General Care Discussion :: Rate our shells! My turts saying hello to Turtle Talk

[Spike 7.62]

Here are all the shells of my turtles, as of yesterday. I see some things happening and I would like some opinions from other people. Also these are the first pics of my turtles here, so this is their debut to the Turtle Talk community. Thanks all in advance!

This is my alligator snapper named Little Foot. He is captive-bred and was a wee little guy when I got him August 1st. He's pretty active, eats, swims, socialises and sheds like crazy. Personally I think he is in very good/optimal health, but I still appreciate feedback and concerns!




This alligator snapper belongs to a friend, but lives with me. Out of the 7 turts at my house, only 3 are mine. The rest I am caring for while their owners get back on their feet and have a place/way to take care of them. He was wild caught, is slightly older and bigger than my snapper, and either is shedding or has a minor shell condition.




My RES! This is Pickles, the slightly bigger one. I ordered him online. He's still very young and shy, and shares a 20gal tank with one, slightly smaller RES.




This is Mittens. He came with Pickles from the internet and arrived in the same container. They both have very slight black coloration between some of their scutes.




This is Biscuit, a wild caught Eastern Painted Turtle. I found him in a lake and gave him to my friend as a gift when he was just their second turtle. I believe he is getting ready to shed, your thoughts?



This is Pancake. A Eastern Painted juvenile, he's a real bully sometimes. He's calmed down somewhat, but still shows dominance over the other turts when he can. Wild caught, he's missing part of his tail and one nail is bent over to the side. I think he is also about to shed..






Finally, Doctor Gonzo (anyone ever seen Fear & Loathing in Las Vegas?). A wild caught Red Belly Cooter, he was the one who started it all. I've always loved turtles, but when my buddy took this guy home and cared for him, we all fell for the little guys. He's also the smallest, besides the RES. I think he may be getting fat, his shell has a slight buldge and I notice his scutes are not shedding. Perhaps he needs more time to shed, or perhaps this is pyramiding?





Thanks!

-spike

[BSC]

Wow... I love that last turtle! Thats one awesome shell...

One day I hope to have kept a range of turtle breeds.. I'm in the UK and in stores I only ever find Sliders or Maps.

[marisa]

I'd say those scutes need to come off. But, they way they look fused on, they most likely come off as part of the lower scutes shedding. The shell will not be completely smooth.

[TheComputerGremlin]

Lots of scrolling to try to comment!

The second snapper without a name, looks like some minor pyramiding. Possibly look into cutting back on the food?

Pickle and Mittens have wider seams, so again, check about the feeding. Sometimes the little ones grow so rapidly that you get the wide seam and it goes away, but generally it's overfeeding.

Doctor Gonzo needs to shed, and again with the wide seams. I would recommend upping the blueberry content of everyone's diet to entice shedding. Also make sure that your UVB bulbs are still good (remember to replace them every 6-8 months) and that the basking areas are warm and dry.

Otherwise, you have quite the collection!

[Spike 7.62]

Thanks ComputerGremlin

I'll definetly try more blueberries. It seems that they won't eat them unless I tear it into bite sized pieces, and give it to them on the tip of my finger. A little more time consuming, but I'll do it anyway. All 3 of my UV bulbs were replaced in August/September, so they are still good.

Thanks all for the comments.

-spike

[Moose]

WOW! I think its safe to say that you have one heck of a collection! I am absolutely in love with your Eastern Painted too legit! your res look almost exactly like buster and eugene! I love them!

[steve]

Nice pics Spike! Glad to see them make their debut