General Care Discussion :: How does the shell look?

[Turtle_Love45]

I just went to check, and I noticed that in different spots, there are little string-like things floating from the shell. It appears as if it is peeling, but not really since they seem not to be in the same areas as the "white spots".

[res08]

My uncle owned a RES for about 25-30 years now... for most of his life... he lived in a 10 gallon tank, in about 2 inches of water, and ate nothing but meat and fish!

He is still alive and very healthy. Pretty too.

I'd like to see what a RES on an all meat diet looks like.

[mackadocious]

JELsli--that's funny....when i was in mexico a few years ago for work, the lady we stayed with had her great aunt who was nearly 100 living on the third floor...she was pretty much blind and sat in her room all day talking to her pet tortuga i met who was some varient of a RES (yellow instead of red ear patches)....he/she was 10-11 inches long and she kept him in a plastic laundry basket that was smaller at the bottom then the top and kept only 2 inches of water in it.....no idea what it ate cause she didn't speak a lick of english, but she'd had the turtle for over 15 years and it basically had enough room to maybe turn around, but it looked quite healthy all things considered....they are really relatively hardy creatures, no??

[Bascomb]

Turt-Love 45 -- The turtle doesn't have a clue about why the tank is so small, why he doesn't have a uvb light. We can help if you want our advice. Most of us have turtles and know what it takes to care for them. You need the proper gallonage, filter, temp lighting, etc. b.

[SpotsMama]

I don't see any signs of pyramiding on that shell - the overall shape is quite nice. The ulcers though are probably early shell rot and need to be treated. Here's a shell treatment from a respected site - Austin's Turtle Page. Hope it helps:

"Listed below is a regimen that I have followed in treating shell problems and has yielded great results. Keep in mind that shell injuries will take months and sometimes years to get back to looking normal if the possibility exists. It takes weeks before the shell will look like it's getting better. While treating, you are not looking for signs of healing or repair - you are looking to ensure that it is not spreading.

Clean infected areas thoroughly with a strong, undiluted betadine, iodine or Nolvasan solution. Let the turtle air dry in a warm setting for about 45 minutes.

Apply a generous coating of Silvadene cream. Work into problem areas.

Leave the turtle dry and warm, ensuring that you do not over-heat, for 18-21 hours each day.

The next day, scrub entire shell with a one of the previously mentioned solutions, using a soft-bristled toothbrush

Place them into fresh, clean water. Let them swim, drink and eat for approximately 1 - 1 ½ hours.

Repeat procedure from Step 1.

This treatment performed daily or twice daily, depending on your time allocation, has been successful in as few as 8-10 days but in more extreme cases can take a few weeks. It is difficult to tell success right away, so it is often discouraging. It is, however, quite effective and you will begin to see small improvement (in most cases) in only a few weeks."

Shell and other health problems in turtles often take years to develop, especially in individuals that were exceptionally hardy to begin with. We've seen it over and over - slowly worsening shell rot, metabolic bone disease, pyramiding, skin and eye infections. Conditions that clear up once the habitat is corrected. My own turtle was kept in very poor conditions for the first four years of his life (my fault - I simply didn't know what to do). He developed a severe shell infection and was lethargic and grumpy. After I found this site, corrected his habitat and diet and got appropriate medical help for his shell condition, he became a new turtle. It took over a year, but now he's beautiful, friendly, curious and active. I'm always mystified to hear about turtles living in unhealthy conditions that seem to be ok, but can only conclude that they were exceptionally tough to begin with or the problems are present but not yet recognized.

[marisa]

The white areas in the first pic look like something has abraded the shell. I'd keep those areas and the tank water clean so it doesn't turn into shell rot (if it's not already). Make sure your RES has a good UVB light and heat source to bask under.

[Deon]

The brown color should not be a problem as turtle shells do grow brown when they get older in many cases. In my opinion, in it's not shell rot, I guess the spots could be scars? perhaps from before you got the turtle? depends on how old it is i guess, for the probability of that being true.
sorry since this isn't really related, but JELslider if you know, could you inform me of the size of that turtle your uncle has? I'm curious because my turtle lived in a small critter tank for the first 1-2 years of it's life and i feel it has affected it's growth quite severely. - thanks