General Care Discussion :: basking all the time

[jc0228]

Hi, i got two 1.5" baby turtle for a week.
i have it in a small container for now, with a floating platform and a table lamp for basking

one of them always bask whenever i see him, he rarely go to the bottom like the other one, but when i feed him, he seems very active!
i see him open his mouth like once a day for a split second, i'm wondering if he got RI :S

second, i'm planning to get a Giant Marimo ball to put in the tank. is the turtle going to eat it? and does it effect their health?

[Vtolds]

I had too search Marimo Ball I would not deliberately drop a gaint ball of algae in with them. Do they have a tank heater? Water temp could be the problem.

[jc0228]

no i dony have a heater yet, but i change the water everyday with warm water 36 degree C
and after a long time, temp drops to 25C and stays there

[TheComputerGremlin]

Just changing the water isn't a reliable way to keep a constant temperature. You need to invest in a water heater, they are cheap. And 36 degree C water is WAY too warm for a turtle. That's nearly your body temp! If your turtle has an RI, it's because the water temps are fluctuating so much that they're getting sick. If you insist on not getting a water heater, never put water in that is higher than 26 C.

You also don't mention having a UVB bulb, you need to give your turtles both a basking heat light and UVB rays so they can convert the calcium into vitamin D and have healthy shells.

RI symptoms are "breathing" through the mouth, like they have a stuffy nose. Once in a while, the turtle will open their mouth like they are begging. If it's once per day, I doubt it's anything to worry about.

[jc0228]

i get it now, thank you very much!