General Care Discussion :: Growth spurt, skin shedding, gimpy leg!

[devilduck]

Great looking tank! Glad to hear everything is coming together!
Turtle are great climbers, even with 3 legs.
If he is having problems you can try wrapping a couple long zip ties horizontally across the sloping part of the dock to act as hand holds.

[ataraxiamb]

Thank you! I've tried to keep the tank simple but adequate.

He just climbed up to the basking spot and jumped off, so I guess there are no worries about that. I'm a worry wart...

He does make some use of the disabled leg. He sometimes flails it when he's swimming, but it's clear his other limbs are doing the real work. I feel bad for him because he can't stretch it out when he's basking.

[ataraxiamb]

I haven't seen any poop from Bill in several days. Is he constipated? What would be the symptoms? How can I help him?

[steve]

What about having cork for his basking area? Very easy for them to grip onto and bask.

[ataraxiamb]

Steve,

Where does one get cork? Is this something that will require a saw? He seems to be gripping pretty well now and basking. Just getting used to the higher water level.

Do you have any thoughts on the constipation?

I finally measured him properly (my house is a mess and I couldn't find a ruler or tape measure before), and it turns out my guesstimate was a bit off. He's 2.5" instead of 3". Should I be feeding him more protein since he's not 3" yet? Could my cutback on pellets be the causing of the missing poop?

[steve]

The choices for cork bark is more limited, especially if you're looking for the large pieces. Zoo Med seems to have a monopoly on the small and medium pieces. You might also find cork on ebay, florists and reptile shops.

Just get a piece that's longer than the width of your tank. Cork is soft, so you don't need a saw but most sharp blades will do.

As for the poop... he's probably just eating it.