Urgent Care :: My turtle is floating unevenly!

[marisa]

It's possible it could be gas, but watch out for other symptoms--wheezing, bubbles/mucus from the nose or mouth, open-mouth breathing, swollen eyes, lethargy, refusal to eat. RIs are often caused by temps that are too cool as well as drafts/breezes. A water temp of about 78F is OK for a healthy hatchling. If ill, bumping up the temps a bit to 81-82F is often advised because the warmth will boost the immune system and help him fight the infection. If you do see symptoms, take him to a reptile vet for antibiotics.

Turtles often eat their own poop, so if he's eating and you don't see any, that's what he could be doing.

[Toadzilla]

When i got home today, he, or she (dont know) is still floating sideways a bit. HE seems like he is breathing ok and there is nothing on his nose nor is he breathing with his mouth open.
He is still very active and comes too see me and eats fine, he is just tilted and if a startle him he does spirals and flips underwater :S

I have raised the temp of that tank to about 85 in hopes helping his body fight it. I went to a vet today to see if i could get any mediacation but they would not sell me any without a visit which would be over 65 bucks.. . I cant justify spending that so soon in his life when i bought him for 30. Any home remedys or human drugs he could take?.

Still hoping its not a RI..

[marisa]

I'd lower the temp a bit--to 82-83F at the highest. Keep him out of drafts, breezes. Since he's eating and active, that's a good sign. The warmth will help him fight the infection. What's the basking area temp (90-92F would be good).

I don't think trying to medicate him yourself with drugs is a good idea. A qualified reptile vet would know what drugs would be effective and what the dosage should be. Keep him warm and feed him a healthy diet. (What are you feeding hime?)

[Toadzilla]

I fed him some shavings of carrot when i got home today and he had 3 pellets this morning. The pellets are Nutrafin Max , hagen. (i said reptomin earlier but wasnt sure). He eat tuna, chicken, letuce. The last new type of food he ate was a small pice of a snow pea, hope they can eat them.....

I'll lever the water temp a bit, It hasnt quite made it there anyway.

Thanks for all the help you guys.

PS. I'll post my new aquarium setup once i get in done next week..... Its gonna be cool.. 5' x 2' x 15" with waterfall middle and half koi pond.

[Toadzilla]

He is still doing his sideways thing. I dont see any signs of a RI yet. He is still very happy and eats well and still comes to see me. He is still basking too.

It seem to me like he is floating more to one side and its frustration him. Before he would bob aroung when his front legs were holding something.. Now he seem like he has a bubble stick in him making him off balance.. when he trys to swim down to the bottom he does spins and cant get himself to stay down like he did before..

Im still stumped here.. I have posted a movie showing him try to dive.

http://www.toadtronics.com/Turtle.MOV

Any thoughts?

[marisa]

Like I said, there's a slight possibility it could be gas, but since it's continuing, I think I'd take him to a reptile vet just to be sure. When a turtle lists to once side, it often means there's fluid in the lungs, which causes the tilting. (Sorry, I can't see the pic.)

[lydia_lady_fla]

couldnt see the pic. either sorry, I agree he needs to see a vet. the spiral swimming etc. could be RI or even an ear infection, does his neck or side of his head seem swollen or bump? keep us informed plz.

[steve]

you need quicktime to view it
http://www.apple.com/quicktime/download/
that looks very serious and is not normal. when i got my hatchlings one of them started doing that about 2 weeks after i got him. he would miss his food because his coordination was off. he would be upside down in the water and could not flip over. he could not flip over on land either. i took him to the vet, who administered a series of shots over a month and that did not help.

my main concern right now would be drowning if his/her orientation is off.

[Toadzilla]

Hmmm , that sounds bad then steve. I thing he'll be a gone'r . He does eat but like you said with your his co-ordination is off. and i feed him by hand.

Since it never helped yours then i dont thing theres much i can do..
Steve , Did the vet say what yours had?.. Brain/birth defect maybe..

I guess i'll be buying a new one if he doesnt make it...

Sorry about the quick time movie post... that all my digtal camera makes it in.. but it does work if you get the plugin.

[steve]

My vet didn't know and I don't think the vet did a thorough test. I think he only did a salmonella test (and charged me $100). He gave him a vitamin and an antibiotic shot. Then he would get 2 antibiotic shots a week. I think that was supposed to last 2 months but I stopped it at 1 month. When I saw the vet inject him too hard and he was bleeding I ended it. The little guy was probably an inch long.

However, my turt made it. It was hard but he pulled through and has no problems like that anymore. He does has a little pyramiding and his shell is slightly concave in the middle. That too is getting better but very slowly.

This lasted almost a year. Mine was not able to swim much because the water he had as very little, in case he flipped over. He also refused to eat and would give up eating if he missed it a lot. He would not eat pellets or veggies. He only ate dried shrimp for the longest time. Then we started to give him some minnows which he could not catch on his own. He got better at catching them. Those were the only things he would eat. Then one day he accepted pellets. And he gradually improved over a few months and is doing great except for the shell probs.

Again I'm sure if it’s the same thing but it looks like it. You should still see a vet…and good luck!

[marisa]

Steve, I wondered what happened to that turtle. I remember someone on another site speculating that it could be a neurological problem. I'm glad to hear he made it even with the shell problems he does have.

Toadzilla, I'd still try getting him to a reptile vet. Good luck. Let us know what happens.

[steve]

yea, he's a fighter. he's got such a unique personality too. the shell problems were probably preventable and i'll always regret not doing a better job planning out his health needs.

i'm not sure if it was neurological since he was able to come out of it and i'd think it might have been viral in nature. but there were never precise answers to what he had.

[marisa]

Toadzilla, just wondering, but have you noticed any lump on the side of the head (even small)? I happened across someone who was describing their turtle as behaving somewhat like yours is. It turns out that the turtle had previously had an abcess that had not been taken care of promptly. A very knowlegable person commented that it's possible for an abcess to go into the brain, which would affect coordination etc. The recommendation was made to have a bacterial culture done. I'm by no means suggesting that your turtle isn't being properly taken care of, but just wanted to mention this bit of info in passing...Keep us updated on the progress of your turtle...

[Toadzilla]

Hi. Bacteria culture? of the tank water??. The tanks is really clean and i change the water completely every few days. I have not been able to notice anything strang on the side of its head. He still shows no signs that it is in fact a RI and he's still eating and all iw well.. He just cant swim right. I know i might sound crule but im not taking him to a vet this early in his life when he may end up dieing anyways of be left with a handycap for all its life... If he pulls throght , thats great. If not i'll be buying another.

[Toadzilla]

He didnt make it .. I came home sunday morning and found him upside down by the filter.

Oh well, nothing i could do. I'll be getting a new RES in a week or so after i get my new tank setup this week.