Urgent Care :: Scratch Acts Weird

[TurtleTattoo]

His name is Scratch.

How big is your turtle? 6.5"
How long have you had it? 13 months

What is the water temperature? 80 degrees
Did you use a thermometer? yes
Are you using a water heater? yes
How much water is in there? 40 gallons at least
Are you using a water conditioner? yes
Are you using any filtration? yes

What is the basking temperature? around 80
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? floating platform bought from a turtle website
Is there a UVB light? yes

What have you been trying to feed it? reptomin- been feeding him this since i bought him. and dried shrip as treats
When was the last time your turtle ate? yesterday morning

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 55 gl tank (with two - 1 yr old turtles)
Is the tank near a window?about 7 ft away
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? my studio appt.

Have you read the Basic Care section? yes
Have you searched the forums for similar situations? not yet

Okay so now that i have answered all the basic questions here is my dilemma. I woke up this morning to find scratch laying on the bottom of the tank with his mouth WIDE open laying still, then when i walked up to the tank he acted like he was gasping for hair, he would fill his throat so it puffed out but would keep his mouth wide open. I've never seen him do this before and it really wigged me out. No vet will give me information over the phone which i totally understand, but i dont know why he was doing this. Has anyone else had their red-ear slider do this before? Do you know why? PLease let me know. im really worried. Andif this is something normal i dont want to have to take him to the vet for nothing.

[Starchick]

It doesn't sound normal. Do you have gravel, feeder fish or anything else small that he could be choking on?

[Starchick]

Whoops, forgot to mention, if your water temperature is 80, your basking temperature should be closer to 90. Does he bask regularly anyway?

[TurtleTattoo]

He doesnt like getting out of the water even if i lower the water temp. Ill have to get a new thermometer for the dry area to make sure its warm enough. But the two little turtles love to bask, its perfect for them. There are a few feeder fish but i count them everyday and its still the same amount. As far the rockes that are anywhere from 1 cm to 2.5 inches large. So i dont think he would be choking on those. He's acting perfectly normal now as if nothing happened. This was only going on for about a minute or so... and then he was fine. It was really bizarre. I'll keep checking on him for the next few days and if it happens again ill make an appt. at a vet. I appreciate your response!!! Thank you!

[octpusgirl8]

That does sound weird, but sometimes they do some weird things. Was he under water when it seemed like he was gasing for air? That would be less worrisome than if he was out of the water. About the rocks, 1 cm seems a bit small, they should be at least as big as the turtles head. You'd be suprised what they'll eat, a member recently found out that one of his turtle had eaten some rather large rocks, luckily she passed them okay. Just keep an eye on him, if he's eating and acting normally i wouldn't worry about it.

[TurtleTattoo]

Well I'm keeping an eye on him. He seems to be doing okay, sleeping, and eating the same as before. I appreciate the feedback.

[SpotsMama]

Try real hard to get ol' Scratch out of the water and onto his basking area. It's very important for him to bask under a good light and get to dry out completely - top and bottom - almost every day. Sometimes just a degree increase in the basking platform temp makes a difference.

[TurtleTattoo]

thank you for all your responses. I ended up having to take all 3 turtles to the vet. Since they all live in the same tank, what one turtles has they all have.
A week after Scratch was gasping, my other turtle Skid puked. So i got them to the vet the next day. Turns out they have a bacterial respiratory infection and massive amount of parasites. They all get a shot every day and 2 shots every other day for the next week and a half. I took all the rocks out of the bottom of the tank and that seems to help keep the water ALOT clearer. And im cleaning out the filter more often. I cleaned out the tank top to bottom the night i brought them home, and they all seem to be doing alot better. Just wanted to say thank you to everyone who posted a response to my queries!

[SpotsMama]

My goodness! I'm so glad you got them to the vet on time. Keep us posted on how it goes.