General Care Discussion :: The inevitable "is this fungus" post

[Jea]

My RES started showing some small whitish patches on their shells a few weeks ago, and I was wondering if anyone could point me toward a diagnosis. I strongly suspect it's a fungus but thought I should get some input from other keepers. Since I discovered the problem I've been taking them out for natural sun about 1 hour each day. I also changed the filter and did a complete disinfection of their habitat about a week ago - sprayed everything down, scrubbed with white vinegar, sprayed again, let dry completely. Didn't seem to have much of an effect. Water temp averages about 80 degrees, and as far as I can tell, both RES seem to bask plenty.

I've heard good things about silver sulfadiazine cream. Would that be the next step? Should I separate the turtles before things get any worse? Maybe dry-dock them? They've shown some signs of getting ready to shed, and I think it would do them good, but it seems to be going very slowly.

[Jea]

Pics of Yertle's tankmate. Not as much patchiness on this one.

[steve]

It appears to be fungus... though not convincingly in all the pics. First step that I recommend it to make sure that the setup is correct and that they do bask a lot. A reoccurrence is extremely difficult to treat. Some have tried a the Repti-Turtle Sulfa Dip, which might work in the earliest stages. Silver sulfadiazine cream, is a prescription med, so you will need to get that from a vet. It does work very well and quick, however when my turtles had fungus again, it had lost it's effectiveness or there was a different type of fungus at work.

[Jea]

I frequently see them on the dock when I open the door to their room (although they immediately dive back into the water when they notice me). I also try to take them out for natural sun, but it's been hot as hell here and they can't stay outside all day or they'll cook. I did find an online retailer that carries Silvadene cream, so I might get some from them. We don't have any decent reptile vets in the area and even if we did, I probably wouldn't be able to take my RES in for a visit since they're illegal to keep in my state.

Do you think I should quarantine the turtle that has the more advanced case? Is there anything I can do to encourage shedding of the affected scutes?

[steve]

I'm not sure if you need to quarantine since both have it. You can also provide some shade outdoors, they'll still get UVB.

[Jea]

Okay, thanks. I finally got hold of some Silvadene cream (fyi: you can order it without a prescription through Mountainside Medical Equipment, in case anyone else here is unable to get it from a vet) and WOW, what a difference! I've only done three treatments so far (using the method from Austin's Turtle Page) and the little guys are both improving dramatically. They're not too happy about the dry-docking, but I tell them it's for their own good. Will post pics once their shells have cleared up completely.