General Care Discussion :: Scute tear and white spots

Taking care of your turtle's overall health.

Post Posted: Sun Apr 05, 2020 8:52 pm   Scute tear and white spots

Hey,
My turtle has had a problem with retained scutes due to improper habitat conditions. Thankfully all that has been remedied since the summer, and she’s looking much better now. Well, a few days ago, I was helping her shed some of her retained scutes using a soft bristled brush. I might have overdone since a little tear appeared over one of her scutes. I immediately stopped and applied Tobramacyn and Dexamethasone drops on the spot. There was a little bit of red underneath it, but she did not bleed. The blood disappeared after two days and I can’t smell any foul odour. I’ve been applying those drops every day since. Do you think she has healed properly?

The other issue I want to ask about are the two white spots, one near the front scutes and the other where the tear was. Those appear to be fungus. I’ve been applying Sulfadiazine during the summer, but only sporadically nowadays, though I think it has an effect on them. Should I use this cream more aggressively, how do I treat it?

https://imgur.com/xByvbMi

https://imgur.com/4qsC1F7
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Post Posted: Mon Apr 06, 2020 1:19 am   Re: Scute tear and white spots

There's a lot going on with the shell, I'm not sure which area you are specifically referring to regarding the tear. I also don't think I see obvious signs of fungus, but I can't be certain.

Sulfadiazine requires only a small application but several hours of dry docking. I would probably go over the shell and look for more immediate issues, like breaches, pits, crud on the seams, and extremely retained scutes.
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Post Posted: Wed Apr 08, 2020 1:18 pm   Re: Scute tear and white spots

Yeah the tear was tiny so you can't really tell from the image. I've taken a picture and highlighted all the areas of interest. The tear was in B.2, and I was wondering if area B was some kind of fungus since it's white in appearance. Area A is just (I am assuming) mineral deposits since we used a couple of tap water bottles when changing the water last time. I am kind of wary of brushing her again with a toothbrush because of the tear and also because she gets really anxious after a while. What are you suggesting for the other issues you mentioned?

https://imgur.com/a/9hU1x9r
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Post Posted: Thu Apr 09, 2020 9:27 am   Re: Scute tear and white spots

When it looks like that, it's usually healing from an injury but I can't be certain of what's actually going on. As long as there is no color change/reddish coloring, softness, or odors then it should be OK. Keep up with the gentle cleanings and inspect the shell each time. Mineral deposits don't happen often on the shell and doesn't pose an issue but I'm not sure I see it here.
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