Urgent Care :: Is this shell rot?

[s0fla1r]

Hi! I'm a beginner here.

My aunt just bought 2 turtle hatchlings for me & both of them have weird patches on the edges of their plastrons. I just wanna know if this has anything to do with shell rot? They're eating fine & are quite active. But I'm still worried. There's no vet who specializes in turtles from where I come from. I'm afraid they'll do something bad to my turtles. Here's a picture of Nakwa's plastron..



I'm only posting a picture since both of them are showing the same signs. Thanx.

[SpotsMama]

I can barely see it but it looks like they sides of the plastron are sort of rough, especially towards the top. Is that what you're asking about? It looks like the shell may have been damaged by scraping against something hard and rough, like a stone. What sort of basking platform do your turtles have?

On the black stripe down the middle, does it seem to be part of the turtle's natural pattern?

[s0fla1r]

Yup, that's what I was asking about. It's nothing serious, right? My dad put a rock in the aquarium & the turtles love to climb on top of it. And they're those plastic platforms and water lilies the turtles could rest on.

The turtle has that black stripe in the middle when my aunt brought it home. I guess it's natural or maybe a scar where the egg sac used to be.

The rough edges aren't that bad, but still, one thing could lead to another. I don't want the hatchlings to experience any discomfort. It must be the rock, right? I should go remove it now. Thanx.

[SpotsMama]

You are absolutely correct that while the rough edges aren't that bad right now, one thing will lead to another. I'm speaking here from personal experience. When the surface of the shell is scratched, then bacteria and fungus can get in and, before you know it, you've got a serious shell infection going. My turtle was basking on a piece of flagstone last summer. It felt pretty smooth to me but it was hard and not completely smooth and it abraided my turtle's plastron, much like it has yours. The abrasions got infected and it took a couple of months to clear them up. If left untreated, shell infections can just worsen and worsen until they are fatal.

I'd replace the rocks with something smoother for the turtles to bask on. Cork bark is perfect. It's rough but soft enough that it doesn't abraid the shell and turtles like it a lot. here's where you can get some:

http://www.blackjungle.com/Merchant2/me ... _Code=WFWH

Other options are turtle docks by zoo med (you can get these at pet stores or on-line) or acrylic turtle ramps (I haven't seen these in pet stores but they are easy to get on-line from reptile supply stores.)

One advantage of either cork bark or one of the commercially produced basking platforms is that they do not take up swimming space like a rock does. The turtles are free to swim underneath them.

I wonder if there is enough water in your turtle tank. If the water is shallow enough that the turtle can bask on a rock, then it's probably too shallow. Turtles love to swim and dive and need water as deep as you can get it. Also, the more water there is in the tank the easier it is to keep clean. With either cork bark or a commercial basking platform, the platform either floats or you can adjust the level so it's above water even when the tank water is pretty deep.

So...lose the rock, get a different type of basking platform and fill that tank up. Don't, however, put so much water in the tank that the turtle can reach the edge of the aquarium by standing on the platform because then he can (and will!) escape.

[s0fla1r]

Thank you so much for the advice! The cork platform is a great idea. Now I don't have to worry about piling up stuff for my turtles to climb up to bask and get awful scratches on their plastrons along the way.

They escaped plenty of times already. That's why I decided to lower the water level. I guess I need to cover the top of the tank with something. The male turtle fell on the floor a few times before. And I'm the one who's having a heart attack each time that happens.

Fill the tank with lots of water but not too much so that they couldn't escape & go get the cork bark. Got it. Thanx again!

[SpotsMama]

Good luck! Keep an eye on the rough places on the plastron and if they start turning red or white/cottony looking you'll need to treat them.

Putting a cover over the tank is a good idea but you'll need to make sure the UVB light can get through. Most covers are wire mesh but small mesh blocks too much of the light. What you can do it cut a hole in the mesh over the basking area so the light gets through unobstructed. Make sure there aren't any sharp pieces of mesh around the edge of the hole that your little guys can stick themselves on.

[GThiele93]

These look like the same things on my turtle except they are a bit orangey very dull orange and are smooth. I have a zoomed platform the acyrilic small one

[s0fla1r]

I like the acryllic ones (and thought about getting it before this) but I find it fun to watch my hatchlings basking on logs. I guess I'll upgrade my platform to acryllic when they grow more than 4". Thanx for your suggestion!