Urgent Care :: Turtle is concerning me

[tennisnut]

How big is your turtle? 6'
How long have you had it? about 2.5 months

What is the water temperature? 75
Did you use a thermometer? Yes
Are you using a water heater? Yes
How much water is in there? About 22 gallons
Are you using a water conditioner? No
Are you using any filtration? Yes, the lid came with it.

What is the basking temperature? Not exactly sure.
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? Acrylic, one of those ramps
Is there a UVB light? Not yet

What have you been trying to feed it? Reptomin, anacharis, romaine
When was the last time your turtle ate? No idea, he hasn't eaten in front of me since I got him. If he hasn't been eating since mid October, he should already be dead, right?

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 35 gallons
Is the tank near a window? No
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? No

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

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms?
He seems rather lethagic and doesn't swim around in the tank. I haven't seen him eating, and he pretty much stays up on the dock basking or sleeping. Never seen him swim around, except today when he fell off his dock and went into the water. When he is sleeping I sometimes see his head resting on the dock rather than keeping it upright - makes it look like he is dead, it freaks me out. Could it be a respiratory illness?

[machina]

sounds sick.

Get him to a vet. I just lost my turtle yesterday and he was acting a lot like yours is.

[jenaero]

Sounds like you're not sure if he's eaten or not. You might want to try peeking around the corner after you drop the pellets in. A lot of turtles won't eat if you're watching.

Knowing the basking temperature is very important. A turtle that is not warm enough sometimes will not eat, and of course it leads to other problems/illnesses. Temps are very important.

If it was a respiratory infection, he'd probably have mucous/bubbles coming from his mouth/nose, among other things. Try correcting the temperatures first and keep an eye on him.. Bump the water temp up to 78 and make sure the basking temp is 88-90F

[tennisnut]

sounds sick.

Get him to a vet. I just lost my turtle yesterday and he was acting a lot like yours is.

Sorry to hear that.

I called a vet today and will take him ASAP.

[SpotsMama]

Hi Tennisnut, You're doing the right thing. I think your guy needs to see a vet.

Until you can get him to a vet, keep him very warm - water temp at 78 or even 80 - very clean, avoid stress (don't pick him up if you don't have to, for instance) and keep trying to get him to eat. You can try to entice him with things turtles normally only get for treats like shrimp or tuna. Your guy needs some calories. Also, until you get instructions for the vet, it may help to soak him in a solution of 50%/50% Pedialyte and water, twice a day for 15 minutes each time. Pedialyte is a drink for sick children that you can find at places like Walgreens. The warm temperature will help stimulate his immune system.

Here's a standard caution for when you see the vet. If the vet offers to give a vitamin A shot, first make sure the vet is positive your turtle really needs vitamin A and then discuss other alternatives to shots with the vet like eye drops with vitamin A, cod liver oil or food supplements. Several turtles have recently had very bad reactions to vitamin A shots and I think it's best that if vitamin A is needed (and often it's not) the safer methods be used instead.

Good luck. Keep us posted.

[tennisnut]

So I took Rocky to the vet today and he said he has mild congestion in his upper lungs...so mild RI, I guess.

He injected vitamin A/E/D, after I asked him if it was necessary, and gave me some drops to give him for the next 10 days. I put Rocky back in his tank and he just seems to want to nap. But holy crap, $143 for a 30 minute examination, injection, and medication! I hope I won't have to do this a lot, I don't have the money!

I'm glad it wasn't anything REALLY serious. I guess tomorrow or today I'll be going to get some different foods to see if he will eat.

By the way, I'm a student and will be going home pretty soon for winter break. Should I take the Rocky and company with me, or are there pet sitters I can get to look after him while I'm gone? What do you guys think?

[steve]

How far do you have go for your break?

I remember the first vet I used charged me $100 to do a salmonella test without telling me

Let us know how Rocky does! ... these $5 pets can get expensive

[tennisnut]

Steve -

Either a 7 hour car ride, or a 1 hour plane ride, from Berkeley to LA. =/

Anyway, Rocky seems to be a bit more energetic after those shots and drops...or maybe it's wishful thinking? I hope not! He dove into the water and is currently floating at the top of the water, something I haven't seems him do for a while.

Also, the vet told me that I have the water too deep...currently its about 2.5 times his length, but the vet said it should only be half that. Are Map turtles supposed to be in deep water?

[Bascomb]

Re -- Vet bill. -- Be glad you didn't have a dog. Probably would have cost more. -- Take you turtle with you. You have the experience to take care of him. A sitter would not know if something was wrong with him and just feed him. If you want to fly I can tell you how to do that. I have taken mine by air several times. b.

[iac637]

My vet is very resonable he saw 3 of my RES when one wasn't feeling well and then did a fecal test and gave us meds for all of them because of perasites and calcium drops for one. for like $100

[tennisnut]

An Update:

Hehe, I found a really nice guy who had turtles before to take care of the kids while I'm gone.

Anyway, the drops are really helping, Rocky is a lot more active and energetic since the shots and drop medicine that he gave us. He's swimming more now, and going into the water on his own, and even dives to the bottom of the tank for a bit.

However, he still isn't eating. I've tried the tuna water thing, I have some feeder fish in there, snails, romaine lettuce, pellets, and I even got some nightcrawlers and cut them up to put in the tank. Rocky has looked more interested in it than he has been lately, but still doesn't eat. I left the food in there and left for the day, and I can back and things seemed to be untouched.

Will this just take time?

[tennisnut]

OMG! HE EATS!

I tried a fresh worm today (a mini nightcrawler) and didn't cut it, thinking Rocky might like that better. Well, I gave him his medication, dropped a nightcrawler onto his dock, and he swam up to his dock, and saw the wriggling worm. He kind of looks at it like, "well, THIS is interesting" and proceeds to bite and drag it into the water. I think he lost that one (the worm was a bit big) so I fished it out, got two more and cut them in half so Rocky could have an easier time eating. Well, he successfully ate three cut up nightcrawlers and some of his pellet food, and I couldn't be happier. =D

Thanks everyone for all your help. After 2 months, Rocky is finally back to health! And right now he's looking at me reproachfully, "where are more worms?!"

[SpotsMama]

Ha! It's so good to hear when a turtle gets better. Sounds like he's got your number now - you're the earthworm person and he's not going to let you forget it.