General Care Discussion :: Turtle egg pix? (possible dumb question)

[kikicool]

Okay, so the soap opera continues: I posted earlier a drastic behavioral change in the turts. (eating the fish in a mass frenzy, never ate one before!)

I cleaned out the tank AGAIN--I had just finished. Tonight, I noticed four tiny, cylindrical clear things floating on top of the water. They weren't hard, but were probably "poppable." you know what I mean?

Were they just some fish guts that I missed? Or are they possibly turtle eggs? That may be a dumb question, but... I wondered. Did Lily lay eggs?? Anyone have pix of turtle eggs? I tried to take a picture but can't figure out how to turn off the flash on my camera and they don't come out. GRrrrr Thanks for any help in advance

[pumpkinsherbet]

from all the texts i've read, turtles go to land to lay their eggs. if able, they will burrow their eggs into the ground.

[mackadocious]

they don't sound at all like eggs....prolly fish guts.....my girl's in the process of laying eggs now--was just gonna go on to update that she laid another one....but they should be white-ish color with a semi-hard shell.....my girl's about 8" long and her eggs are about the size of robin eggs....don't know if they lay different size eggs or not but mine are the same as the the ones i found a picture of that were held too long an turned black....gross.....plus, they shouldn't float.....so no worries for that at least.......

ohh, and they will lay them in the water if they don't have any other options....i've found 5 so far in the water over the last week.....

[rocketright]

Hmm, They will not lay them in the water if they have no other area, they will keep them in them, as many as they can hold, so this can be a problem, as if turtles keep eggs inside them(this is caused by not having a soil area) they can become egg bound and may die...

You need a soil area(no chemicals) and make sure you have it about 10 inches deep,and 1 foot by 1 foot. And place her in there ever 2 days for the next couple weeks, for about 2 or 3 hours... Remember she may die if you don't have a egg laying area ready for her.

[mackadocious]

yeah, that's pretty much what i've got for her now.....i've done quite a bit of research in the last week, including speaking with a herp vet.....unfortunately, she does nothing but try to get out of the box when she's in it.....it's been very frustrating and worrysome, i've got a separate thread running below on the subject.....on the bright side, she started one week ago and we've gotten 5 out so far, it's her first clutch, and it's winter.....

i've also begun just letting her out in the living room for an hour at a time or so to see if she's more inclined to do it there.....she's just too big for the box i've provided i think....

[rocketright]

Hmm, Turtles shouldn't be let out, as they may get hair, or carpet stuff around their nails or toes as it may cut off a blood stream... And, She is probalby spreading salmonella all around your floor, it is very stressful and should not be done under any condition.

[SpotsMama]

I'm going to respectfully differ here, turtles love to get out and explore. I like to let mine out in the back yard in the summer. Sometimes I let him crawl around in the den but not much because we've got two curious kitties and a dog and, after all, the room's carpeted and....you know. There's another one on here, Industrial Girl 2000, that has a big old female and her turtle has pretty much free run of the house, so far as I can tell, and it's worked fine for her. Her turtle Sheba comes when called. They have a remarkable relationship.

That said, there are some qualifications. (1) The area must be absolutely safe. No ants, chemicals, possible falls, cats, etc. that can cause harm. (2) Especially outside, but also inside, you have to watch the turtle like a hawk every single minute. They are fast little escape artists and will vanish if you're not careful. (3) If the turtle is small, or nervous, then just don't do it. You don't want to add stress.

But If your turtle knows you, swims up to you, doesn't panic about being picked up, and seems curious then I think letting the turtle out to get some sun or to explore enriches his/her life and helps socialize them.

[rocketright]

Yes, It depends on your turtles personality!! Totally agree with you!

[mackadocious]

only supervised of course--too many other animals in the house to not and too many places to hide if i'm not looking......only twice so far, and hank enjoys it much more than patsy, of course

so don't know if that'll work either but thought i'd offer it to her as industrial girl was sayin that's the only place her girl would lay them--underneath furniture.....i'm also going to try a bigger box and see if i can fashion something for her to hide under when she's in it.....needs to be relatively cheap though, i've gotta get thru this last semester!!

[rocketright]

Yah, I doubt she would lay on the floor, hmm, I'll try and think of something!

[industrial_girl_2000]

Hmm, Turtles shouldn't be let out, as they may get hair, or carpet stuff around their nails or toes as it may cut off a blood stream... And, She is probalby spreading salmonella all around your floor, it is very stressful and should not be done under any condition.

I also have to respectfully disagree. I let Sheba out to walk around the house all the time (of course, she is hard to lose since she is 9" long with a thick tall shell). Sheba follows me around the house when she is walking around & loves to crawl on me & beg for food. She is so relaxed that even when she is basking, I can walk right up to her & touch her & pet her a bit. I swear if this turtle was any *less* stressed, she would be SLEEPING.

I don't worry about salmonella on the carpet...Sheba has her own towel next to the tank where I dry her off before she walks around. Also, I have noticed that they tend to pee or poop right after they eat, so I only let her walk around *before* she eats (or about an hour *after* she has eaten). That cuts accidents to a minimum.

[rocketright]

Yah, I totally agree... It just depends on turtles personality... Some may enjoy, some may not!

[Turtle addict]

I have let mine wander the floors also for the past 10 years and never had an issue with a toe or anything else.

Build a nest box, they will lay in water if they have no other place to do so, the eggs will die in the water. A simple ramp {made from any wire shelving, the stuff used for closets} up to a dollar store rubbermaid filled with dirt from the yard,bake it for about an hour to kill any live things in it, and make sure there are no chemicals used nearby. Block the sides by useing a cardboard box flipped over it. In a pinch this works, used it for my yellow belly , they seem to like the darkness caused by the cardboard over it.

[steve]

Back to the main topic... its fish guts

[Ferd]

I reallly think that those are some detached fish eggs. my fish(feeder ones btw) layed a bunch in a group. then one of my fellers just swam by and the water pressure just flushed them out and started to float up. were they little balls kinda in a streamer? if so keep them! u wont need to buy more fish!!!!