Urgent Care :: All white shell!?!

[Tubeost]

I have had my RES for 8 years, he has allways been a active and healthy turtle. But today when I cleaned out my tank and washed my turtle with a toothbrush, I noticed that his entire shell was white like an albino underneath the old shell! I have no idea what has happened, It has however been a while since I cleaned it the last time, and I have been experienced problems with algea in quite sometime, but I cant see how that has anything with the turtles shell turning white. He has also been a bit inactive latley, but usually he gets like this when its fall here in Norway.

I have no idea what's wrong with him and Im worried its a serious illness.

Hope someone can tell me whats wrong.

[JessicaTS]

Can you post a pic? I'm not getting the general picture of what you are describing

[Tubeost]

I mean the shell is completley and utterly white! I dont have digi camera handy. But it is totally white like chalk all over the top. I have been feeding him certified turtle food and guppies for the entire eight years that I've had him, and he is allways been active and healthy, Untill today, I havent seen it because I havent cleaned him properly the last times. So it has probably been dead shell on top of the white... But it is seriously completly white and it doesn't look very healthy...

[JessicaTS]

How much of the pellets and guppies have you fed him? Have you offered any vegetation?
Albino res rather have a yellowish shell. The shell you are describing does not picture to be healthy at all. What are your lightings?

[marisa]

If the scutes are white under the old shell, does that mean that the top scutes are shedding/lifting up? (How could white underneath be determined if they weren't.) Without a pic, it's difficult to give an opinion on what possibly could be the matter...

Is the shell hard or is there some softness? If a turtle is going to shed, air can get trapped under the shell and give the scutes a whitish look that appears to be underneath the top layer. If you rub at it gently does the white come off? (You said in a later post that it was like chalk all over the top.) If the tank hasn't been cleaned in a while and the water hasn't been changed, the water quality will suffer, which could lead to fungus (another possibility).

It's not unusual for activity levels to change with cooler weather. Do you use a submersible water heater in the tank?

[tini]

the turtle has always had a dark colored shell before right?