General Care Discussion :: Pink skin

[Turtlely]

My turtle's skin is really pink. Like behind her legs, a bit under her arms and under her tail. What's wrong?

[SpotsMama]

Is it pink all the time? Or just at certain times, like after she's been basking? Any way to get a photo?

[Turtlely]

It's been pink for 2 whole days now. I'll take a picture in the morning.

[SpotsMama]

How is she behaving?

[Turtlely]

She hasn't been acting differently.

[SpotsMama]

Turtle circulation isn't the best. Sometimes when they've been sitting for awhile - as in basking - the blood sort of pools and you can see a pinkish blush. I see it sometimes behind Spot's back legs and maybe a little around his front legs. It's a normal thing.

That's what I first thought of when you described Turtley. However, it's odd that it's visible all the time.

[Turtlely]

What if it doesn't go away?

[SpotsMama]

I'm not sure. Is it bright or very faint? If it's bright I'd take him to the vet to have it checked. Or if his behavior starts to change - losing his appetite or acting lethargic. If it's faint, I'd probably assume his blood is just pooling.

Here's some commentary on the subject. from Austin's Turtle Page:

"Seeing red or pink coming through the plastron or going along the scutes of the carapace, usually indicate Septicemia, but not always. It is not uncommon for younger turtles to have a slight pinkish or faded rust-colored appearance on the plastron. This eventually goes away in time and is of no health concern. Having a red or pink tint to the skin can sometimes be an indicator of indicate Septicemia, but not always. Also check the temperature of your habitat's water and basking areas."

[industrial_girl_2000]

What if it doesn't go away?

A lot of turtles get the pink (sometimes it is a very dark pink) skin thing. Once they start running around or swimming a lot the pink color can fade. Sometimes it might be pink for a coupla days. Turtles are very very lazy at times and will just sit and sit without doing anything. Turtles have very bad circulation. The areas that are the most pink are usually the soft skin near the armpits & where the legs go into the shell (soft skin between leg & shell) & around the tail.

Can you take a picture so we can help you further?

[marisa]

What do you feed your turtle?

What's the temp of the basking area?

[Turtlely]

It's a very light pink. I've been trying to take a picture but I can't get a good shot with her leg sticking out. She's really scared of the camera. =S

[Turtlely]

I feed her Turtle Bites and veggies. I don't really know the temp. but I use a Heat Glo infrared heat lamp by exo terra.

[marisa]

To me, there's a difference between "really pink" and "very light pink." If it's the latter, and your turtle is behaving normally and is otherwise healthy, it might not be anything of concern. Getting a pic would be good, though.

[super]

Wow, thanks for this info. Today is my first day on the board, I have been reading maybe a bit too much. When I came home tonight Buddy's skin was very pink, under his neck and around his arms. Seriously dark pink. I was convinced he has septicemia!

Today is water change day, so I put him in the bathtub to run around for a while while I cleaned everything. Then I started searching these old threads. Buddy has been clunking around in there for about an hour and I just checked him out, his skin is much better! Still a little pink but not nearly as bad as before. So I think it was blood pooling from sitting still on his log for several hours.

Thanks everyone for this great info, it has really eased my mind.