General Care Discussion :: turtle cant swim..why??

[jisbmx]

my friend had a turtle..i am now taking care of it. its over 3 yrs old. for some reason it doesn't seem to know how to swim.

it moves with the help of the gravel and glass(the tank) and other things in the tank..when he tries to get from one side of the tank to the other fast, it chooses to 'hop' on one leg. it looks pretty weird. i tried feeding it comet goldfish, and since it cant swim, its too slow for the goldfish

theres been a few times were i actually seen it move all four legs, like if its attempting to swim, but it does work for it, so it ends up giving up, and 'walking' or 'hopping' around. most of the time its hopping on that one foot

whats wrong with it? :(

[Vtolds]

How dose he get too the top of the tank to breath? You could trying lowering the water level than gradually raising it again and see if he starts swimming.

[megcornell]

How large is the turtle and how large is your tank?
What kind of set up did your friend have?

If the turtle was kept in poor conditions he may need time to get back in swimming "shape." Lower the water level to one where he's more comfortable and see how that goes.

You shouldn't hvae gravel in the tank. It's very dangerous for turtles. They have a really bad habit of eating it and becoming impacted, which can lead to their death.

Also, goldfish aren't the healthiest feeder fish. Rosy red minnows are much less fatty and make a better treat.

[mikee]

How deep is your water? If there is not much water in the tank he may not have to swim. If the water is deep he would have no choice. How large is you tank? How deep is the water?

[jisbmx]

the water is not too deep...and he usually goes to a corner..or just a side glass of the tank and with the help of the glass...reaches up..he also has a side of the tank which is less deep. so he has water deep enough to swim..but he doesnt. i actually put on of my friends turtle in my tank for a few days(taking care of it)..and he was swimming no problem. but mine doesnt.

i dont think my friend kept it in a place as good as the one i provided the turtle... how long does it take to get back in the 'swimming shape'? what does impacted mean? i have one of those longer 20 gallon tanks for now. i think its about 4 inches?

thanks for the gravel tip.and comet goldfish are not fed to him very often.

[jisbmx]

ohhh...the reason i decided to get gravel was because when i didnt have any..it had a VERY difficult time reaching up to get air since he kept sliding on the bottom glass :P

[octpusgirl8]

"Impacted" means that the intestines get clogged up with something, in this case gravel. If they can't pass it it causes serious problems and death. Definitely take out the gravel. You can put some larger stones on the bottom for traction, just make sure they're bigger than it's head. Try raising the water level and giving it things to rest on, like driftwood and fake plants. You might find that he does swim when he has to.

[BullDog]

I agree with Meg. If he wasn't used to having deep water before, it'll take him a while to re-learn his swimming instinct. I recently went through something similar with my new turtle, Frankie. She was either walking along the bottom, or paddling maddly like a hatchling to get to the top. I provided her a couple areas to rest. She would either hang out on the ramp to her basking area, or rest on the big plastic plant that's in there.

It took Frankie about 3 weeks to start to look comfortable in the water. She's still not as graceful as my older guy, Ralph, but she definatly has an easier time swimming now.

I also agree with taking the gravel out. A few river rocks (bigger than your turt's head) are the best option. They look good, give your guy something to play with, and they're relatively easy to clean around

[jisbmx]

well its been over 3 weeks with mine..maybe it will take mine longer...i hope that she will be able to swim better some day.

[TheComputerGremlin]

You can try some other types of things on the bottom for traction. I have under my glass rocks a floor runner. It works really well for added traction because it has little grooves along it.

To the more experienced board members, is it possible that the turtle already has eaten some gravel and that's why he can't swim? I don't know what the symptoms of impaction are, so I don't know. But it just seems to me that something with a rock in his belly might have trouble swimming. (Sorry jisbmx, I don't want to scare you, it just seems like a possibility in my mind.)

[jisbmx]

im pretty sure its not the gravel..why do i think that? well before i got the gravel..the turtle had exactly the same set up(minus the gravel)..and he wouldn't swim. he would try walking, and like i said before...he would slip/slide on the bottom of the tank..he couldn't swim before the gravel was added to the tank and he still cant swim.

[jisbmx]

thanks for looking out though

[SpotsMama]

You should definitely keep an eye out in case your turtle is impacted. If he is, he will stop pooping for one thing. He may kick at his rear end with his back feet. He will loose his appetite. Hopefully, if he's swallowed any it will pass on through. Once you get the gravel out, watch for gravel on the bottom of the tank and if you see any, scoop it out right away before he eats it again. They can poop gravel for weeks or more as it clears out of their systems.

I hope your turtle starts swimming normally soon. I suppose it's possible he could have been injured somehow and that's making it difficult for him. The most likely cause for him not swimming is that he's just not used to it yet.

[Dein211]

Yeah my turtle has the same swimming problem but i think it has more to do with the fact she was living in a box for a month and when i had her in water when i first got her it wasnt a lot. now I know better. she has a loggy and a rock to sit on when she gets tired of swimming. she's getting better at the swimming though