How big is your turtle? 6.8 lbs
How long have you had it? 20 years but she is 30
What is the water temperature? 76
Did you use a thermometer? yes
Are you using a water heater? yes
How much water is in there? 45
Are you using a water conditioner? yes
Are you using any filtration? yes
What is the basking temperature? don't know
Is there a basking light? there is a ceramic heat emitter
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? yes
What kind is it or what is it made out of? it's one of those fake turtle logs
Is there a UVB light? yes
What have you been trying to feed it? she gets Omega One Turtle food and red leaf lettuce
When was the last time your turtle ate? just now
How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 75 gallons
Is the tank near a window? yes
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? no
Hey, all. I'm just curious about turtle blindness. I think my turtle might be losing some of her sight. Before you ask, as you can see from above she does get UVB light 12 hours a day and I change the bulb every six months. She gets red leaf lettuce every week. She is in good health. I just had her in for a vet checkup this past December and she was given a gold star. Her eyes are clear. There's no sign of any sort of infection or anything.
This past week I noticed that she wasn't eating as much. Sometimes this can mean she has eggs but she's not displaying the other egg symptoms (not restless). She seems hungry so I put food in and she'll eat a bite or two and then it seems like she can't find the food. It just floats all around her while she begs for more. And if I put more in front of her she'll eat another bite or two and then miss the rest. I tried to gauge if she can see me. Normally she's very attentive of me, swimming right over and following me but now she seems to be having a hard time tracking me. Even if I put my hand in the tank she only reacts if my finger is right in front of her face.
I'm worried about her not getting enough food so just now I fed her some tuna using tweezers. And again, she would only eat it if I had it right in front of her face. But she did eat. I will take her to the vet of course but I can't do it till next week.
I'm just curious if anyone else here has any experience with this sort of thing and if she is going blind, I'm looking for advice going forward with feeding her. I don't want to feed her just tuna because she needs more nutrients than that. So any advice on what and how to feed a turtle with poor eyesight?
Thank you!