Urgent Care

I have two turtles who share a tank (both appear to be female, based off of tail). I am well aware that the tank is too small and ordered a 150-gallon upgrade two weeks ago (just waiting for it to come in). The water is 74°. There is only a small heater in there but has always done the job (with this heater, I am unable to up the temperature. It is what it is with this small heater). I have a larger heater for the new tank which I have not used yet because it's for the new large tank (Jager 250Watt but am afraid to put it in this tank because it is meant for a larger tank. Not sure if putting it in 65-gallons is ok since it is meant for up to 150-200 gallons?).
My turtle stopped eating completely about 2 weeks ago. I noticed 3-4 weeks ago that she was trying to climb out of the tank from the dock. She never did this before and I was shocked! Of course, at the time, I wasn't aware that this is a sign of egg-carrying. She hasn't tried to escape for a few weeks now, but as I said, she completely stopped eating. My other turtle is fine.
Anyway, just within the past week, I read a lot of info that maybe she is carrying eggs. Even though she hasn't tried escaping and her only CURRENT unusual behavior is not eating anything, I bought a 30-gallon tub with soil and playsand and created a nesting area. Every time I put her in there, she instantly tries to climb the sides and get out. She has no interest. I know that there would only be certain times of the day to put her in there, but since she isn't trying to escape anymore, I don't know when the right time would be since she is acting pretty normal. I haven't noticed any digging behavior in her tank with her back legs.
She appears normal (eyes look ok, not sneezing or anything) and is basking pretty often.. Possibly basking more than usual. When I put food in the tank, she just swims back and forth, almost as if she is begging, but never actually eats anything.
I figure at this point that she may need a visit to the vet, but was wondering if anyone had any words of advice beforehand just in case there is something else I can try.

How big is your turtle? 7-8"
How long have you had it? ~7 years or so

What is the water temperature? 74°
Did you use a thermometer? Yes
Are you using a water heater? A small one
How much water is in there? 65 gallon tank, filled high- 6" below rim
Are you using a water conditioner? Sometimes add when replacing water with python
Are you using any filtration? Yes, FX5

What is the basking temperature? Not positive
Is there a basking light? Yes
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? Doable for now
What kind is it or what is it made out of? Zoomed
Is there a UVB light? Yes

What have you been trying to feed it? Green leaf lettuce, Reptomin pellets
When was the last time your turtle ate? 2 weeks ago?

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 65 gallons. Upgrading to 150 gallon as soon as the tank comes (was ordered 2 weeks ago)
Is the tank near a window? On same wall as window
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? Some, but not too bad.

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

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? Stopped eating completely

A 250 watt should be OK in a 65 gallon. How does she react towards treats and goodies? When they are gravid and want to get out, they would be very uninterested at that moment. Once they settle down, they usually act more normal.

I will try the heater when I get home and see if heating the water a few degrees might help her.
I don't give them anything other than green leaf lettuce and Reptomin pellets, although I did check out the "entice eating" page and was thinking of trying tuna or something just out of curiosity.
Once I read about eggs, I was thinking that must be it since she was trying to escape the tank weeks ago, but she hasn't tried that in 3-4 weeks now. Now she just won't eat at all. She acts like she's being tortured when she's in the nest box that I created. She is at the side of the tub in 2 seconds or less trying to climb the sides, so I take her out, rinse her off and put her back in her tank.
Yesterday while I was home, she basked a while, then spent the rest of her time under the dock (with her head poking between the dock and the side of the tank). This is pretty normal behavior though. Later on she was swimming back and forth during feeding time (what I would consider her begging behavior), but refused to eat anything.
I was thinking 74° was ok, but maybe higher would help.

If you have any other idea's though, please let me know!

Boiled egg whites and chicken meat are not as messy as tuna, if you have either on hand. I'd also try some live prey. Some indoor-kept RES slow down during the winter, but are healthy otherwise.

She wouldnt eat the boiled chicken. She is basking very often. Today she will go up and bask, then go back in the water, then back up to bask. shes been doing this constantly today. I noticed she would dip her head in the water every so often while basking today. Not sure if that is weird. Her eyes look clear while open but I'm not sure if they are puffier than normal while closed.

Based off what I'm reading, it sounds like your turtle is trying to fight something off (the more than average basking, not eating, etc).

What is the temp of the basking site?

You need to allow your turtle's immune system to try and fight it off (and then a vet if you see no progress in a week). Higher water and basking temperatures promote the immune system to fight.

I just brought in a (possibly) sick rescue turtle (almost 2 years old or so) - she was all out of sorts, but I brought her temps to the standard hatchling temperatures (84-86°F for water, 91-95°F for basking) - she's cleared right up and acting normal and it's been a month. I think you'll see good results.

I haven't been able to accurately measure the basking temp. With the way the light is, I'd have to have the thermometer right on the basking dock. She's constantly been up there so it's been difficult.
I noticed tonight that she blew bubbles underwater. Bad sign?
Still hasn't eaten. 2-3 weeks now.

Bubbles underwater are not unusual, though you normally see it right after they reenter the water. I'd try to keep the veggies on a veggie clip and bump up the water temperatures to the upper 70s/low 80s.

I have had the water at 78 for a few days now and just upped it. Had to recalibration the new heater. Right now it's at 82 but trying to get it to 80-81.
How long can she go without eating? She has absolutely no interest in anything I put in there. I admit I haven't had a chance to try live food yet but will go to the store this weekend.

How long they can go depends on how active they are and their general health. So there's no sign of any poop?

It's hard to say. She shares a tank with my other turtle who is eating and pooping just fine. Although, I do carefully monitor the one who isn't eating and I haven't seen her eat a thing. There is nothing in my tank that she could've eaten to block her up or anything.
She occasionally swims back and forth when the food is in there, but is not interested anymore. As far as her activity level, she's really been mostly on the dock (not sleeping, just hanging out). As soon as I turn the light on in the morning, she climbs right up. Often, she's on the dock when I turn the light off at night, and then after a few minutes she'll jump back in. She has never spent this much time basking before though, ever, so it is strange!
She occasionally swims back and forth during feeding time, but has no interest in the food at all. Other times, she's sleeping under water.
The water is now 81. I'm thinking about taking her to the vet soon. I'm just not sure how long they can go without food and it's really starting to worry me. I guess with the vet, I'm just concerned that he won't know right off the bat what is wrong with her, and will do a bunch of trial and error stuff (like, take an x-ray first and then that'll be fine and then try treating her for RI or something). That seems to be the way it goes when it comes to my cat and dog, and it really hikes up the bill. Unfortunately a lot of times, the first treatment never does the trick, and then I have to go back again when nothing has changed. But.. I guess he's probably the best vet in my area to go to for a turtle. I just want her back to normal!

Any chance of isolating the sick turtle from the other one? The last thing you need is TWO sick turtles.

High temperatures will help the turtle fight off illness and infection. I think it's definitely time to consider seeing a vet, too.

I'm taking her to the vet tomorrow afternoon. I'm not sure how to isolate her because I don't have another set of everything I would need to use (although I've thought about it). I'm going to see what the vet says tomorrow.

The vet checked her out and said that she looks very healthy and her activity level is healthy also. They tube fed her to get a meal in her and she finally pooped last night! The doctor also gave her two medicines, both of which are think are for intestinal parasites just in case. I upped the water to 84 per their suggestion also.
So I'm wondering now if the problem is the fact that their tank is too small for the two of them, and maybe there is a feud between the two for space. The new tank is coming! I just don't know when it will arrive because the store didn't have it, and their supplier didn't have it in stock. It's been three weeks since I ordered it so hopefully by next weekend it'll be here.
If she doesn't eat in the next 3 weeks, I may have them tube feed her again and then figure out what the next step is.
This weekend I will try to take my other turtle out while feeding her and see if she'll eat. I am also going to see what other types of food the pet store has. I know the one has this frozen turtle food.. I'm not sure what live foods they offer other than feeder fish so I will check.

Urgent Care :: Turtle sick? Not eating, behaving mostly normal otherwise

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