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Hello,
I am new to the site so please excuse me if I don't post right. I have a RES who just turned 3, Her name is Ms. Olive Martini, she is about 8 inches long, is in a 40 gallon breeder tank. Has a diet that consist of Zoo Med's Natural turtle food maintenance formula, feeder fish, carrots, blood worms, crickets (hasn't had in a year, tank doesn't have a cover), roman lettuce, raw green beans, for a treat I'll give her a small strip of boiled chicken. I feed her about 3 to 4 times a week. The last 2 weeks she has not eaten at all, she doesn't want to bask or stay in her tank. I usually let her out for a hour or two a day. So it is not like she's deprived, if I make her stay in she starts to tear everything she can up in her tank. A few days ago she broke the $75 filter's base by lifting it up some how. I try to calm her down by putting her in my tube with a bit of water, then I turn off the light. It works sometimes but after hours of her trying to climb out. I have a studio apartment so I hear everything. I love her so much, and have had her since she was the size of a quarter. I have never seen her behave this way for so long. It's almost to the point that I want to get rid of her. Some sites say she may be gravid, if so is this temporary? How can I calm her down? PLEASE HELP!

It does sound like she may be gravid. Gravid means she has eggs. She needs to lay these eggs before she becomes egg bound. Check out this Youtube video to determine if she does have eggs:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY2pRyQgn9o[/youtube]

Sometimes RES will lay their eggs in the tank, but not always. I would let her outside for a few hours and let her try to lay them. If you can't do that, see if you can fill a large rubber container with dirt at least 6 inches deep. Don't use sand, use dirt. Pack it down a little. She may dig a nest, she may not. But she needs to get the eggs out.

-Michael

thank you so much! I will let her out in my apartments court yard for a few hours to see what she does. I will give you an update soon.
thanks

Try to look for some dirt areas or flower beds... good luck!

Yep. Agree. Sounds gravid. If your court yard does not have dirt areas, you can try putting a bin on it's side with several inches of dirt, and give her some quiet time.
Gravid behavior usually happens around the same time each day, so you can plan ahead and put out to roam during that time of day.
Best of luck!

I bought some dirt and put it in a deep large 2 foot bowl. When i sat her in there she climbed out I live in a 70 unit apartment complex so I don't have my own yard) . I found a spot on the side of my apartments that has soft dirt and is covered so she can have privacy. Also i don't want to freak my neighbors out. I put her out there about 2 hours ago. She's doing this thing where she switches back legs to dig.

Try placing her in there only when she's acting gravid. This might happen around the same time of day.