General Care Discussion :: Sleeping while Basking, Not Eating

[w0ngbr4d]

I just got two hatchling RES. One seems to act pretty normal from what I've been reading, spends a lot of time in the water, eats, basks (but goes into the water when I walk into the room).

The other one never spends any time in the water. He/She sits on the basking ramp with its eyes closed, almost like he/she is sleeping. I moved he/she to another container to eat (the normal one likes to steal food), and he/she nibbled at the food, but didn't seem to want to eat anything. When I placed him in the water, I noticed little whisps coming off him/her, could he/she be shedding?

The setup I have includes a 10 Gal tank, filter, PowerSun UV basking bulb. Water temp is around 78-80, and basking temp is about 90.

I'm worried about the lack of eating and constant basking. I'm going to try tuna later on to see if that will entice some eating.

Thanks for the help,

Brad

[cam722]

First off, Welcome to the forum

The tank you have is way too small for two turtles for starters.. you should start thinking about upgrading ASAP. If the one turtle is eating fine, I'd take him out and feed the other in the tank. Many turtles, especially new ones won't eat outside their environment. Also, with 2 turtles in a tank you really have to be careful to make sure each gets their share of the food.

You mentioned the whisps.. this could be shedding and I've noticed that mine bask a lot more when they are growing. Do you notice any other symptoms?

[w0ngbr4d]

No, not really. He/she just gets up on the platform, closes his/her eyes, and seems to sleep.

I say sleep because it takes a bit to get him/her to wake up (open eyes, move around). I've dripped water on him/her a few times (because I thought something was really wrong) and after a few minutes, his/her eyes open. The odd thing is is that when you touch a leg, he/she quickly retracts it into the shell, so its more of a deep sleep I think.

I'm concerned that this lethargy is caused by the lack of eating.

Time to try the tuna.

Thanks for the help.

Brad

[w0ngbr4d]

I tried the more pellets, still wouldn't eat them. I tried hand feeding him some tuna, no go. When I placed him back into the big tank, and tried hand feeding him some tuna in there, another no go.

I tried these Zoo Med Turtle Treats (ocean krill), and he wouldn't eat them. The other (normal) turtle appeared almost immediately (I don't know how, can they smell under water?) and went after the food. I thought, what the heck, maybe lead by example, so I let the normal turtle eat it.

I tried another pellet and he had his eyes closed again (odd). After waking (he couldn't have fallen asleep that fast, could he?, we're talking seconds, maybe minutes) him, he bit at it, but couldn't break it up. It started to sink, and of course the normal turtle (who i think i might name Fatty) ate it.

The odd turtle sat floated near the corner of the tank for a while with a pellet right in front of his face. Fatty of course was hanging out waiting for the odd one to move so he could get the food. When I last checked, Fatty had pushed the odd one to the side so he could get the pellet.

Question. Could Fatty be a turtle bully? I've read that male turtles can antagonize female turtles, but to hatchlings exhibit this behavior? I haven't noticed any aggressive behavior between them beyond Fatty moving him to get this last pellet. The odd one belongs to my girlfriend, so she is going to take him for a few days to see if she can get him to eat on his own. If she is successful, then we know that Fatty is intimidating him.

Let me know if there is anything else I can try.

Thanks again.

Brad

[marisa]

When you say you've just gotten them, how long have you had them? The one turtle is showing no other symptoms? What do the eyes look like--are they swollen at all? Is the turtle alert and are the eyes clear when they're open?

You're using a Zoo-Med Powersun mercury vapor lamp in a 10-gallon tank? If so, are you sure the temp is only 90F? (Mercury vapor lights like the Powersun give off a LOT of heat, and really aren't recommended for small tanks.) Does the turtle appear to get dried out while basking? If the temps. particularly the basking area temp, are too warm it will encourage shedding. I would recheck the basking area temp...Perhaps the lethargy is in part being caused by excessive heat as well as lack of food...(if you are using a Powersun)

Keeping them in too-small a tank can encourage bullying, and you really should consider upgrading that tank...They tend to be nearsighted--my turtles will often overlook food that's right in front of their noses. And their sense of smell is keen, even in the water.

Those Zoo-Med Turtle Treats should be offered rarely and sparingly. The krill, if you look at the nutritional content, is very high in protein, which, if overfed, will cause shell and health problems. What pellets are you offering? I'd keep trying to feed them separately, keeping trying smelly foods (try some boiled white chicken meat) and try something live like pieces of earthworm to get him going. Once eating, mix a bit of the moistened pellets with the smelly food (handfeed if you can) and change the proportion until he'll eat the pellets.

If turtle is being stressed from being with a "bully," perhaps being in his/her own set-up and cared for by your girlfriend would help. I'd keep an eye out for any symptoms such as open-mouth breathing, frequent yawning, wheezing, mucus from the eyes/nose/mouth, listing to the side when in the water.

[w0ngbr4d]

I will have had them a week this Friday. The other turtle seems to be fine, swims, basks (hides when I walk into the room), eats, hangs out underwater, and seems to sleep underwater.

The odd ones eyes are clear when they are open. I looked up pictures of swollen eyes on RES online, and they are no where near as bad as what I found.

Here are a few pictures of him on the dock from this morning (i had just turned the light on, they get 10 hours a day):





I have a thermometer on the top of the basking dock monitoring the temperatures. I have the Zoo Med Rept Lamp Stand about a little over a foot above the basking ramp, as of now, it reads 91.7F.

That was the first time I offered the turtle treats. They normally eat Zoo Med pellets. The odd one is in a small plastic pet container (9in x 6in) to try to get him to eat. He swims frantically around for a while, then seems to go back asleep, floating on the surface. He's been in there close to an hour and hasn't even nibbled at the pellets or treats (only offered to try to get him to eat) I put in. I'll take him out and try again after my class.

Another setup sounds like it might work, we might end up giving that a shot.

Thanks again.

Brad

[Giddy]

Have you tried krill or chicken?

[w0ngbr4d]

The Zoo Med Turtle Treats are whole ocean krill. I haven't tried chicken yet, just tuna.

My girlfriend picked him up today. Right now he/she is in one of those plastic pet carriers. Hopefully she goes and gets him a proper setup. One of her friends has kept a turtle in one of those for about a year, without any problems, and it is still kicking. I guess that turtle was even sick once, and recovered.

My girlfriend is going to keep me posted his eating.

Does anything seem wrong in those pictures above?

Thanks for the replies.

Brad

[marisa]

Encourage your girlfriend to get a complete set-up with correct lighting, a basking area, filter, water heater, etc., not keep him in a plastic pet carrier, especially if he's got health problems (if his eyes are like that most of the time, something is wrong). To see if part of the problem is a Vit. A deficiency (if his diet has been unbalanced, it's likely), get some plain cod liver oil and apply some to the lids once or twice a day for several days. If he needs Vit A, this should help.

[lazixixi]

I'd also try tuna, my turtle use to only eat his veggies and not pellets. But after I tried tuna, he eats fine now.