General Care Discussion :: Growing too slow?

[VanishingReality]

Is it possible for a turtle to not grow fast enough?

We have had him for three months and if our measurements serve correct he has grow just over 1/4 of an inch. His nails have at least doubled in size since we have had him. He is currently retaining two layers of scutes but it is only really noticeable if you look closely and it feels pretty much smooth.

He gets four baby reptomin and two leaves veggies monday through saturday. In the last two weeks he has started to at least eat some of his veggies.

Sunday he gets veggies and SFB aquatic turtle frozen food. Monday he gets a head full of sweet potato along with his veggies and pellets, although he gets three pellets that day.

Recently (three days ago) we started feeding him those goldfish vacation feeder for calcium (he hates the cuttlebone), he goes through one about every three days.

Once a week he gets a shrimp from his 3-1 in one reptomin container. And once a month he gets a ghost shrimp or a rosie red. Also he always has an aquatic plant in his tank, hornwart. But he likes to sleep in it so it takes him about two weeks to eat it.

So... are we not feeding him enough?

[SpotsMama]

How large is he at this time? They usually grow fastest when they are brand new, and slow down gradually as they age. After the first couple of years their growth is normally really slow. For pet turtles, most seem to be around 4" long at the end of their first year - some more, some less.

On the food, the correct amount depends on the size of turtle. For a turtle under 4", the amount of pellets every day should be the amount that would fit in his head (not including the neck) if his head were hollow every day. When he gets to be more than 4", cut this back to the amount that would fit in his hollow head every other day (or, half a headfull a day - it works out to be the same thing). So....the correct number of pellets depends on the size of your turtle's head and the size of the pellets.

On plant food, you can give a pretty big serving of lettuce or other green leafy stuff every day. He can have all the ancharis he wants. He can have small servings of sugarly foods (carrots, sweet potato, berries) once or twice a week. Once a month he can have a high protein snack, like a few minnows or guppies, or a shrimp or a cricket, a little piece of tuna or a small piece of boiled.

A lot more detail can be found in the nuitrition section of this site. If you haven't already, why don't you read through it and get some ideas.

If your turtle is growing very slowly, once possible cause is internal parasites. A vet can check for this pretty easily. All he/she needs is a fresh stool sample.

[VanishingReality]

He's just over 2 inches.

Also should I set up to drop off a stool sample to a vet here I have never been to or wait until the beginning of July (when we move) when he has an appointment with a reputable herp vet. Most of those sites with listings recommend him and they seem really nice and concerned for this well being.



Munching on the veggie



You looking at me?

[TheComputerGremlin]

As long as your turtle isn't showing any signs of being sick, I'd wait until you can see a normal vet. I don't think parasites are *dangerous*, per se, just stunt the growth. I would wait the extra month ... but that's just me.