Urgent Care :: My 41 year old RES

[kathywa]

First, let me say this is a great site! I wish so much I had this resource 40 years ago!! "Turtle" has been happily situated in my guestroom bathtub since we moved into this house 4 years ago. Prior to that, he had lived most of his life in a plastic tub with a basking rock and feeder fish to keep him company periodically(for as long as they survived before he ate them!).
The last couple of weeks, his appetite has been noticeably poor and he has been just laying in the water, basking only when I placed him on his basking platform. I did finally get him to eat some sticks I soaked in "shrimp" juice, but I hat to really work at it. I have read through all of your symptom information and made all the checks you suggest, and we are headed for the vet tomorrow, but any little tidbits of information may help both me and the vet.
Thank you.
Kathy

[SpotsMama]

Bless his heart! To think he's been part of your family for 40 years. What stories you and he must be able to tell.

Keep him warm (80 or 82 degrees is appropriate for a sick turtle), very clean and avoid stressing him. Keep trying to get him to eat as he needs his calories. If he won't eat the sticks, you can give him small amounts of tuna or shrimp until he gets better.

Good luck. Please lt us know how it goes. We'll be thinking of you.

[forlogos]

wow, that's awesome!! I want to have my turtles grow with me through the years too!

Hope all goes well...

[industrial_girl_2000]

Congrats on your older turtle! Can you post a picture of your setup? What kind of lighting/heat do you have for your turtle? Can you tell us the temp of the water?

There are a couple of things that could be going on here.

#1: raise the temp as Spotsmama suggested. This helps digestion & eases any kind of stress.

#2: What have you been feeding him before this happened? For example, I noticed that if my turtle gets too many collard greens, they give her an upset tummy (she burps a lot & sits on the bottom of the tank for about a day). Then she usually poops a lot, then is back to her old chipper self.

[turtlefreak]

wow 41 years. i hope he's okay!

[madmax1]

WOW! 41 YEARS That is really wonderful, You did something right all these years, they didn't even have uvb lighting years ago like we have today, so goes to show, they can do pretty well considering.GREAT JOB. Now if my turtles should live that long 41 years I defiantly won't be here to tell you about it .Hope he will be OK keep us posted

[jasmiester]

WOWWW, 41 years old .. hes almost 3x my age D: .. Hes as old as my mom!

[mikee]

kat-wa-- Most of what has been said I agree with. If he is getting food proper light and temperature I would up the temp to 80 degrees and wait. Make sure that he is pooping and is not condstipated. Feed him a seperate tank and make sure he is pooping. Take a sample of his poop for the vet when you go. Just a suggestion.

[TurtleObsession28]

omg! to thing u had a turtle throughout a lifetime! i tohught they lived only up to like 30 years max, at the chicago aqaurium they dont even hav turtles that old! good luck at th vet!

[Tattoo]

old enough to be my grandpa...lol Hope he is ok.

[eugenetimpog]

41 years. you really did a good job. I hope there is nothing serious.

[kathywa]

Just checking back in to thank you again for your encouragement and to let you know what went on at the vet. Seems Miss T has cataracts and has lost most of the vision in one eye and quite a bit in the other. However, she is a little "pudgy" according to the vet and in good shape otherwise. The vet gave me some suggestions, and, with the help from all of you, I think she will be just fine. Little more to feeding now, but she is getting use to my pushing food toward her so she can smell and "catch" it. Now I understand her being easily startled, and kind of hiding out either under her basking stand or in the water. Finding a vet who was really interested in her is quite exciting and comes at the time in her life when she is most apt to need it. Thanks! Kathy

[SpotsMama]

That you for the update. I'm so glad it's a manageable problem. All turtles are special but you really want to see a 41 year old turtle do well. Someday I'd love to see some photos.