Urgent Care :: My turtle has been sick for 3 months.

[Frogism]

I have a 6 x 4 in tank with a less than 2 inch turtle in it. The turtle exhibits breathing through the mouth sometimes and complete loss of buyoncy. He can breathe regularly sometimes though. The turtle is still eating but he can chew down the whole pellet in one bite, he bites it then it comes out of his mouth and he bites it some more and it breaks up into little pieces and then he eats them. I am not able to take him to a vet because my parents are agaisnt it. He has been in about less than half an inch of water for the past 3 months and he has been basking outside in about 85-95 degree temperature. I have no idea how to cure him. I thought it was influenza at first and they said that he needed urgent care, yet he has survived for this length of time. I'm starting to get hopeless cause he hasn't been getting better. Any ideas?

[Vivi]

well to what i know i think that s/he has RI (Respiratory infection). Wheezing, and loss of buoyancy are symptoms of RI. well the good thing is that its been three months and still s/he is still alive. because RI can quickly take away you beloved pets life. the bad thing is that its been three months and still no vet.

i completely understand about the whole parent ordeal but s/he needs to see a vet. how is the water temperature?? you didn't mention that. the basking temp i think that its perfect but what is the waters temp???

there is no for what i know a at home cure for RI. he needs medication. some how you must convince your parents to go to the vet.

[SpotsMama]

Can you give some more detail on the situation? At the top of this section (Urgent Care) is a list of questions on a sticky note. Can you answer these? Then, following are some more questions:

You mention that he breaths through his mouth sometimes and sometimes loses buoyancy. You also say he eats. Is this correct?

Does he seem hungry all the time or can he take it or leave it? How much do you feed him? What brand of pellets? Do you feed him veggies? Cuttlebone?

Is he lively or does he want to sleep all the time? When you walk up to the tank does he run and try to hide or does he just sit there?

Are your tank diminsions really 6 inches by 4 inches? This is incredibly small. If this is really correct, then one thing you need to do right away is get the little guy some space. He should be in at least a 20 gallon aquarium.

Why is there so little water in the tank? Are you afraid he'll drown? How can you tell he loses buoyancy if the water is so shallow?

Do you have any photos of his setup?

[Safdar]

____________________
How big is your turtle?
How long have you had it?

What is the water temperature?
Are you using a water heater?
How much water is in there?
Are you using a water conditioner?
Are you using any filtration?

What is the basking temperature?
Is there a basking light?
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on?
What kind is it or what is it made out of?
Is there a UVB light?

What have you been trying to feed it?
When was the last time your turtle ate?

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure?
Is the tank near a window?
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity?

Have you read the Basic Care section?
Have you searched the forums for similar situations?

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms?

[Frogism]

How big is your turtle? little bit less than 2 inches
How long have you had it? 4 months

What is the water temperature? I don't know, it varies, but probably a little bit less than the basking temp when outside, inside probably variboues between 60's and 70's
Are you using a water heater? no
How much water is in there? less than half an inch
Are you using a water conditioner? no
Are you using any filtration? no, I change the water everyday

What is the basking temperature? 85-95
Is there a basking light? natural sunlight
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? no
What kind is it or what is it made out of? no
Is there a UVB light? natural sunlight

What have you been trying to feed it? reptomin food pellets
When was the last time your turtle ate? an hour ago

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 6 x 4 inches
Is the tank near a window? he's inside at night, outside in the day
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? no

Have you read the Basic Care section? it's confusing
Have you searched the forums for similar situations? tried to

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? already described.

You mention that he breaths through his mouth sometimes and sometimes loses buoyancy. You also say he eats. Is this correct?

he has completely lost buoyancy. he cannot dive at all. he breathes through his mouth SOMETIMES. but can breathe normally at others.

Does he seem hungry all the time or can he take it or leave it? How much do you feed him? What brand of pellets? Do you feed him veggies? Cuttlebone?

sometimes i hold a food pellet up to his face and he tries to bite at it, other times he is indifferent. I only feet him reptomin pellets.

Is he lively or does he want to sleep all the time? When you walk up to the tank does he run and try to hide or does he just sit there?

he moves around sometime, I don't see him sleep unless he's inside. sometimes he tries to run away when I walk up, sometimes he just sits there.

Are your tank diminsions really 6 inches by 4 inches? This is incredibly small. If this is really correct, then one thing you need to do right away is get the little guy some space. He should be in at least a 20 gallon aquarium.

okay honestly, it's just one of those plastic containers you buy at the petstore. I am not spending money for a 20 gallon tank when they are that tiny.

Why is there so little water in the tank? Are you afraid he'll drown? How can you tell he loses buoyancy if the water is so shallow?

he will drown if I don't have shallow water.

Do you have any photos of his setup?

no.

[Safdar]

Okay its obvious that when u put the turtle outside the water will heat up and when you take it in at night the water will get cold. Small amounts of water cools up faster. A hatchling needs a stable temp of 78-80 degrees.
With cold water temps its very easy to produce an infection. Im thinking it came from there.

With no basking dock he cant bask and without basink, shell problems occur, and digestion problems.

He really needs more room to swim, so i dont know how hes suppposed to be more active.

[Frogism]

he was in the big tank before he got sick, with a stable temperature. and how can he swim if he's just going to float? his shell is out of the water as well, the water is shallow.

[Safdar]

How long has he been in the small container

Cold temperatures cause RI, if you havent had him in there for too long then its ptobably just developing. Not so many symtoms, but still, Until you change his living habitat, hes only going to get worse.

Turtles will not drown when u have deep water, RES are aquatic turtles and its a natural instinct to swim.

[Frogism]

he's been in there for 3 months. these turtles were given to me by my aunt's friend and they were living in something smaller than my 10 gallon tank.

[Safdar]

3 months is more than enough time to develop an infection in an inappropiate invironment.

[Frogism]

no, he's been in there WITH THE INFECTION.

[Safdar]

Raise the water temp to 80-82 degrees.
Eliminate any drafts and cold air around the container

The more you wait to go to the vet, the less chances of him surviving, since he can develop pheumonia which can be fatal

[megcornell]

That set up is inappropriate to help cure a RES. It will make him more ill because a) the water will be disgusting by the time you change it at the end of the day and b) that is so little water that you can't regulate the temp, and the fluctuations will make him more ill.
You need to put him back in the 10 gallon with a water heater. Put the water at 80-82 and make sure he has a few inches to swim in. If you're afraid he'll drown put some plants in for him to float on.
As he's been in these conditions for months, the chances of the infection being deep in his lungs are great so you'll probably need antibiotics to cure it, which you can only get from a vet visit.
The first step is to improve his habitat. The set up you have right now, while it may have seemed safer is causing more harm than good and your turtle is wasting away in it.
And the fact that you say the previous owner had less than ideal conditions means he probably came with the infection already... but his best chance is with a better habitat and medicine.

[steve]

Who is "they" when you said "I thought it was influenza at first and they said that he needed urgent care, yet he has survived for this length of time."

Like megcornell, get that water heater. Since your parents won't let you take your turtle to the vet, I hope you'd have better luck getting some of the basic supplies though it doesn't sound like it. And your tank is less than 1 gallon, not even close to 10 gallons.

[kaimarion]

Have you tryed showing your parents this website to try and convince them to take the turtle to the vet???

Your turtle enclosure does not have to be made of a clear material so you could just get a LARGE plastic container and put him and his equipment in there , do you have a thermometer???