General Care Discussion :: ahhhhh My turtle is eating his/her (not to sure) own poop!

[cnesheiwat]

My RES is 1 1/2 yrs. old and he is about 7-8 inces long (shell). He is in a big 60 gallon tank and has a huge filter (xp3). I feed him at least 2 times a day. Everytime after feeding him he attempts to eat his own poop. I try to net most of it out when I see it.

I use to have a feeder tank for him to eat in, but now I feed him directly in his 60 gallon. He is getting too big and aggressive to handle all of the time.

Will it hurt him? Is it normal? What could I do?

and do you know the main characteristics to distinguish a male from a female? (I heard about the long claws, but how long is long?)

[fishandcandy]

Poo eating is totally normal.

[Shavannah]

First of all...EWWW! LOL The male's claws are usually considerably long. Also, their tails are thick and long. Do you have a picture you could post? I have a male, and some of us might be able to tell if we see yours. Thanks!

[cprcheetah]

Zekey does this too....I think it's instinctual, for protection in the wild....I know dogs and cats do this for protection as well as to get extra nutrients, I know it's gross but it works. Maybe missing something in their diet?

As for telling them apart. My Zeke is 5years old and 7" long and his claws are LONG. Don't know how 'long' is long considered, but you can definately see them....it takes everything I have not to be tempted to trim them as I work for a vet and trim dogs/cats nails constantly, but am not going to trim Zekes....not tempted.

[grey goose]

1 1/2 years old and 7-8 inches long? Whoa! I'd say you got a female. Or a very fat (and happy) male. Have you had him since he/she was a hatchling? I've got a 6 yo male thats 6 1/2 in. long that I feed in a separate container and when he knows its feeding time he'll rush right over and jump into my hand, no agression at all.
As far as any "extracurricular dining" (poop) well, any thing in the tank is fair game, I guess. Are you sure you've got a RES there? That size at that age (and aggressive) sounds like a snapper....

[CountryGirl68]

Here's an example of a male turtle:



and a female turtle:

[cprcheetah]

Here is my favorite picture of Zeke's nails:

It is a great example of a males LONG nails. Zeke is all I've seen up close so don't know that the 'norm' is. Zeke reminds me of 'freddy krueger' or this particular picture....Edward Scissorshands....LOL.

[ahguiturtle]

My turtle also used to do it when he is little... But now, no more.

[Shavannah]

Zeke reminds me of 'freddy krueger' or this particular picture....Edward Scissorshands....LOL.

That's hilarious!

[Jessica313]

My RES is 1 1/2 yrs. old and he is about 7-8 inces long (shell). He is in a big 60 gallon tank and has a huge filter (xp3). I feed him at least 2 times a day. Everytime after feeding him he attempts to eat his own poop. I try to net most of it out when I see it.

your turtle is only a year old and he is 7-8 inches long?? that seems like wayy too much growth for one year. you could be overfeeding him. you feed him twice a day every day?? thats too much. once your turtle is a year old, you should be feeding him the amount of pellets that would fit inside his head if it were hollow ( not including neck) every other day...

[marisa]

I think they're more apt to eat their own poop when they're in captive conditons (limited space) if there's nothing else for them to scavange. If he's healthy, there's no problem.

My Tilly has spikes as well (he's a little over 4 years old) and some pretty long nails on his hind feet as well. If I'm going to be holding him for any length of time, I use a towel to wrap him in when I pick him up. This morning one of his feet got loose, though, and he left a nice little slice in my right palm.

[cnesheiwat]

Thanks for all your input. I definitely have a female... I'll post a pic soon.

[cnesheiwat]

Now that I think that I have a female is there anything specific I should provide or do for her? Is it necessary to provide a place to lay eggs or something?

[missibsu]

Yes. Females will lay eggs without a male present and it isn't natural for them to lay eggs in the water. If she is forced to withhold her eggs, they could crack inside her and possibly lead to the death of the turtle. You can read all about that here and it gives information on how to build a nesting area.
http://www.tortoisetrust.org/articles/Nestsites.htm

[marisa]

If your female is 1.5 years old, the above info is good to have as a reference, but it will be a little while before you need to use it. Good to know, though.