Hi! Introduce yourselves here. :: Possible respiratory infection?

[TurtleMomma420]

Hi there, I just made this account so I can ask a few questions. I just rescued my slider about a month ago and he was in a neglectful home for pretty much the entirety of his nine year long life. He is currently underweight, but he is very active and loves food and digging in the sand. I’m not sure if I hadn’t noticed before or if I’m just overthinking it now or maybe it’s a new thing but I noticed a couple of days ago that when he sniffs the air, I can hear it a little bit. It pretty much just sounds like someone breathing through their nose. The day I started actually noticing it he was digging a lot in the sand, so I thought maybe some sand caught up his nose. Just wondering what your perspective is on this. He has an above tank basking area, with UVA and UVB lighting. I am currently treating him for minor shell rot, he eats very well gets his greens and his tank parameters are practically perfect. I did take him to the vet recently to get his shell checked out and the vet didn’t notice anything else wrong with him (but I think she was more of a tortoise Dr than a turtle Dr) and when he’s out of the water or I’m holding him or anything like that, he doesn’t make that breathing sound. It’s only when he’s sniffing the air. Thank you in advance!

[steve]

If he was active underwater for awhile, he would be breathing a little heavier once he surfaces. They sometimes would even squirt water out! If he goes back to normal when out of the water for a bit, I think he's fine.