I don't want him to not be able to get dry from a small bask or eat rocks, but i want him to have enough space to get out of water, which the pebble bask provides. I used to feed him 3x a day with Wardley sticks with about 15 pellets in each meal , until i noticed that he was getting fat, so i cut down his diet to 2 meals a day with 10 in the morning and 10 in the evenings and a shrimp snack every other day. He is currently 5 inches. Is his diet too small? Is that why he is eating rocks?
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ClarenceRES
 
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Post Posted: Fri Jun 30, 2017 9:39 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

In my experience, it has nothing to do with diet. My Sheldon decided that the algae on the basking platform looked tasty and ended up eating her plastic dock, bits at a time which led to mineral oil enemas and high fiber treatments to flush them out. When I explained to the vet how I was feeding Sheldon, she said that the only thing she could think of was that the algae looked tasty. Regrettably, turtles are always looking for something to gnaw on.

Given that you still have a small turtle, I would watch for signs of melancholy and lack of appetite. That means Clarence could be constipated. The pebbles probably look like food which is why he eats them.
1 RES - A girl named Sheldon
1 feeder fish - affectionately named Fishy - RIP 5/27/12
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cutepanda86
 
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Post Posted: Sat Jul 01, 2017 10:13 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

Thank you. He has no signs and looks pretty healthy! I removed the pebble bask and placed an old bridge inside that is good for a bask, but it takes up a lot of room in his 20 gal tank. :roll: (Will be upgrading to 120 gal soon)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LPIFrpGr398- a video of him in his current tank and a slight glimpse of his new bask , which he was under.






1 male RES : Clarence :mrgreen:
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ClarenceRES
 
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Post Posted: Sat Jul 01, 2017 10:27 pm   Re: RES eating rocks

That's good to hear. Sounds like an upgrade is needed so 120 gallon would be awesome. Trying to eat the new platform huh? Feisty little bugger.
1 RES - A girl named Sheldon
1 feeder fish - affectionately named Fishy - RIP 5/27/12
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cutepanda86
 
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Post Posted: Sun Jul 02, 2017 12:43 am   Re: RES eating rocks

Feeding two times a day pellets seems like too much protein to me...does he get veggies too?

Usually people say to do about 1/2 size of the head (without neck) once per day, or head size ever other day, for pellets. And feed some lettuce / veggies daily or every other day?
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