General Care Discussion :: [Need advice] recovery from swollen eyes,lethargy,can't sink

[bradmeisel]

Do you have a UVB bulb? I only see one light.

[Kemul]

@SpotsMama
Thank you. I will try boiled chicken next. It's been more than three weeks now
and I don't know how Ramen still has the energy to swim and walk around like
that. Turtles sure can survive without food for weeks!

@bradmeisel
Yes, I only have regular bulb for heat. I'm having trouble finding UVB bulb where
I live. If I order from US, I have voltage problem since we use 220V here. I'm
going to search online to find a store that carries UVB bulbs and can do deliveries.
I'm not too worried because we have lots of sunshine, being in a tropical country
and all that Ramen gets sunshine almost every morning. Thank you for your
suggestion.

[Kemul]

Ramen is still not eating. I tried boiled chicken meat today, still no go. I've been
leaving a couple pellets in Ramen's tank all the time now, replaced with new ones
three times a day. I haven't tried soaking the pellets in tuna water since we don't
have that in the house at the moment.

I probably should look at the situation in "turtle pace", but this is getting rather
frustrating. It's close to four weeks since, I'm guessing, Ramen last ate in the
store.

[SpotsMama]

Your top priority should be finding something that he'll eat. He needs the calories. Try shrimp or canned tuna. Sometimes turtles are attracted to moving things, so if you can get him a clean earth worm (one you're sure hasn't been exposed to pesticides or fertilizers) and let it wriggle in front of him, maybe that will get his attention.

[TurtleLover_S&B]

His eyes look great!!!

[Kemul]

Yesterday, I bought worms, very tiny ones with reddish color. They're used for
feedings here and that's what Ramen had in the store. I offered the worms last
evening but Ramen didn't go for them. This morning, while basking, Ramen
gulped down the worms!

Now to figure out how to wean Ramen off of the worms and switch to pellets.
Perhaps I have to try the "soaking pellets in tuna water" strategy.

Ramen looks healthier now that it has eaten something.

[TurtleLover_S&B]

Yeah,I've heard that soaking the pellets in tuna juice/tuna water.

[Sammonkie]

Hey! First of all, I guess your turtle really needs a basking area or soon it will have all kind of problems! The surface of a basking area should be eaily accessed for the turtle, completely dry, and has a temperature around the mid-80's. From the pic of your setting, I guess you may want to lower the water level a bit so when the turtle goes bask, it won't be able to climb out of the tank. Fopr the food, how about hand feeding (to avoid the mess) a little bit of canned tuna in water. This usually works very well. Good luck!

[Kemul]

@TurtleLover_S&B
Thank you for your comments.

@Sammonkie
Thank you for your suggestions. I bask my turtle almost daily. We have good
sunshine here almost daily all year round, since we live in a tropical area. For the
tank, I use an inverted soap dish for basking area. I will make an ATBA when I
get the time and materials.

As for the water level, I think it's fine. Ramen is still a hatchling, a little more than
1" in size. I highly doubt it can climb out even from the basking area at this time.

I feed Ramen in a separate container. I don't think a hatchling wants to be
hand fed, but we'll see. I hope after the worms are finished in a few days,
Ramen will start eating pellets.

[TurtleLover_S&B]

Your welcome!

[SpotsMama]

Hooray for little Ramen! Keep up the good work.

[Kemul]

Thank you, SpotsMama. You and the others here have been a HUGE help.