General Care Discussion :: Turtle not basking

[solidwalnut]

I have a f res and a m res. The female loves to bask on the dock which is right around 87 degrees. But the male refuses to bask and is so frightened of everything. He still eats very well, and even eats off the dock when i offer the turtles lettuce and carrots, but he will not bask. And now i am starting to notice a very very slight case of shell rot. Can some one help me and my beloved turtle?!

[cam722]

What is the water temperature? Sometimes if the water temp and basking temp are to similiar a turtle won't bask. Another reason could be that he's scared and needs privacy. Is their enclosure in an active room? If so, you may want to put up so cardboard or something around the basking area so he feels safer.

[marisa]

Is the basking area big enough for both of them? Is it easy for him to get on? Does he try to get on it at all when she's not on it?

[nick99_1]

I have exactly the same problem, my 4 month old will bask with no problems, But my 1 year old I have only seen him on the basking area a handful of times. I have tried filming them when no-one is home but he never goes up.

All my temps and water conditions are correct, I have UVA and UVB lighting and a large basking area, the turtles are in the spare bedroom so people arent in there very often. I keep my water temp around 80 and I havent had a chance to measure the basking temp but I imagine it is about 85.

[missibsu]

try raising your basking temp to around 90. Get a themometer and place on the basking dock to measure the temp. And you might want to go ahead and lower your water temp to 75-78. Your hatchling should have a little warmer temp than your one year old.

[nick99_1]

I dropped the water temp to 78 and measured the basking temp, it was 91. neither seem too interested in basking now and they only ate about half of what they usually eat this morning. Maybe they need a bit of time to get used to the new water temp. I had it a bit high for a while there. Will keep posted as to how they go.

[nick99_1]

I just snapped both my turtles basking together, I'm now happy that they are basking. Their appetite has gone down a bit but I think that is due to me having the water temp too high which was causing them to over eat.

Thanks everyone for all your help. your advice has solved all the worries I had.

Nick

[missibsu]

Your welcome!...it's what we like to hear. Don't worry about the smaller appetite...they will be professional beggers in no time.

[nick99_1]

Well I had a failed experiment today, I got 2 Algae eaters to see if they would live with my turtles in peace like the ones in the pet store. No such luck!
Daisy ate them both within about 3 hours.

[missibsu]

Gotta figure anything that goes in the tank will become food. I tried a couple of pleco's and they didn't last either. My two turts ganged up on the one, so I took them back out. They reside peacefully on their own. Can't say I didn't try though.

[TNTurtles]

I thought id post in here instead of starting a new topic but i have a question about basking. I just moved both of my 1 1/2 " turts into a 50 gallon aquarium from a 10 gallon. In the 10 gallon both of them were very active and basked a good amount. Now that i have moved them, Davinci almost refuses to bask. Leo, however is very active in the morning swimming until he gets fed, then hes up there basking all day. I thought this might just be a phase because they have been introduced into a new habit but its been almost a week. Ive tried placing davinci up on the basking area, he will sit there for about 10 seconds and then jump back in the water and head over to the plastic plants to rest. Ive also tried getting Leo to be more active in the water but he just swims right back up. Both of them eat normally and seem healthy. Should i give them more time to adjust or maybe try taking them to the vet to see if its something more serious?
Water temp- 77F (i lowered the water temp from about 79-80 to 77 to try to intice him to get out to bask)
Basking temp- 90-92 (i raised it a couple degrees to also try to get him to get out to bask)

-Davinci is also the one with the irritated eyes from the water. I feel like i ask you guys too many questions but your advice is much cheaper than a vet visit and I always appreciate any advice. =)

[steve]

Is the 50 gallon in the same location as the 10 gallon? Is there a different basking platform being used? If there is more activity around them, them they may not feel as comfortable as they were before. Can you cover the sides of the tank to give Davinci more privacy (and confidence)?

[TNTurtles]

well i moved back home for the summer, so no its in a completely different spot. I think they aren't using to seeing me so tall since its on the floor now. They used to only see my face in the old tank. Its the same basking platform though. I do spend a lot of time in this room as it is my bed room. Should i try moving it to my sisters bedroom since she moved out and no one goes in there? I just thought this room is better cuz its more lit during the day. I could try building a wall with boxs or something to cover it and make him more secure.
Thanks alot for your advice ill give it a shot. Its funny how their personality's are completely reverse now with the bigger tank. I hope Davinci goes back to his normal self soon.
If I cant cover it do you think he will eventually get used to it and start basking soon?

[industrial_girl_2000]

I have a f res and a m res. The female loves to bask on the dock which is right around 87 degrees. But the male refuses to bask and is so frightened of everything. He still eats very well, and even eats off the dock when i offer the turtles lettuce and carrots, but he will not bask. And now i am starting to notice a very very slight case of shell rot. Can some one help me and my beloved turtle?!

Some turtles don't like to bask in hot light & I have noticed that male turtles do seem to be more skiddish than the females I have had in the past. HOWEVER, it isn't impossible for them to lose this skiddish attitude. Hand-feeding, handling them a lot, taking them out for (supervised) walks in sunlight...these all help. In the past, I divided a new turtle's dinner into many little pieces, and then every time I walk by the tank I give them a little piece of their food (so you are still feeding them the same amount in a day, but in small doses so they aren't being overfed). That way every time the turtle sees you, they associate you with something YUMMY: Human = food. This works for any kind of aquatic animal, even fish.

As for the "shell rot", you may want to check in the pictures they have up on this website. Also, if you are new to having turtles as pets, a trip to a vet wouldn't be a bad idea.