Urgent Care :: Does anyone have pictures of what eggs look like in a RES?

[Spiritualjoy]

I have two girls and one of them has been refusing to bask. I have taken them outside the past couple days and one of them is frantic to get out. I was outside checking her out to see if I could figure out what is wrong, and I would swear those were eggs in both of them, but I am not sure. I let them both out of the pool and they are hanging around my small pond in the dirt but they are not digging and no egg laying yet. I cant leave them out all day and night because there is no enclosure around it. They cant get IN the pond because I do have it surrounded with a little fence. Once they got in the pond they wouldnt be able to get out to land. Does anyone have any ideas or some pictures to show me what it would look like? They are both 3 yrs old and about 5". Thanks!

[TheComputerGremlin]

Are you asking what the eggs look like inside of the RES still? I don't think that you can SEE the eggs poking through or anything, but you can FEEL the eggs. If you press gently between the tail and the back legs, you will feel what feels like grapes. That means you have eggs.

The key with nesting is to be patient. Some people have to take their turtles out every day for a week or two before they finally lay their eggs.

[Spiritualjoy]

I was asking about if you can see them from the outside near their hind legs. Both of them look like they have big grapes on either side, but its pretty firm to the touch. I am going to try to figure out a way to put a nesting place above their basking ramp. I just dont want to get dirt in the tank. I will check out the link for home made nesting boxes. I was hoping someone had an external picture of what it would look like. There is NO way my hubby is going to let me take them in for x-rays, so I will just do the daily nesting routine and hope for some action! I feel sorry for them!

[jenaero]

You're feeling their bums. Seriously

To check for eggs, you can gently get your finger in front of the hind leg, under the shell and feel around that way.

[Spiritualjoy]

Oh OK. I will try to feel around that way and see what I get. If thats the case then I need to figure out why Weezy wont bask!

[Spiritualjoy]

Well, I was able to feel in there and you are right jenaero, I was feeling her bum. Thats too funny. I am going take Weezy to the vet because I noticed her rubbing her left eye. Last time I saw her doing that I waited too long and it turned into pneumonia, and she gave it to Georgia. Then I had 2 sick turtles and injections for 10 days! I am not going to let it get this bad this time! I'm assuming she is sick because she wont bask and has been rubbing her left eye. I did notice she is shedding alot of shutes. Will that make her stay in the water?

[TheComputerGremlin]

I think shedding they like to bask more to get the shed over with faster. So you are probably right and have a sick turtle on your hands. When you are at the vet, you can ask to have her X-rayed to see if she has eggs in her, at least confirming your suspicion.

Do you have a backyard? Sometimes the best nesting place is just out in your yard, just keep an eye on them.

[Spiritualjoy]

I do have a back yard. Today I had both of them out there for hours in the dirt around the pond, but they dug head first not rear first. I just dont get how she got sick when the water temp is 79 and the basking platform is 91. The other turtle is great and basks alot. They both have great appetites and I feed them lots of veggies. The water is clean, and I just replaced everything in the filter and gave it all a good cleaning a week ago. I am pretty sure there aren't any eggs. Once I figured out where to look, there is nothing there. I measured both of them too and they are only 4 inches. I think they are too young? What do you think about the Turtle Eye Drops from Zoo Med? She is only scratching her left eye from time to time. Any suggestions?

[SpotsMama]

At four inches, your girl's really too small. Five inches is about the minimum size for turtles to start egg laying. Stay alert, though. Behavior will be how you can tell when she's finally ready to lay.

Turtle Eye Drops from Zoo Med are good for mild irritation and mild vitamin a deficiency. You girls eye irritation sounds minor. Go ahead and try the eye drops and see if she doesn't get better.

[Spiritualjoy]

Thanks for the advice SpotsMama! I am going to do water tests tonight and make sure there isnt something in the water irritating her eyes. I will give the eye drops a shot too. If she isnt doing any better in the next week, then off to the vet we go! She has always not been one of a basker, but it seems like she spends more time in the water. I think today she was acting so frantic in the kiddy pool because she had nowhere to hide! Thank you so much for your help.

[SpotsMama]

Sounds like a good plan.

Sometimes when a turtle doesn't bask enough, it's because the temps on the basking platform aren't warm enough. Some turtles like it warmer than others. On the other hand, some like it cooler and if it's too warm they won't bask. Why don't you experiment with the temps (raising and lower the heat bulb to see how she reacts) to see if you can find her favorite. Of course, since you've got two, luck would have it that one likes it hot, the other likes it cool!

[Spiritualjoy]

Thats exactly what I think I have going on here! Leave it to girls to be finicky...LOL