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We rescued a RES from a pet store (tiny enclosure, barely any water) we just couldn't stand to see her in there. It's been YEARS since I've had a turtle so it's like being a newb again. She is about 3.5 inches wide - so we're figuring at least a year old. I noticed today that her left foot is fat, kind of like a club foot and is missing one of her claws - will it grow back? It does not seem to be infected or sore (I've got a couple of calls into local vets to find someone with experience with RES)

If this is a recent injury and the nail bed is intact it will grow back. If this is an older injury, and it does sound like it, then it won't. Is the foot also discolored? Swollen limbs are not a good sign, it would be good to get it checked out.

no it's not discolored that I can tell. I'm going to try and get a good picture of her & her fat foot today. It's just the area by her claws, not the entire leg. On the plus side she is eating pretty decently (pellets/freeze dried shrimps) and she devoured most of the feeder minnow we put in (thought a few would last more then 48 hours LOL) and we're going to pick her up some red lettuce/romaine/kale/dandelion (whatever is best that the market has) today; since she made a salad out of the plant we put in. She is swimming around her tank but hasn't climbed up onto her basking area yet , I need to check the temp and make sure it's warm enough :/

Hopefully the pics will provide some insight. Don't give into the begging, they always act like they are starving

Ok any pointers on how to get a good picture of a turtles foot in the water LOL. She's still not 100% comfortable with us so if she's out of the water she just holes up in her shell. You can get a good look at her foot when she's swimming but I am inept on how to take a picture without either flash issues or reflection - I've tried both my powershot and my husbands big DSLR ....I'm just a point shoot kinda gal and it's not working

The water should be clear enough to capture a good pic. If anything, make sure there is plenty of indirect light around and you can take the pic further away. You can email me a larger pic if you need help cropping/resizing.