General Care Discussion :: Updates and question about probiotics

[Kozakura]

Yellow spot continues to maintain an unwavering status quo, not getting worse but not getting better either. Eats, but isn't hungry 24/7 like red spot is. Active but not as active as red spot. Still has lopsided floating. I know that probiotics are beneficial for many reptiles, so would a probiotic for reptiles be beneficial for turtles? It's driving me crazy. I'm beginning to feel like yellow spot will remain hatchling size for life...

[steve]

I'm not sure about probiotics, I don't think any of us use it here. What are the options you are considering? If they are sharing a tank, then I would think there is already an exchange in some probiotic organisms.

[Kozakura]

I broke down and got http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.j ... lInUS%2FNo last week; yesterday my husband went to feed the little one at midday and his appetite was way up and also this morning it was improved. Yellow spot sometimes doesn't eat a good meal at breakfast and gets fed again at noon. Still not the vacuum/garbage disposal the other one is but it's something anyways. Perhaps this is the breakthrough we've been waiting for. I will weight them again tonight and see if there is a difference.

[Kozakura]

So last night and this morning yellow spot weighed 8 grams.

[steve]

It's an antibiotic, not a probiotic. Hopefully it works out and please keep us posted. Also, captive RES have different personalities. They can act very differently from each other, even when it comes to begging for food.

[Kozakura]

It's an antibiotic, not a probiotic.

Yes I know, however when I posted the treatment had been going on 5 days with no obvious improvement, until of course the afternoon after I posted. That's why I was asking about probiotics.

[Kozakura]

So, we went on a trip to several aquarium stores looking for easy ways to clean the tank. At goldfish world we were recommended : http://www.amazon.com/Hikari-Saki-Turtl ... ari+turtle

We bought a package to try. If nothing else, yellow spot absolutely loves this product.

[steve]

I have not tried it, but they are a pretty good brand.

[ElectricTurtle]

Oh wow. Hikari makes turtle pellets? They are a very good brand! I sometimes give Hikari Wheat Germ pellets to my turtle. Glad the little guy likes it!

[Kozakura]

Update. Yellow spot continues to do well. No more picky eating in the morning yay! Also they have tentative new names. Red spot is now Om-nom and yellow spot is now Crush. I will weight them again next week. Crush still floats but no longer seems lopsided.

[steve]

Great news! Thanks for the update.

[Kozakura]

Spoke too soon. yellow spot(Crush) only had two bites this morning.

[steve]

How about treats?

[Kozakura]

Yellow spot(crush) did poorly over the weekend, barely eating anything and his tilt got worse. However today (s)he seems to be in better spirits, less tilt, more energy and activity, and ate an appropriate amount of food. Hopefully this latest relapse will be the last. Fingers crossed for the little fighter.


Ps. Red spot(om-nom) appears to generally ignore red spots entire existence aside from one thing.... on a few occasions, after the lights go out for the night, red spot has been seen blowing bubbles in the water over yellow spots shell, then popping them. I have no idea what to make of this strange ritual.