Urgent Care :: Turtle Eyes

[YSPo]

I just noticed half of my turt's eyes turned cloudy....I dont know if they're swollen, because he still opens them most of the time. When I was feeding him just now, he kept snapping and missing the pellets!! Is he blind? I was searching around the net and it was suggesting that it can be because of a lack of vitamin A. I try to feed it veggies about a month and a half ago, but it is still not eating much of it.

Any suggestions appreciated!

How big is your turtle? 1.5 inches
How long have you had it? few months

What is the water temperature? 82F
Did you use a thermometer? Yes
Are you using a water heater? Yes - but im unsure if it is actually working because it is cool to the touch....
How much water is in there? ~15 litres (est.)
Are you using a water conditioner? no
Are you using any filtration? yes

What is the basking temperature? 85
Is there a basking light? yes
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? yes
What kind is it or what is it made out of? store bought floating dock
Is there a UVB light? yes

What have you been trying to feed it? pellets and romaine lettuce (still eating very little of the veggies)
When was the last time your turtle ate? just now

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 8 gallons
Is the tank near a window? no
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? not too bad

Have you read the Basic Care section? yes
Have you searched the forums for similar situations? yes

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? no

[SpotsMama]

Coudy eyes is a new one for me. Usually eye problems cause eyes to be swollen and irritated.

Watch closely for other symptoms of illness - lethargy, poor appetite, swollen or irritated eyes, mucus around the mouth or nose, breathing with the mouth open or frequent yawning, swimming lopsided or difficulty submerging. If he starts showing any of these, or if his eyes don't get better or get worse, get him to a herp vet right away.

Go as soon as you can to a pet store and get some Zoo Med Turtle Eye Drops and follow the instructions on the box. These will help with mild vitamin A deficiency or mild eye irritation.

If it were my turtle and I wound up taking him to see a vet, I wouldn't let the vet give him a vitamin A shot. Sometimes if a vet thinks a turtle has a vitamin A deficiency they offer to give a shot of vitamin A. The problem is that it's very hard to judge the correct amount and an overdose is poisonous, even fatal. Instead of a shot, see if the vet can recommend a good vitamin supplement or food containing vitamin A.

I think your turt's setup is going to need upgrading right away. The tank is pretty small, even for a small turtle. It's hard to keep the water clean when the setup is so small. In fact, it's possible that poor water quality is causing some of your turtle's eye problem. Be sure and read up on here on habitat and nuitrition needs for turtles - there's a gold mine of information for a new turtlekeeper.

good luck. Keep us posted.

[chrisinva]

Keep in mind I am new so don't take this like I'm a pro or anything but...

shouldn't the water temp and basking temp be farther apart?? Like 78F for the water and 90F for basking??

[SpotsMama]

You're right on the temps, chrisinva. Water temp is right for a little turtle. Basking temp should be at least 10 degrees higher than water temp - 88 to 90 degrees.

[Turtlebiz]

just so you know those turtle eye drops work great. my turt had swollen eyes a while back due to a bad uva bulb. i used the drops on him as the directions said and he was back to normal in a week. good luck

[YSPo]

Wow, thanks guys for replying so fast.

I have not yet found a place that sells eye drops yet, unfortunately. every time I go to a pet store and ask for them, the people always say "wow, people have been asking for that a lot lately, but we don't carry them."

As for turtle set up, i've set the uv light back a couple inches. I've realized it is a little small - hopefully it's temporary. There is probably a lot of information on that here that I havent read, but if it is convenient, can someone explain or link me to a page that describes how to clean out the tank?

I know it sounds like i'm a dummy, but this small tank filled with water is already a big hassle! I have to take all the stuff out, scrub it out, and carry that big tank of yuck water to the bathroom to clean and refill.. it's really heavy! My back is really going to feel it soon...

thanks again for all the help!

[YSPo]

oh and as for the basking temp, it is up at 90 now... I was scared the heat lamp would irritate its eyes more.

[untsmurf]

Do you think you might be able to take a pic of the cloudiness? I don't think I've ever seen cloudy turtle eyes before.

[YSPo]

I tried to take a picture! My digital camera's suppose to be good, but I can't get a clear picture of the eyes that's close enough to see the cloudiness. I tried a combination of settings and lightings, but still to no avail

BUT! the cloudiness on the eyes werent there anymore!!! then after about 15 mins of trying to google a picture, the cloudiness came back and it's there again... =S

I am really confused now what it is...

[octpusgirl8]

The cloudy eyes is a new one to me too. When the cloudiness goes away, does he still seem to have impaired vision? How is he acting otherwise, is he lively?

As you've realized, your setup is going to need some upgrading. Get the biggest tank you can right away, it will save you lots of money that would have been wasted on buying several tanks and filters and such. Try to get at least a 75 gallon tank if you can. It seems counterintuitive, but a bigger tank is much easier to keep clean provided you have a good filter.

As far as cleaning the tank, you never want to do a full water change/scrubbing type cleaning. It destroys the population of beneficial bacteria that convert ammonia into less harmful waste. This article explains the process of the nitrifying cycle fairly well: http://www.aquahobby.com/articles/e_ciclo.php All you really need to do is frequent partial water changes (no more than half the water at a time) and keep the filter clean.

[ptcake]

The ZOO MED eye drops are sold at PetSmart.

[YSPo]

Good news!!! the cloudiness in my turtle's eyes are gone! I have a feeling it was because of poor water quality.... but I'm not 100% sure because it went away when I started doing partial water changes instead of full water changes. and it finally started eating very little bits of baby spinach.

Thanks for all the help everyone, I really appreciate it! I always thought it was in my turtle's best interest to do the whole taking tank apart, scrub and full water change, but thanks to you guys I now know not to do that, and it's MUCH less of a hassle! *phew!

[YSPo]

oooohhhhhh my goodness!

Right after my post above, I took a look at my turtle, who was basking lazily on the dock. It started blinking its eyes, and the "cloudiness" I saw appeared for 2 seconds. It seemed to be part of the eye anatomy, and thanks to google, i found out turtles have a 3rd eyelid called the nictitating membrane.
Not sure why the membrane was out there for that long though...

Here is the best picture I can find -
http://www.hsu.edu/uploadedImages/Biolo ... ane200.jpg

this is a toad, but it looks like that, except the color was a bit more closer to the bottom of the membrane.

[steve]

The only time I've noticed an overlaying membrane was when my turtle's eyes were severely irritated by their UV light. I have never noticed it before and after that ordeal.