Other Turtle Discussion :: Need help determining sex

[agengo]

I'm not sure if they're still too young or not but I wanted to see if I could get some help determining sex of my yellow bellied sliders, MJ, Houdini and Left Eye. Short story, I unfortunately wound up with 3 hatchlings and they are in a 55gal tank (I know it's inadequate). They've grown immensely over the last year, they're less than 2 years old and the largest has become a bully. You can see what he did to Houdini's right hand.

I'm having to either re-home him (HATE to do that, I've never given up a pet) or house him separately ($$ and space is tight right now for another huge tank).

I would like to know if I have males or females, particularly in MJ's case so I can inform potential adopters.

I *think* my two largest are females and my little one (who was apparently born missing an eye) may be a male.

Any help is much appreciated!

[agengo]

Here are images for Left Eye

[agengo]

Here are images for Houdini

[steve]

From the pics:

MJ - female
Left Eye - male
Houdini - female

Is there something wrong with Houdini's right paw?

[agengo]

HI Steve. That's what I had guessed as well.

Yes, Houdini took the abuse yesterday from MJ and I moved MJ to another tank last night. I have to figure out what to do with her. I'd love to find her a home but I may have to wind up buying another big tank setup.

Can you advise on treating Houdini's paw? I've been putting antibac ointment on it daily and probably need some Baytril. Problem is, I'm in Tennessee and these guys are illegal up here. My reptile vet (for my two iguanas Stoney, 16 years and Darwin 13 years) won't even see the turtles. I do have a vet about an hour away in Alabama and think I should probably make an appointment. Should I try dry-docking her to keep the paw dry? I need to read more about doing that. I'm a first time slider owner.

Thanks!
Abby

[steve]

I can't tell what's wrong, but for minor skin problems I would dry dock, swab it with some diluted betadine and then apply some neosporin.

[agengo]

It was a bite she received from MJ, the turtle I removed from the tank last night. How long should Houdini be dry docked for treatment? Several hours? A day? And how often should I do this treatment?

Thanks!

[steve]

Is she missing a nail? Dry dock as much a you can, the easiest is to do it overnight while she sleeps, though longer dry dock times might help the healing. If they are still kept together, it's likely she could be re-injured in the same area.

[agengo]

Yeah, she is definitely missing a nail. I will dry dock her tonight and see how that goes. I do think it's already healing and I'm keeping a very careful watch on it.

One more question, what is the typical growth rate for these guys assuming quality setup? Basking area is in the low to mid 90s, water temp is 75, tank is 55 gal and I have a Rena XP3 filter. MJ's shell is 6 1/2 inches and she's 16 months old. Houdini is about the same size and Left Eye (male) is a couple inches smaller. Is that too much growth or is it typical? I haven't really found anywhere that details expected growth. They seem super healthy though.

Thanks for all your help Steve!

[steve]

Dry docking overnight is the least stressful way to do it for them, but I would try it for a week or so. Hopefully the nail bed is intact at it can regrow. Growth is hard to measure, especially when they're older. Just aim for slow and steady growth, but it's possible they won't grow much more.

[Rafa2k]

I have a question about determining the sex of my RES. Both my hatchlings are 1 1/2 inches and everywhere I see, it says you can't tell until 4 inches. However, the cloaca is clearly visible on both of them. According to the location of the cloaca, they are female. I also read that females have flat bottom shells, both of mine have inverted bottom shells.

My question, is it hard to tell under 4 inches because their tail is still growing and the location of the cloaca can still move further away from the shell?

[steve]

Those are not reliable indications when they are hatchlings. Male characteristics will show up quickly when they're ready.

[Rafa2k]

Good to know, thank you