Urgent Care

Posted: Thu Nov 01, 2012 5:21 pm **Help hard water is ruining my guys shell**

I usually see my daughters turtle everyday......I guess its been awhile since I have seen him dry though. Today I walked in her room and he was basking and I noticed all the hard water stains on him (poor guy) he is looking pretty rough. I need help trying to figure out how to help him. I was able to help him shed to scales but the rest are very matted with the build up. I read on the internet that viniger and a toothbrush.....but I don't know if that will hurt the little guy. Help Please!

I would try to correct his diet first. He's still young and you'd want to avoid pyramiding. As for hard deposits, there is some retained scutes that could be making things looks worse than it is. There are also bacterial and fungal infections that can make the shell pitted and appear white.

You can try the vinegar, just take him out and dry him off. Then use a new toothbrush or cotton ball to wipe the area down.

The food thing was an issue I tried to address not to long ago.....there is a pet store were the Guy told me if I was worried about pyramid that I should feed himsera reptile food....it is for carnivorous. It has min 32.2% min crude protein, max 3.4% fat, Max crude fiber 5.6%, Max moister5.7%, Max crude ash 8.0%, minimax calcium 1.6%/2.0%, min phosphorus 0.9%......he gets fed one pellet a day. Should I change this?

Steve is right about trying vinegar
Penelope is đull cuz of hard water mark's
I asked my vet about wiping down with vinegar. She saw no problem...except ONE CAUTION keep it away from mucous membrane.
Just learned this; haven't tried yet

After cleaning him with vinegar with a cotton ball and tooth brush. Three scales came off on each plate. It looks like there is still another layer because I can see air bubbles under the scale on top. He really didn't want me to touch the circle of scales on his outermost ring (the smallest ones that circle his shell). Are these more sensitive?

Looks much better. I don't think there should be any areas that are more sensitive, unless there are some issues with it.

What brand pellet are you using?

hgrant4 wrote:The food thing was an issue I tried to address not to long ago.....there is a pet store were the Guy told me if I was worried about pyramid that I should feed himsera reptile food....it is for carnivorous. It has min 32.2% min crude protein, max 3.4% fat, Max crude fiber 5.6%, Max moister5.7%, Max crude ash 8.0%, minimax calcium 1.6%/2.0%, min phosphorus 0.9%......he gets fed one pellet a day. Should I change this?

I think the brand is called sera reptile

I had to use diluted vinegar on mine and they certainly did look better afterwards. I may give them another go-round when I check everyone next week. Yours looks a lot better.

Yep. I tried diluted vinegar today. It did not totally clean off the water marks, but I think a few more bouts may do it.
She just started to shed her skutes, so I am just going to drop the idea until she is done shedding.

@hgrant4

He really didn't want me to touch the circle of scales on his outermost ring (the smallest ones that circle his shell). Are these more sensitive?

I believe it just depends on the turtle. Penelope lets me clean her shell with no problem until I reach the ones close to her neck; then she goes psycho. So, obviously, that is a place she is is sensitive to.
Typically, turtles like to have their back very lightly scratched on the top, towards their back end - Penelope doesn't give me any problems in that area, but touch the "front" skutes and Good-Bye! fun is over.

Now ya know. Unless she has a shell problem or something, she probably just doesn't like it for whatever reason, so just leave them be.

Sorry for resurrecting this post. My cousin who has a turtle have the same problem and wanted to ask this: How many parts water and how many parts vinegar should be used for the shell? And after that, do I need to rinse the shell with water immediately, or do I just let the vinegar solution dry on the shell before taking the turtle back to the tank? For how long should the solution stay on her shell, and for how many days should this treatment be done? Her turtle is same as Dumbork's size, around 3 inches. Thanks!

I don't think there is a lot of consistent info on the subject, but I would try 1:1 and rinse within a few minutes.

Urgent Care :: Help hard water is ruining my guys shell

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