General Care Discussion :: Soft shell

[Kb11881]

Hi Everyone,

I have a question for my fellow RES owners. My RES is about a year and a half and seems pretty healthy. I have one concern about his shell however. Some of his scales seem to be a little almost caved in while others are higher. Also his shell is hard except around his tail where it droops down a little and is somewhat soft. Has anyone had this issue before? Is it normal?
Thanks
Kelli

[steve]

His shell should be hard by now. How big is he? Can you post a picture of him? Have you been his only owner? What's his diet like?

[Kb11881]

Hi Steve,

I'll most a picture I have from a little while ago. He's one and a half now. He was mainly on a diet of reptomini pellets once a day. He would get occasional veggies. I've gone within the last week to feeding him every otherday because I was reading he is probably being over fed. He gets leafy greens like Kale everyother day. He also has a cuttle bone in the tank which he loves and eats a ton of. I also put a orangish cream on him once a week ( I'm not sure of the name, I call it turtle wax, It's a shell conditioner from tetra). I was his only owner besides the pet store when I got him when he was a few months old. Our other turtle a mud turtle is doing just fine. His shell is hard and normal all around.

[steve]

Is he getting any UVB? I would stop with the cream, especially if it's Vitashell.

[Kb11881]

It is vitashell. Is that bad for him? Also no uvb but I'm looking at getting one. The guy I bought him from said UVB wasnt necessary if his shell was fine, but I'm worried with the soft spot now

[steve]

Correct, Vitashell can be bad for him. He really shouldn't have a soft spot in his shell. Are there any odors? Discoloration?

[Kb11881]

There is no odor or discoloration that I can detect. He's also acting normal. His sleep/eating habits are normal and he's quite active.

[Kb11881]

http://s1077.photobucket.com/albums/w46 ... CF0343.jpg

Hi everyone. I posted about a week ago for the first time about my red eared slider who I was worried about because his shell was a tad soft near the tail. I came home today and was a little worried about his shell. I took the remainder of the turtle wax off of him last night because Steve (Thanks Steve) said it wasn't a good idea. He's acting completely normal and bathing in his new UV light normally. He's eating normal (pellets every other day and veggies everyday).

If you look at the picture it looks like there is a white shadow towards the top part of his shell, that's just my camera sorry for that. he does have a whitish patch next to his head though. I touched it lightly today when I picked up him to take the picture and it seems almost as if water is underneath it. Is this just him getting ready to shed his scales, I noticed quite a few are extremely lifted.

[steve]

He does like he will be shedding soon. For good measure, I would do a close inspection of his shell and maybe even a gentle cleaning (use a new toothbrush and carefully scrub his shell.)