General Care Discussion :: my turtle ate the end off the water thermometer

[kate]

Hi I'm Kate and I have a 5 year old turtle named Myrtle. She likes to bump and play with the floating thermometer.
Yesterday I noticed the thermometer was floating on it's side instead of straight up and down like it usually is. I took it out of the water and it seems that myrtle has bit the end off of it. None of the stuff inside the thermometer leaked out. The part that's missing is the weighted end. I took Myr out of her tank and cleaned it thoroughly but i can't find the missing part of the thermometer. I'm worried she ate it. She is still eating and pooping normally. Do you think that means she's ok?
All thoughts and reply's appreciated.

[MiLhOuSe]

You might want to check with a vet and arrange a possible x-ray. I dunno if it's fatal or not, but to be on the safe side, I would check to be sure.

[missibsu]

Keep an eye on her and make sure that she is still pooping regularly after eating. Raising the water temp can also act as a laxative at times. Also, watch for her to pass the end that she might have eaten and then remove it from the tank if she does...otherwise she could eat it again.

Anyway idea what it was made of?

[kayla_2305]

i would take her to the vet and let them check her out that would probalby be best so that ur sure she is okay

[amazingcc]

Kayla - what's going on w/your turtle???

[kayla_2305]

amazingccoh well my turtle is still sick and i told my dad we NEED to take it to the vet and he said well wouldnt it just be easier to just get another one that mad me kinda mad cause he has a dog that he cares so much about and i told him that if his dog got sick the first thing he would do is take it to the vet so therefore we should take my turtle to the vet cause it has been sick for awlile so i just kept going on about it being sick and then he said that dogs are different from turtles then he said for example dogs have personalities and turtles dont so i said uhh yeah they do have prsonalities and blah blah blah so he just finally said he would call the vet and see if they could do anything(but i dont think he never did) but anyways mine is still sick and my parents dont think that it needs to be taken to the vet so sadly it will probably end up dying my parents dont really have much to do with my turtles so they dont know how much they mean to me[/quote]

[amazingcc]

Well, that is the saddest thing I've heard in a long time. No matter what people think or don't think about turtles' personalities - they are living creatures, and all living creatures SUFFER when they're sick! Where do you live???

[kayla_2305]

i live in kentucky, i know its sad i think my turtles have personalities like Mr. Rubber Duckie, my turtle that aint sick, got is name because he likes the water a lot and like splashing around Squirt, well i just liked that name, i had Squirt and Squirtle but Squirtle died so i got Mr. Rubber Duckie and Miss Piggy, Miss Piggy is the one sick and she got her name cause she eats a lot, well use to anyways before she got RI i feel bad knowing that my turtle is sick and there isnt nothing i can do to help it and my parents wont take it to the vet, we dont have a vet where i live but we just need to drive about an hour or so to get there and it would be worth it and if my parents are worried about the vet bill i will pay it with my allowance, anything to get it better!!!!

[amazingcc]

I wish I could help you, but I live in Florida. Have you at least seperated your sick turtle from the others?

[kayla_2305]

yeah i have seperated them and i got the water level down low so she wont drown but not enough to where she will dehydrate

[amazingcc]

Okay, that's good. What else are you doing for her?

[kayla_2305]

well i boosted the temperature up 2 degrees to 80 degrees that is about it and i check on it all the time

[amazingcc]

Does your turtle have a basking spot and UVB light or other heat source? Is it eating at all?

[kayla_2305]

yeah it has a basking spot and i aint sure what kind of light it is

[amazingcc]

How warm is the basking area?