General Care Discussion :: Turtles acting differently than before

[maichii]

Hello,

Recently, I found one of my turtles, Scout, to have RI and took it to the vet. After taking him to the vet, the vet instructed me to change certain aspects of my tank.

I was instructed to keep Scout dry docked under a heat lamp and only putting him in the water to eat. The day of the vet, he stopped eating. The day after, he seemed to get better and ate some food. Now it's been a little over a week, and poor Scout hasn't eaten since and appears to be listless and inactive almost all day. He completely stretches out all of his limbs and just stays in one spot all day except to go to the other side of the container at night. The vet did a phone call check up, but didn't say if I should change anything else but to continue to give him the antibiotics.

I decided, against Vet's orders, to put enough water where Scout is to dip his feet in the water just for today, because his skin started to dry out and I worried that it would start cracking.

She instructed me to get an aquarium heater and a UVB light as well as thermometers for both land and water. After more research, I discovered that it was a good thing I've gotten these for their health, but Squirt, my other turtle, seems like to almost never bask anymore and just stays in the water. However, he is still very active and eats well.

Thanks for reading, and for your input in advance

[steve]

They can stay out of water for long periods of time, but you could have given him soaks every few hours.

What are the temperatures of the basking area and the water? The basking area should be warmer, roughly 10F higher than the water temperature. Did you have a "burn" period for the UVB light? It's also possible the light is irritating to Squirt.

[maichii]

That's what I figured I should have done with Scout, but since the Vet told me to keep him out of the water except at feeding, I didn't think anything of it at first. (I kind of suspect she's only worked with land turtles now that I think about it..)

The water heater heats the water up to 79 degrees, and the heat lamp brings the basking area to 82. I'll go and buy a 100w bulb instead of the 60w bulb that I have currently.

In terms of the UVB light, I did not have a burn period. (nor did I really know anything about it. I had never come across this kind of advice.) After searching through the forums, is a 100-HR burn period okay? Do I leave the light on away from the turtles during this burn period? Or, do I keep it at about 12 inches away from the basking area during the burn period?

Also, I feel that I should openly apologize to anyone who reads this forum for any cruelty I caused to my turtles.

[marisa]

I think a burn period depends on the kind/brand of bulb your using---some bulbs apparently can cause problems if you don't.

You do need a bigger difference between the water and basking area temp. If you get a 100-watt, it's likely you'll have to move it further away to keep the area from getting too hot. Be sure to check it with a thermometer.