General Care Discussion :: Upsidedown floating turtle..

[matt.steve]

Hey guys,
This morning I noticed my turtle upside, floating ontop of the water. I quickly turned him over, and put him on his basking spot. he seems to be okay now, he is still living. But should I be worried?
Another thing I want to throw out there quickly, is that he seems to always be on his basking spot, even when the light is off.
Light on temp: 90*F
Light of temp: 60*F
Water temp: 75*F (give or take a few degrees)


Thanks for the help, I wasnt sure if an upsidedown floating turtle was an "urgent care" problem, so i posted here instead.
Thanks,
Matt

[marisa]

A healthy turtle with all limbs should be able to right himself if he gets tipped over. The fact that yours didn't suggests that he was too weak to do so. If he's always on the basking area, even when the temp is 60F (normally a turtle would go into the 75F water for more warmth), it sounds like he's sick. Are his eyes swollen? Does he open them?

Is there a submersible water heater in the tank (there should be so that the water is at a constant temp). It would be good to raise the water temp to 82F. Get a submersible water heater if there isn't one in the tank.

That's a very big temp drop when the light is off. (Is there both a UVB light and heat light?) I'd try to raise the ambient air temp at night by covering the tank to keep the warmth from the heated water in the tank. Added warmth, both of the water and air, will help him fight an infection.

Does he eat? What are you feeding him?

A turtle floating upside down that can't or won't right himself is a cause for concern. If he can't right himself and stays unside down, he will eventually drown.

[matt.steve]

I dont think his eyes are swollen, and yes, he does open them. Is there any other behavior I should watch for?

Yes there is a submersible water heater, which is able to keep the water at a temp of around 75*F.
Ill try raising water temps.

Right now, I have a "50 Watt UVA Basking Bulb", thats what the box says. I guess I shouldnt trust the local store when asking for a UVB bulb. Im gonna go tomorrow and pick up a UVB bulb.
I usually have the bulb on at night, and off during the day, just because of previous fire issues with lightbulbs. I want to be home incase something happens when it is on. So the night temp is around 90*F, but during the day it drops down. Today I kept the bulb on the whole day, to keep temps up.

I am feeding him Zoo Med Natural Aquatic Turtle Food. I feed him 2 a day, but some days he doesnt eat both of them.

And I was afraid of him drowning, thats why I quickly took him out of the water, and was ready to give CPR, but luckily didnt have too.

Is there anything else I should do?
Thanks,

Matt

[SINI5T3R]

How deep is your water? any healthy turtle should be able to flip over no problem as long as the water is not too low. You want the water level as high as you can without risk of escape. Maybe the water level was too low and it flipped over and could not get back on its legs? also Your lucky you seen him when you did. Turtles can drown pretttyy easy.

[matt.steve]

Right now the water is 10" deep. Some has evapourated i the past few days, so I have to add 2" soon to raise it back to a foot deep

[steve]

Are there any other symptoms or strange behavior? Listing, swimming in circles, etc?

[matt.steve]

He hasnt been swimming in circles, he mostly just sits there all day.
He does shed a bit, and he sometimes has bubbles come out of his mouth when he breathes, and he stretches his neck sometimes. Other than that, there isnt anything else that is coming to mind

[steve]

It's possible it's a respiratory infection, but it's not always an easy thing to diagnose. Do you have a herp vet? It might be a good idea to get a check up.

[Dodoturtle]

my turtle acted like yours couple weeks ago(except the upside down). Mine basked all the time with lights on and off, lost her appetite, less energetic, and poops blood diarrea. And I took her to the vet and found out she's got internal parasides. She was given a shot and medicine and now is fine! I think yours was too to turn himself over. Better took him to the vet.

[Dodoturtle]

oh, i missed the part where u said sth about bubbles.
I remember the vet asked me if i had seen any bubbles cause shes afraid its RI.
It could be RI for yours. Did he open his mouth when stretching his neck? This symptom can be developed later if its RI.

[marisa]

How is the turtle doing?

[mikee]

I would suggest that you get a heater that will keep the water at 80 degrees. When he gets better lower it to about 76 or 77. The basking area should be at 90 to 91 degrees with uvb lighting. What size is your tank in gallons and what size it the filter pump in gph.

[Dodoturtle]

She's recovered right now!

[BadRiggins]

What can you do to help out a turtle for a respiratory problem?

[richieboy]

Most times antibiotics are need. RI is pretty much a cold for a turtle but it is deadly to them and I believe most reptiles.