General Care Discussion :: Is my RES Hibernating?

[Kai.]

I have the 10.0 compat (reptisun) and my turtles seem to enjoy prolonged periods of time basking with their eyes closed. Is there anything wrong with this? Their eyes aren't swollen or anything, just closed a lot of the time (are they sleeping?)

[SpotsMama]

Kai, some people have reported that the reptisun 10.0 compact flourescent irritates their turtles' eyes. How close is your bulb to your turtles?

[Kai.]

It was about 8", but I have now moved it to 13" since i kind of noticed how they always closed their eyes

[SpotsMama]

Good. See if they do better.

Your RESs are not hibernating. It has to be pretty cool for them to hibernate. I believe you've said previously that you've got your water and basking temperatures at appropriate level - right?

When you say your turtles bask for prolonged periods, how long is prolonged?

[Kai.]

I do not yet have a thermometer for the basking area, but the water is about 25-26 degrees celsius.
Prolonged as in like.. everytime i check in on them... which is every 1/2 hour (I don't know if they were swimming while i was at school)

[SpotsMama]

Water temperature sounds good (76 to 78 degrees). If the water were too cold or too warm, it could have been a reason for the turtles not to go in it.

I wonder if something in that piece of wood that was in the tank was unpleasant to them. Have you changed the water since you took the wood out?

When you come into the room and the turtles see you, do they hop off the dock into the water, or do they just lie there?

[Kai.]

Well i took the wood out yesterday, and changed the water once in the afternoon and once at night.

When i walk into the room, they just lie there.

[SpotsMama]

That plus the closed eyes does sound lethargic for baby RES. If you are able to get them to a vet, ask him/her to check for RI, respiratory infection.

Do the turtles breath with their mouths open, or frequently "yawn"?

I think you said in another thread that your turtles are brand new - you've only had them for a couple of days. It's more typical for brand new turtles to be very skittish. They'll run and hide under the water or behind a plant when anyone walks up.

Little turtles are rather delicate - they get sick easily. If they have been in an environment that was unhygenic, or too cold, or they were around other turtles that were sick, then they could have picked up something before you ever got them. If that's the case, even though you're doing everything right, they still might be ill.

I hope you're able to get them to a good vet. Until then, keep them warm - bump the water temp up to 27 or 28 degrees celcius - give them peace and quite, and keep the water clean (sounds like you're doing a good job of that already). If you can get some turtle eye drops, try them according to the directions on the package. That should help any eye irritation.

Good luck! Sounds like you're doing a very good job.

[Kai.]

Lethargic? They don't breath with their mouths, they're just very inactive and they always have their eyes closed. Is there a chance that by keeping the overal temperature of everything a bit higher and keeping the water clean that they will recover from this (if they have it)?

Thanks guys for all the info

[SpotsMama]

It's impossible to say if keeping the temperature warm and the water very clean will allow them to recover. Maybe. It would give them better odds but it depends on how ill they are. The odds would be best if it's RI with antibiotics, but I know your options are limited there. Even with antibiotics sometimes they don't make it.