Urgent Care :: help! Not sure if my turtle is sick or not.

[lexyammy]

I think my red ear slider turtle is sick but I'm not sure. He basked almost all day today and slept! Whenever I wake him up his eyes are closed and opens them VERY slowly. He used to be very active but hes become very inactive and I don't think he's ate since I got him (1 week ago) I haven't seen him poop or eat. I have heating set up to 75 degrees, with basking area and a UVB light bulb. He's a baby red ear slider and used to swim around a lot. Is he sick?? Help please! thank you! appreciate your help.

[butterflygirl921]

The water should be about 75 it can be a little warmer but the basking area should be warmer it should be about 85-90 degrees

[Jeremiah]

If it only did that for a day so far, I wouldn't worry yet. It's possible your basking spot is too warm; excess heat can "paralyze" turtles. Babies can be especially prone to this problem. Are its limbs limp, spread out, or tucked in while basking?

Depending on how much it has been disturbed (i.e., foot traffic or handling) your RES has experienced, it may not eat for a while. Many new acquisitions take time to adjust to a new home.

Also, babies like water temperatures around 78F (not necessary, but you may want to raise it if you believe it's sick).

[Peva]

Try to understand that young RES might have trouble surviving as well, so if it dies, it's not reflective on how you treated it.

It's very possible this behavior is just adjusting to it's new home. You can try giving the little guy some live feeder fish. If he/she chases after them but has trouble catching them, you can get dead ones and see if it eats them.

If the shell and skin look fine, he/she probably isn't sick.