General Care Discussion :: Another shell question

[sweety10189110]

When squirt is swimming around in the water his shell looks pretty good however i noticed this morning when I was heading out the door to work and he was up on his rock basking that his shell doesn't look to hot. Thought to post some pics to get some input from the more educated on turtle shells. I wouldn't be surprised if he does have fungus given the living space he was in before. When I brought him home the first night the back end of his shell was covered in slimy smelly brownish gunk.

[steve]

Could be calcium/mineral deposits. It tends to show up clearly when their shell has been dry for sometime and you have hard water. Try to rub a small area with white vinegar to see if it comes off.

[sweety10189110]

Thanks Steve . I'll try that tonight and see if that helps.

[sweety10189110]

Thanks again Steve. It did help. I'm just wondering overall does his/her shell look healthy or in good shape? Right before I brought him/her home from my friends house I found him/her in a terrarium while house sitting with no water and the ends of the scutes all raised up. I think he/she had been without water for at least a week if not longer. My friend never mentioned the turtle so I didn't even know he was there . I immediately added water to the terrarium and after a bit I didn't notice any scute ends raised. Do you think they shedded? I wish I would have paid more attention to the scutes at that time but I knew nothing about this turtle then. It looks a bit bumpy to me in some areas and I'm just a new paranoid turtle mom now LOL.

[CactusJohn5]

first pic, first thought, Hard water.

soft or medium brissle toothbrush, and lighty scrub the area; i do my girls once a month and they are fine. No chemicals or cleaners, just a toothbrush!

[steve]

Overall, it looks good from the pictures.