General Care Discussion :: Help! Baby turtle has white cotton stuff on mouth???

[DanieStar]

Okay I have two baby turtles and one is fine except lighter then it used to be but is active and eats great. The small one swims around but doesn't eat and has gotten some white cotton stuff around its mouth! I don't know what it is or what I should do! I keep the water at the temp it is suppose to be and they have the right lighting and basking area...they both bask fine...I am not home much with school and work ..so I don't know if they are fighting or what is going on! Please help!

[missibsu]

Is it possible to post a picture of this?

Are you noticing this white stuff when the shell is wet or dry?

Is it possible that he is shedding?

[DanieStar]

I thought turtles only shed their shells not their skin...this is on his beak...he was in the water when I saw it. A friend that knows about some fish and snakes said it sounded like a fungus...so I am worried! I don't have a pic. He told me to brush at my turtles beak to get it off and see what happened. I did that and its gone now...but my turtle still isn't eating.

[adam85491]

They shed their skin too.

[marisa]

Was the cotton-like matter only around the mouth? Shedding would look like whitish wispy threads hanging off of him when he's in the water. Is anything coming off his legs or tail?

Are there any other symptoms besides the white stuff and not eating (frequent yawing, open-mouth breathing out of the water, bubbles from the nose or mouth out of the water, for example)?

How long have you had them? What's their set-up like? What's the temp of the water and basking area?

[steve]

Can you tell if its coming from inside the mouth? It could be mucus... can you answer the questions posted above?

[DanieStar]

It was just around his mouth...it did look like that I didn't know their skin shed! No he doesn't have any other symptoms other then the not eating...and he hasn't gotten the stuff back since I wiped it off with a tooth brush. He has attempted to eat ...but when I was watching him he would try to get the pellet then would loose it and not try again! I keep the water temp in the green area between 70 to 80 degrees and he has room to swim around and go up on the bridge to bask and go under it to get shade. No there wasnt anything inside his mouth that I could see that was like that...it was just white wispy cotton stuff hanging from his chin and on the sides of his mouth. it was only in the water that I saw it.

[marisa]

The "green area" on the thermometer is the safe zone for fish---you're dealing with turtles. Since they're small hatchlings, they really should have more of a constant water temp. If they're healthy, 78F is good. Get a submersible water heater if you don't have one to keep the water temp from dipping.

[DanieStar]

Wow...okay thank you! Do you think that is why he isn't eating? because the water has been closer to 73 degrees instead of 78?

[marisa]

That very well could be the reason. Also, prolonged exposure to temps that are too cool will make him more susceptible to illness.