General Care Discussion :: Shedding scutes and appetite

[pamelas]

Anyone have the experience of a turtle losing their appetite while trying to lose scutes. My girl shed all her scutes last year and I don't recall her stopping eating. She is off her Reptomin, off greens, she doesn't go for veggies, but I have tried some anyway, no luck. She doesn't even want a freeze dried krill--her treats. If i toss a small snail or a bug gets in the water overnight, she is eating that. She seems to be using the cuttlebone like food. Not a lot of basking going on either. She's outside in approx a 150 gallon pond, I have only one heater running now as it's hot here in N. Calif. I don't know the water temp right now, I broke yet another floating thermometer, but water feels like 75-80 degrees, depending on the time of day. Perplexed.

[RunninWideOpen]

hmmmm....I haven't experienced that. All 3 of my RES have been shedding since spring.

i know a turtles appetite changes with water temps. It's really too hard to tell water temp by feel. I just started using digital thermometers. They're pretty cool. I can drop the probe in the water and in just a couple minutes it tells me the temp. Then I take the thermometer to the next tank. I feel it's much more accurate than the glass and stick on thermometers I was using.

What kind of thermometer was it that broke? Do you think the liquid got into the water? Do you know if it's mercury or not?

[SpotsMama]

Normal scute shedding won't cause a turtle to lose his appetite. What causes him to lose his appetite are things like water that's too cool and illness. Usually the first symptoms of a number of different illnesses are loss of appetite and lethargy. Is he showing any other symtoms like breathing with his mouth open or swollen or irritated eyes? Is he pooping normally?

I wonder about the air temperature. If the air temp is too cool then the turtle won't bask..RunninWideOpen is exactly right about not being able to tell temperatures - air or water - just by feel. Over and over people are surprised when they find out what the real temp is.

You can measure the temp by leaving a thermometer in the water - or on the basking area - for around 20 minutes while you supervise the turtle. Then take it out. Turtles find playing with thermometers too great a temptation to leave one in there.

[steve]

There is no connection to shedding scutes to appetite that I can think of. Turtles can be moody, so this might just pass. You could try to offer something different... a different color or a different kind of prey. This hasn't been mentioned recently, but some RES can be picky or just want a change.

If you can provide some answers to the above questions, that might help us out too.

[pamelas]

Hi all-- thanks for the reply. I use a floating thermometer..it did not break in the water. I routinley break these darn things on the patio or where ever..I scoop debris out of the pond and dump it on the patio, the lawn etc and I am forever scooping up the darned thing and dumping it out..they break. I am lame..you should hear my husband when I say "well dear, broke another one" Well maybe you shouldn't ;-)
I know the pond and it's temps like the back of my hand..I can feel the temp within a few degrees..seriously. I can't figure out what's up with her..I am used to her going through a non eating period in the winter but not this time of year. She has been eating everything in site, by the truckload, since March when the weather turned. If anything I wonder if it might actually be too hot out there for much basking. I have had to run the airator to cool off the water many days this past week. The kid is spending a lot of time napping in the corner of the pond where I put small tree branches over hanging the water. She is sticking to shade basically. She has no other signs of distress..swims fine, no odd breathing, all normal except the scutes (going on 2 months now without much movement) and the eating thing. Pooping normally, but of course not a lot of it, and she will eat if it's a garden / people food treat thing. I do not want to get sucked into all treat food just to get her to eat. I end up doing that for about 6 weeks every winter..she doesn't need that twice a year. Moody? Big personality for sure. She is a smart girl..follows me around the house when she comes in at night, if I lose track of her..comes when called. A bit like Sheba.

[pamelas]

Steve-- I have tried different pellets, she sucks them down and spits them out. Sigh.

[RunninWideOpen]

hmm, how long have you had her? it sounds like you've had her a number of years and know her very well. If this is really abnormal it might be good to get her in for a check up at a good herp vet to make sure everthing's ok.

how long she been doing this?

If she's sticking to the shade she may be too hot. That would explain the lack of basking also. I would still get a thermometer and check it.

[pamelas]

She appeared in our yard 4 maybe 5 years ago. We could not find her owners and suspect she may have been dumped. We have a pond and creek that are clearly visible from our front yard. She and I do know each other very well, we are buds and bonded for sure. New thermometer is on my list and today she did consent to having some romaine and chowed down 1/2 a medium size cuttle bone. She has been "off her feed" for a week now. Also she has been soliciting shell scratches for about 2 weeks ..tonight while I mindlessly was scratching her and she was rubbing up against the coffee table, 2 scutes popped off her back. At least they have started to shed, finally.

[RunninWideOpen]

I'm glad she got some lettuce down. It's interesting how she's just nawing away at the cuttlebone....

[jenaero]

One of my res fasts when shedding for a week or so at a time. The other skipped a day so far but that's it.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Anyone have the experience of a turtle losing their appetite while trying to lose scutes. My girl shed all her scutes last year and I don't recall her stopping eating. She is off her Reptomin, off greens, she doesn't go for veggies, but I have tried some anyway, no luck. She doesn't even want a freeze dried krill--her treats. If i toss a small snail or a bug gets in the water overnight, she is eating that. She seems to be using the cuttlebone like food. Not a lot of basking going on either. She's outside in approx a 150 gallon pond, I have only one heater running now as it's hot here in N. Calif. I don't know the water temp right now, I broke yet another floating thermometer, but water feels like 75-80 degrees, depending on the time of day. Perplexed.

I don't think my Sheba has ever missed a meal, shedding or otherwise. So I would look for another reason as to why your turt has stopped eating. How big is your turtle? She may need to lay eggs. Many females will stop eating when they need to lay eggs.

Have you tried feeding her some pond plants?

[pamelas]

Hi Industrial Girl -- my girl is a 9 inch river cooter and I wondered about the egg laying also. She has been kicking her back legs a bit but what she is doing is pulling her legs forward to scratch under her shell. If she decides to go walkabout after she comes in for the night I have been watching to see if she digs at the carpet..nope. She does run to my feet and starts the wiggle dance, so I scratch and rub her shell. In any case I have been gently probing to feel for eggs. I don't feel anything different..but I am no expert in this area. I will pick up some pond plants when I go for the new thermometer..good idea. I note that Jenaero has a RES who doesn't eat when shedding, perhaps that's all it is..I am watching her carefully. Thanks for the reply.

[pamelas]

Pond water temps have been 82-84 degrees mid day..very warm. I have used the airator every afternoon, after I check the temp. I put it on full blast and the temp goes down to 80ish in pretty short order. Last 2 days I have been scooping rather more poop than I would expect given her intake. Today there was even more, alot more! Also today she ate a very decent lunch (pellets) for this first time since this started. I am wondering if she had an episode ala Sheba and the collard greens. No pond plants yet, they didn't look too good so didn't buy any. I will try again this weekend. I continue to offer lettuces and she is nibbling them. No more scutes have shed, she feels kinda squishy all over except where she lost the 2 scutes the other night. I want to give her the other half of the cuttle bone but after the way she attacked the last half--90% eaten in one afternoon--I am a little cautious.

[kornygerm]

Well kind of the problem i have is that one of my turtles is sheding all of her scoutes,beginning today while in the other turtle still the same.

[pamelas]

Have you noticed and change in eating with your shedding baby?