General Care Discussion :: Turtle’s fungus & cracked shell sides

[Ayomah]

I have 4 red slider turtles I provide them with good water quality, good filtration system, warm habitat and enough lighting but still they catch fungus may I know the reasons please? And how can I protect them?
Also I have another problem once the heater boomed in the aquarium and one of the turtles get infected now she have cracked shell sides as well the shell became very soft in the sides what shall I do with her?

[KellyP]

There has to be something wrong with your set up if these problems keep occuring. In a adeqaute setup the problems you are describing rarely happen.

You mention having four RES. Are they all housed in the same aqaurium? How large are they? Four adult RES in one tank, the tank would have to ENORMOUS.

What kind of lighting are you using? You need one bulb that produces heat, and one that contains at least 5% UVB. Check your lighting, it probably is incorrect.

You really need to find a vet that specializes in turtles. If not with the problems you described, your turtles will surely die.[/b]

[missibsu]

Is it a different turtle that gets the fungal infection each time? Could it be that they are just passing it from one turtle to the next. When you notice that a turtle is sick, the first thing you should do is seperate it from the bunch in the hopes that the others don't catch the same thing. Did you introduce a new turtle to some that you already had? That can also introduce new diseases. Has the shell healed on the one with the crack in it? That turtle would be more suseptible to diseases than the others.

I do am curious about the set up that you are providing for your turts. How big are these guys?

[cam722]

I'm wondering if the fungus has ever been treated properly by a vet or with the necessary medicines. As missibu said, it could be getting passed around from turtle to turtle. You'd also need to make sure their enclosure was throughly cleaned and disinfected before putting them back in. The safest bet would be to separate any sick ones from the healthy ones and treat that one before putting them back together. Anyway, at this point I think your best bet is to get them to a vet to make sure it doesn't return.. I also have to agree with Kelly in that something has to be wrong somewhere that this keeps happening.

[industrial_girl_2000]

Are you feeding them all in the same tank where they live?

Reason why I ask: I always feed my RES in a separate container than the tank. I have found that it is almost impossible to keep a tank clean when you feed them in there AND they live there.

This might seem like it is a lot of effort, but I have had my RES for 16 yrs and she has never had a fungus.

I do worry about the "softshell/cracked shell" turtle you described in your post. I think a trip to the vet is a very good idea.

[Ayomah]

Actually 2 of the red sliders I hade them before 10 months and the other two I bought them this week they are still baby turtles and I separated them from the other two .

[missibsu]

Your smaller turts should be seperated from the larger turts anyway. The smaller turts run the risk of being seriously injured, even if it is just from play. Anytime there is a new turtle involved, they should be quarantined for 3 months, or 90 days before being introduced to the others.

You still haven't mentioned what your set up is like. What size, water temp, basking temp, etc.

[marisa]

Welcome. Is there any other kind of creature in the tank with them? What are you feeding them?

I imagine where you are you have a lot of nice sunshine. Are the turtles able to totally dry off and bask in it (not through a window or other barrier)?

How often is the tank water changed?

[Ayomah]

Aquarium details:
Aquarium size: 40 Cm
Lighting: 10 walts12 volts
Filter: 220 LH 52 GDL
I don't have basking area in the aquarium and for the time being I don't have a heater but they catch fungus even when I was using the heater. I change the water of the tank every two days.

Food
Tetra ReptoMin Gammerus also I have another kind of food Hikari turtle sticks
I used as well reptisafe conditioner.

[marisa]

If they don't have a basking area and can't get out of the water to bask under proper lighting, they're bound to develop shell problems like fungus and/or shell rot...

[KellyP]

Aquarium details:
Aquarium size: 40 Cm
Lighting: 10 walts12 volts
Filter: 220 LH 52 GDL
I don't have basking area in the aquarium and for the time being I don't have a heater but they catch fungus even when I was using the heater. I change the water of the tank every two days.

Food
Tetra ReptoMin Gammerus also I have another kind of food Hikari turtle sticks
I used as well reptisafe conditioner.

The heater isn't what keeps them from getting fungus, it's the basking area with proper lighting. Your turtles have fungus because you have not provided them with a proper basking area. A basking area with UVB bulb and heat light is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY or your turtles will die. Also without the proper water temperature your turtles will be sluggish and not want to eat.

40 cm aquarium? How many gallons is it?