General Care Discussion :: turtle conditioner

[buttrflydreams06]

last night my turtle (speedy) died. we took him back to the place i bought him they said that i wasnt doing something write. but i was doing what they told me to do. plus what ive learned in here. they replaced my turtle. its about 1.5 inches but hes still new. same soft shell. and its shell is peeling. they told me to put this white turtle conditoner cube in there its shaped like a turtle its supposed to add calcium to the tank to help strenthen the shell. and to prevent soft shell.

i was wondering if anyone had used this before. is it safe for my turtle? i dont want to lose another one.


R.I.P. speedy

[jenaero]

I say take that one back and get a healthy one somewhere else. At that size, the shell should be pliable, but not that soft. I know some ppl use that turtle block but with sufficient calcium in the diet I don't think it's necessary.

[buttrflydreams06]

the one i got today is soft but he doesnt quite squesh like the other did. but i thought that speedy was active. but this one practically runs. other than the peeling. he looks in better shape than speedy was. speedy was missing his tail when i got him. this one they just got in its only been in the store since this morning. im hoping with it not being exposed to the conditions like speedy was will help him in the long run

[sonyj]

Just checking, you did clean the tank thoroughly before putting the new one in it? You don't want whatever Speedy had to spread to the new one. So a good cleaning to the tank and all the equipment is necessary if you haven't done so already.

Good luck with the new little guy.

[buttrflydreams06]

yes i dumped the tank and scrubbed the tank, rocks, his floating rock, etc...they said it sounded like pnemonia. they said it wouldnt pass to the other but i didnt want to take chances.

[steve]

The main reason not to buy from them is that it is illegal in all US states to sell turtles under 4". 2nd, pneumonia can spread since it is usually a bacterial infection. It's possible all of those turtles are sick, even if they are not showing symptoms. 3rd, those people don't know what they are doing and are keeping those turtles in poor conditions.

[missibsu]

Chances are if Speedy died, it was because he was sick before you got him. Since many of the illnesses spread, the chances that all of the turtles that the store has have been exposed to one illness or another. That is why many people on this site don't encourage people to buy from places like that.

[buttrflydreams06]

when i went in the store they moved the turtles. apparently theyve been reported, because all of the tanks have been upgraded and fully equip with all the turtle needs. im not makeing excuses for them. dont get me wrong. just letting you know. and again they replaced my turtle i didnt pay for another. and the turtle i got i made sure was a new one. by new i mean new to the store it arrived that morning. i dont know where they get them from but i picked the turtle and made sure he was in better shape than the last one. and i scrubbed the tank just in case that it was infectious i dont trust them that much. i would never indanger an animal on purpose.

[missibsu]

I'm glad to hear that they have made changes! I wish that every pet store would take that kind of responsibility. Unfortunately there are still people out there who only care about making a buck.

[sarah]

Those little turtle blocks are only made for certain size tanks so if your tank is too small it shouldn't be in there. What size tank do you have??

[marisa]

Those little turtle blocks do little, if anything, in the way of improving the health of a turtle or amount of calcium a turtle will get in the diet. The form of calcium used in most of them (I say most because I haven't looked at every brand) isn't readily available to a turtle. If the turtle block has sulfa in it, long-term use will render the turtle immune to the drug.

[buttrflydreams06]

the ingredients say it has calcium sulfate, magnesium sulfate, sodium cloride, and thiamine hydrocloride. i havent put it in yet. i was waiting for more info. do you think i should just return it?

[sonyj]

Take it back. It isn't helping your turtle. Buy some cuttlebone instead from the bird section of the pet store. This will be a much more beneficial form of calcium for your turtle.

[marisa]

If your turtle is healthy and you're looking to add calcium, I'd return it and do as was suggested above.

[buttrflydreams06]

ok thank yall very much for yalls advise and your patience i know i can be a pain sometimes.