General Care Discussion :: Chalky stool

[iltier]

I'm worried about my res who have a chalky stool and I don't know what to do with it, is there something wrong about my res or it's just something about the food that i give him? I'm feeding my res a commercial food pellet that contains vitamin c . My res looks ok he doesn't show any signs of being sick the only problem is his chalky stool. I would really appreciate it if someone can really help me with this, thanks in advance.

[sonyj]

What else are you feeding... what veggies does he get daily? What's his set-up like?

[marisa]

Has the stool been like this since you got him, or has this been a recent change? If it's recent, have you made any changes to the diet (even feeding something different only once/a few times)? Do you happen to have one of those white turtle conditioners in the tank?

[iltier]

My res stool only started changing its consistency when I started feeding it a commercial food pellet. Before, i just feed it with a dried small shrimps but because I got concerned that dried shrimps may not contain enough vitamins and minerals that is why I bought it a commercial food pellet that contains vitamin c. For the first week I'm feeding it with this food its stool is ok,its just after a few weeks I started to notice a change in its stool consistency. I no longer change its diet because I think the pellets I'm giving it is already ok because according to the food label it contains algae,crustaceans, mollusks, shrimp meal and fish meal and some added minerals and specifically vitamin c to boosts its immune system.

[marisa]

How big is your turtle? You're right to think that dried shrimp don't contain enough nutrition to be a staple in the diet, they should be occasional treats. They're high in protein and overfeeding them will result in health problems.

What is the name of the pellet you're giving your turtle? How much and how often do you give them to him? A varied diet is good (and necessary so he gets a full range of nutrients), and you should be including other foods (including plant matter) in the diet besides the pellets. Look at the feeding list on the forum for some ideas.