General Care Discussion :: Oh Boy...Ive Done It Again...

[Nevy]

So...I was checking our areas craigslist and saw an add for 3 water turtles needing a new home, so I called.

I found out that this ladies son moved out and left his turtle behind. I began asking the lady some questions and ended up telling her I would take them. I havent gotten them yet since they are about 1 1/2 hour away from home. My friend who lives about 20 minutes from her is going to go get them. I found out the largest is about the size of a "cheeseburger" and the other 2 are smaller than that. They are living in a $10.00 walmart tank. I guess during a cleaning the other tank broke. Anyway, to make a long story short, hopefully I will have the turtles by tonight and get them into a bigger tank. It sounds like the lady was doing what she could, not really knowing what care these guys need. Since my husband doesnt know about them yet, I am going to try to place these guys before he gets home from Kentucky at the end of the week. I told my neighbor who has a Mississippi Map turtle about it and she said that she may take one to keep Spike company.

I let you know how it goes!

Nevy

[Nevy]

Update:

Ohhhh these poor turtles. My friend just picked them up She is driving them home now. They range in size from 4 inches down to about 2 inches. They are definately RES, but she says their shell color is really light. They are in frigid water in a 10 gallon tank. She is going to bring them to my house tomorrow and we will see what work we have ahead of us. They probably wont be rehomed until I am sure they are well. I have a call in to a herp friend of mine to look at them tomorrow when they arrive here.

Until then they are going to be placed in a bathtub with a heater and a basking area. My friend is going to see if she can get them to eat anything.

Wish me luck with both the turts and my hubby...

Nevy

[steve]

You're still doing a great deed! Did she take them out of the cold water? Best of luck...

[Nevy]

Hi Steve,

Yes, they were taken out of the cold water. I am still waiting to hear anything else. I wish I could take the drive to go get them to see them myself, but I do trust my friend and her ability to do the right things for them. I am going to see if she can send me a picture of them from her phone. If she does that then I will post it to see what you all think.

Thanks!
Nevy

[Nevy]

Update:

The turts arrived safely at my friends house and she says they look really bleached. She said the largest of the 3 has what looks like moldy spots on his shell. I had her send a picture, but it isnt the greatest.



Im thinking shell rot...any other opinion? And what do you all think the bleached appearance could be?

Thanks for your help.

Nevy

[marisa]

Are the areas soft at all? Any odor? If any of them are lifting, what does it look like underneath? Just from the pic, and not knowing anything else about the shell, it looks like the result of poor living conditions and diet (what were they being fed?).

Props to you for trying to find them good homes.

[Nevy]

Hi Marisa,

I dont have too much info yet since they wont get to my house until tonight. I will be sure to look for all that you mentioned. I will also get some better pictures. I already have people in my office wanting to know if they can adopt the little sweeties, I cant give them an answer until I see them. I will give an update tonight.

Thanks for your response!!
Debi

[industrial_girl_2000]

Wow, Nevy, good for you for taking on these babies! I know they will thrive now because it is obvious that you already care about them.

[Nevy]

Thanks Industrial Girl! I do care about them...it saddens me that they have had it so rough. But I am determined they will have a much better life starting yesterday!

Stay groovy,
Deb

[Nevy]

Hi All,

Just got an update on the turtles. My friend said that their shells are soft in some areas (not really soft, but you can tell a difference), there is a rotten odor coming from them and last night some of the layers of shell came off, from both the bottom and the top.

What is the mortality rate of shell rot? I am feeling so sad for these poor guys. I will look for more info on treatment, but if someone could reply with specific treatment I would appreciate it.

Thanks!
Deb

[steve]

Could the odor just be from the previous living arrangements? Is it soft where the old scutes shed? What is the color like?

Best thing to do (aside from having a vet check them out) is offer UVB, calcium and a good basking area.

[Nevy]

Hi Steve,

I agree, I think the odor is coming from their old tank. I have moved them into another tank and I dont notice the odor as much. Their shells are not soft where the scutes shed (medium turtle in the pictures).

The green kids arrived here before I got off work. They are bigger than I thought...but thats ok. I checked their shells, and they look surprisingly in good shape. There is no softness now, my friend had taken them out of water to transport them and in that time they got some color back and hardened up. The largest of the 3 has some shell rot. I do think that Stubby and the medium one have a bit of pyramiding. Currently I have them under UVB with some good food, collard greens, carrots and a few pellets. The smallest one is the only one eating, and really seems like he is enjoying her greens! She is the only one that has a name...stubby. My friend named her (I think they are all girls.) The other 2 are playing shy. I am treating all 3 of them with Hibicleanse (sp) and am keeping them away from my turtles. I was honestly expecting worse from my friends description.

Here are the pictures, there are 3 pictures each, except the largest turtle, I did 4 of her, trying to capture her shell.

Stubby, the smallest...





The medium one...





The big guy (or girl) This is the one I think has shell rot.






I have noticed if I put them in water, their color dulls. But they seem active and happy to be in clean surroundings.
Let me know what you all think. I hope you can see the turtles through my horrible picture taking! LOL.

Let me know what you all think. Thank you for all your support and input!

Debi

[steve]

They do look good. The dull color could be attributed to hard water and/or poor diet/habitat conditions. Is Stubby's plastron reddish or pinkish? The larger one has what looks to me like a fungal infection (I think this because my RES had something similar but are recovering, so the tests came back negative). It was contagious to my other turtle, so quarantine would be a good idea until the right treatment can be prescribed. There are lots of different possible causes for the white discolorations/patches, so I would look into it.

Can I ask... what is going on in the tank in the background?

[Nevy]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for your response! Hopefully they will brighten up with the love and good food they are gong to have going forward. The only one that has a pink tinge to her plastron is the large one, and its not all that much.

I will separate the big one from the other 2 today, do you think they should all 3 have separate tanks? I can arrange for that.

LOL the background...I think you are talking about the tank directly behind where I am taking the picture. If you are refering to the tank waaaayyy in the background in the medium ones plastron picture, that is our tropical tank and the orange dot is one of the parrot fish...back to the tank directly behind...well thy had just arrived here at the house, they traveled on a towel in a 10 gallon tank. We had put just a few munchies in there while I was taking pictures and setting up their "pond". They didnt really know what to do with it, and now that I think about it, they probably shouldnt eat outside of water. Once they were in their new diggs, they did all eat.

I just got up and turned the basking light on for them and the large one immediately climbed up onto the basking area. I think they know things are going to get better from here foward!

[marisa]

Stubby's shell looks good! The middle one looks like the carapace is preparing to shed (I see a few small white spots, but wonder if it's just the pic) and the big GIRL looks like she could have a touch of shell rot (esp. the white area on the left.

If it is shell rot, it's treatable, especially when caught early. If you can, get some hands on some chlorohexidine to clean it---you should be able to buy some Hibiclens (chlorohexidine gluconate) at a drug store, or if you see a herp vet you could buy some Nolvasan (brand name for chlorohexidine) from him/her. The vet will probably give you silver sulfadine to put on the areas if it is shell rot as well.

A better life (diet and living conditions) will do much for their shells. Please make sure any prospective adoptive "parents" know how to care for RES.