General Care Discussion :: Sexing a turtle with no tail

[Jaysea]

That one also looks female to me

[sflemin2]

Thanks so much!

[marisa]

A female. Assuming there's a cloaca,it's too close to the shell for it to be a male. If that were a male with that amount of tail left, I doubt he'd have any cloaca (and wouldn't be able to poop).

[sflemin2]

Thanks! I had thought the bigger one was a boy but turns out..its a girl!

[richieboy]

What happens if they lose their cloaca and can't poop? I guess they would die... Is there a surgery that can be done that's not too expensive. What a shame that would be..

[sflemin2]

Thats a good question.. She got lucky!

[marisa]

If they eat and can't eliminate, eventually the bacteria build-up and decaying matter would be fatal Don't know if there is a surgery specifically designed for this problem, but I imagine that something could be done, depending on how much tissue there was left to work with. It would no doubt be expensive.