Urgent Care :: Is it blood?

[emmylady]

There is a reddish substance on the basking rock and I wonder if it's blood and why would one of my turtles be bleeding? Some if it is liquid-ish but there is a sort of chunky bit to it. It is clinging together and it is red and I don't know what the hell it is. I have one boy and one girl (i think) and does it have something to do with maturity/eggs??? I have never owned a turtle before and when I bought them from Petco, I knew almost nothing about them. Help please. If it's something bad, I need to know.

[SpotsMama]

It could be some blood that has begun to coagulate. Look your turtles over carefully and see if you can detect any bites or injuries. Another possibility is bleeding from the cloaca (the opening under the tail for elimination and egg laying).

Sometimes two turtles start fighting and they can injure one another and cause bleeding. How big are your turtles? How long have you had them?

[industrial_girl_2000]

Along with Spotsmama's questions, I also want to ask if you have noticed any aggressive behavior between them (is one turtle biting the other or are they interacting in any way)? Also, how do you know if one is a girl & one is a boy? How big is their set up & how much water do you have in the tank?

Can you take a picture of their set up (with the turtles in it) so we can see what it is like?

[emmylady]

I haven't noticed them even going near each other let alone fighting, but that doesn't mean they aren't. Um...They're not that big...the one that I think is the male is about 4 inches long and the female is 5". The male one is smaller with a smaller tale and longer claws and the female one is larger with a longer tale and shorter claws. I believe that I have it right. I've had them for maybe a year so far. Maybe a little bit more. It was more of a "Ooo look mom! Turtles! Let's buy them!" from my part. I really didn't know much about them. Having said that, here is the tank. Don't worry, I'm already looking into a bigger tank and I'm going to hopefully seperate them today so I can figure out which one is bleeding. The only thing is I'm having trouble finding something to put one of 'em in...

[ZombieTurtle]

you need to raise the water level a LOT. they do not have enough swimming room at all. you can fill the tank about 3/4 full (depending on the size). if big lower it from the 3/4. if small 3/4 is good.

they do not have enough room in that tank.

[emma]

I agree, you really need to get your turtles a bigger tank or raise the water level. Make sure that your basking area can hold the number of turtles you have.

[emmylady]

Yeah. I've been trying to find something else to put them in. That tank isn't good because it has a random opening in the side only like 6 inches up so all the water will go spilling out. I might need to just go to the pet store and get a completely new tank. But what do I do about the blood? What is it? Should I take them to the vet??

[SpotsMama]

Did you check them both out all over to see if there were any signs of injury? Are you still seeing blood on the basking platform or in the water? How are they behaving - are they both still active and eating normally?

Sounds like you've got one of those "turtle tanks". As you've discovered, they really don't work well for turtles because you can't put enough water in them. Also, the uneven sides make them structurally weaker. A better choice is a regular aquarium like for fish. A terrarium won't work either. A terrarium looks like an aquarium but is not made to hold water. Terrariums are for dry land habitats for reptiles like lizards. Best for our aquatic turtles is a fish aquarium.

Your guys really do need a lot more space. Multiple turtles in enclosures that are too small are more likely to fight. Also, it's much harder to keep the small tanks clean. As you've noticed, turtles are pretty messy so they need a lot of water to dilute their waste along with very good filters. If the water isn't kept clean turtles will develop all kinds of infections over the long run. And they're not that nice to be around either. Turtles get frustrated if the space is too small because they've evolved to live in large ponds and lakes where they can swim and dive.

Something to look at is a couple of large rubbermaid tubs. They are very inexpensive (I got a 50 gallon one for $16 at Lowes) and make very good turtle homes.

[emmylady]

Yeah, I've checked them both and there is no sign of any distress in either of them. They are behaving exactly as they normally would and are eating the same amount they usually do.

How much more space are we talking about??

[megcornell]

Ideally turtles need 10 gallons of water per inch of shell. Since you've already had blood, I'd separate them into two separate containers.
So, you should be looking at nothing smaller than 50 gallons for each turtle.