Urgent Care

So here's the deal: I just found one of my turtles seriously injured and dead. Here's the pic:

I have cats here. But before he died I made doubly sure that they would have 0 access to the tank. I have cat proofed it using duct tape and rope (which is all I have). And when I woke up this morning, the tank seemed completely untouched by any external animals i.e the cats. I'm thinking the two turtles got into a fight.... Help please!

They are in a 60 gallon stock tank indoors (can't keep it outside due to lack of necessary supplies to do so and the money to get those supplies as well to keep them outdoors due to there being a myriad of strays (both cats and dogs) as well as coyotes, foxes, etc. Here are pics of the pond:

I'm so sorry to hear it.

Had there been signs of aggression in the past between them?

Your pictures aren't showing for me, btw.

ljapa wrote:I'm so sorry to hear it.

Had there been signs of aggression in the past between them?

Your pictures aren't showing for me, btw.

No, not at all. The two seemed to always be on good terms with each other. And then, BAM!!! What does it say when you see the pictures?

I just get a broken image icon. The images are linked to Gmail account too, so it might not be publicly accessible.

Aggression escalates pretty quickly, were any of them males?

steve wrote:I just get a broken image icon. The images are linked to Gmail account too, so it might not be publicly accessible.

Aggression escalates pretty quickly, were any of them males?

I think it was a male that got killed. The other was a female...but I kind of had a hunch that they were both male but didn't listen to it. And now, one of them is dead! And I'd thought I'd gotten a female when I went to get him at the pet store. I knew I should have just looked online or something for a girl

When I went, they didn't even know how to tell the difference between a boy and girl, and my mom was in a hurry to leave so I had no choice but to rush it....

Here's the pictures:

Here's the direct link for another picture:

http://i1158.photobucket.com/albums/p61 ... ea0945.jpg

That one looks more like a female.

steve wrote:That one looks more like a female.

Oh.... Do you think it could have been a fight? Does the basking area look too small? Should I change it? Or is it something else perhaps?

I can't tell much of the basking area from the pics, but a 60 gallon would be too small for two RES. Rocks as basking areas also take away swimming space, so they're not ideal in smaller setups. Could she have been trapped underwater? A fight is likely, but it usually escalates. Did you notice any signs of fighting? Bite marks?

steve wrote:I can't tell much of the basking area from the pics, but a 60 gallon would be too small for two RES. Rocks as basking areas also take away swimming space, so they're not ideal in smaller setups. Could she have been trapped underwater? A fight is likely, but it usually escalates. Did you notice any signs of fighting? Bite marks?

I noticed two claw marks in her neck, and blood over her carapace. She looked terrible dude

I can imagine. Some RES can just be viscous. If that other one has long claws, then he's a male and should be kept alone.

steve wrote:I can imagine. Some RES can just be viscous. If that other one has long claws, then he's a male and should be kept alone.

Okay then :'( Thanks. What tank size do you recommend? I didn't get him the correct one because I couldn't find one under 100 dollars, and that was the biggest one under 100. So yeah....

If it's a male, you probably don't have to upgrade that 60 gallon. An aquarium would look nicer, so Petco has sales of aquariums up to 55 gallons for $1. Craigslist should be able to get you a used 100 gallon tank for $100 or so.

Urgent Care :: Something happened to my turtle last night....

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