Urgent Care :: Shell Problem, Shedding perhaps?

[mega_devastation]

helllo ppl, my name is Minda and i got a small RES, its doing just fine, very active and eats well (maybe too well) his shell is having problems and i think its cuz i feed it too much, it looks like its shedding but the scutes arn't comming off like they should be, i feed it twice a day and it finishes the food like in less than a minute, which makes me feel like its all starving but maybe not.. anyway here some pics and its stats>>>


How big is your turtle? about 1inch and a half
How long have you had it? about 1-2 months

What is the water temperature? n/a (no themometer)
Are you using a water heater? no
How much water is in there? about 3 gallons

Are you using a water conditioner? no
Are you using any filtration? yes

What is the basking temperature? n/a (no thermometer)
Is there a basking light? yes
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? yes
What kind is it or what is it made out of? its a platform attached to these bars with suction cups
Is there a UVB light? i have a floresent bulb but im not sure if thats a uvb light (the kind that waste about 6 watts of energy) i don't put it on that much cuz it doest heat

What have you been trying to feed it? i feed it reptomin mini pellets
When was the last time your turtle ate? this morning

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? hmmm, not very big, its a five gal. plastic tank
Is the tank near a window? nope
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? nope

Have you read the Basic Care section? yes
Have you searched the forums for similar situations? yes

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? not really

also it gets perty hot in the room (summer in los angeles) , sometimes, because of that i don't turn on basking light...

[mega_devastation]

what should i do about it??

[missibsu]

If you have read the basic care section as you stated, then you should realize that your set up is lacking some essentials. First off, one key to a healthy shell is a UVB light. I regular tube style bulb is not going to provide UVB. They also do not give off enough heat to entice your turtle to bask.

Knowing your water and basking temp is just as important. Water that is too cold can lead to lathargy and respritory illnesses. Water too warm can lead to excessive appetite and faster growth rate. For a hatchling, your water needs to be at a consistent 78F and your basking about 10 degrees higher. Please invest in a good themometer for the water and the basking area.

Rule of thumb for turtle water amounts is 10 gallons per inch. Right now, your turtle should be in a 20 gallon tank with as much water as possible. RES are expert climbers, so make sure he/she can't get over the edge.

Feeding should be once a day, the amount that would fit in the head if it were hollow. After about 6 months (to a year) the pellets should be offered every other day. Veggies should also be encouraged and offered daily.

Fixing some of these basic problems with lead to a better overall health of your turtle. As for the shell problems that exist now...does the shell have an odor? What happens to those areas when you push on them? Do they change color? Do they feel soft and squishy?

[Jessica313]

like missy said, if your want ur turtle to be healthy, you need to give him a proper set up.
it is essential to have a UVB light in order for the shell not to have problems.
if the flourescent light doesnt say it provides UVB, then it doesnt.

[mega_devastation]

i see... a thermometer is someting.. ive been overlooking, i feel perty wack about that..(especially with all the health risks, its my first time with reptiles). I live in a small apartment with my family so finding a big tank was something i haven't really been thinking about till the future when i move out (im 19yrs), (though the thought of seeing my little turtle swimming in a big 20 gal tank is so.. i don't know... dreamy!) maybe i can find a large container somewhere *ponders* yeah thats gonna be a tough one, i really want my turtle to be happy, I saw some big ones in petco the other day in this huge tank, they looked all happy swimming around, i want the same for my turtle but it sure doesn't come cheap! i didn't know it was gonna be this tough but im gonna hang in there and hope my turtle does too, we may be living all cramped up right now but one day it will be a different story (ok enough with the cheesyness, too much animal crossing) thanks for all the info, i should of taken that basic care section more seriously and maybe then i wouldn't of gotten scolded! heh.. Im sorry for my post, i should have seen it comming, the shell still bothers me, to ansewr your questions, the shell is hard all around though in the lighter parts, when i press it.. it looks like an air pocket (i hear its a simptom of shedding) but the edges of the scutes are sealed and are not peeling...., as for odor, well he smells like water, maybe river water? (sorry i don't know how to desribe) i'll try to get one of those uvb bulbs, that or find a place for him to bask outside...

[missibsu]

No odor is a good sign, although doesn't always signal an all clear. It could be that there is shedding and the scute just hasn't become loose at the edge. I'd wait for someone with more experience to comment on that.

For cheaper options than a tank, a large rubbermaid storage device works well too. There are a few things that you will have to deal with if you use one though. They bow, from the force of water, and they can crack easier. Read other posts about this, there are several out there.

If you can't get a UVB light, make sure that your turtle is getting outside for light as you mentioned. Make sure there is also shade available, and constant supervision.

[mega_devastation]

yeah, i was actually checking out some of those containers in a different section of this forum yesterday, they're perty crazy, (also kinda scary since i live on the second floor and it might break) though i guess im gonna have to save my money for a more powerful filter, that and a few other things....
on another note, something that bugs me is how you sed the temp of the water is supose to be a consistent 78F, but how does that happen in the wild? (im just wondering) anyway, thanks so much for the help!

[sonyj]

In the wild, they live in much "larger" bodies of water than what we can provide in captivity. Ponds, Lakes and Rivers hold much more water and water temps can remain at good levels with more water. Smaller water amounts such as their tanks tend to heat up/cool down faster.

We try to provide them with the best and as close to perfect conditions in captivity as possible. There is no way we can 100 % mimic mother nature who provides them with all the essentials of life that they need but we try to do the best in the confines that we have to work with.

[samandnelly]

http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=3222
Here is a similar topic, her turtles shell looks just like yours

[mega_devastation]

I see, thanks for the interesting facts, im glad you try your best to keep your pets as comfortable as you can... i remember once i went to a park and they had a pond/stream that acted like a barrier between the park and a golf coarse, well in there we saw all these turltes basking on rocks (easily 15+), they looked all majestic with their heads sticking out, absourbing the sun... heh ofcoarse they all knew that we couldn't get to them, they were on the golf coarse side of the pond, it was sooo cool though, just watching them bask, i thought, "they must love it"

.. but enough about that, i got a thermometer today and i got some bad news, it all read 85f (im reading it right now) i think its because the basking lamp is heating the water, which is all horrible, i had turned it off about an 2hrs ago , which is when i got home, how do i cool it down? (should i just let it cool down by itself or somthing?) damn, i now understand how important it is to have more water (thanks to you) but what can i do in the mean time?


thanks samandnelly for the link, though my turtle has layers of scutes or somthing you can actually see the nice green pattern turtles have underneith these layers, though the shell looks really dry on the part near its head, its really rough, it scares me (i'll try to take closer pics of it). yeah, in both cases the setup is definetly the problem, that and the lack of space to solve it..


mann today when i went to get the themometer i took a look at the other stuff im gonna save up for, those tanks looked soo cool, there was this one basic glass tank, 30 gal, sed it was for turtles,it was 50 bucks, the waterheater deelies, the cheap ones were like 13bucks, i didn't see any uvb lights which was kinda weird, but i heard that they were expensive ($40 a pop) i saw some filters for 30 gal, like $40, im still thinking about those tanks... maybe i can find one at a swapmeet or yardsale (all cheap like!)

[marisa]

I see some scutes that need to shed...

[Wes_RES]

I see some scutes that need to shed...

Give your RES a week or 2... they'll shed...

[mega_devastation]

i sure hope so, ive been wating for weeks

[steve]

Those white spots... if you scratch it, does some of it come off? If you can see under a scute that is shedding, is there more of the white stuff?

[mega_devastation]

nope, nothing comes off, though i can't see through the white spots, just everywhere else, there are little airbubbles and then you can see that nice green pattern at the bottom, i don't see white spots underthere...

though at those white spots on the part near the head, it looks really dry looking, thats the part that scares me the most....