Urgent Care :: i think my turtle is dying =( HELP

[ladievicious]

i have ahd my RES for about 3 months. my bf got it at as a present along with a yellow belly slider he purchased sumwhere else. our tank size is 15 gallons (for now..i'm getting a bigger one today), fluval 2 filter, rocks where they can bask, a heat lamp (i'm getting a uvb light today). and the temp is at about 76F/24F. i add water conditioners, calcium block, waste degrader and change the water twice a week.
scam the YBS has grown bigger than squirt (RES).. squirt looks the same size as i first got him. ok here's the problem. the power in my bf's room went out..and his room is exceptionally cold. so i took them home..scam was fine with adjustment.. but squirt..he just.. wanted to suntan (which is normal) but when he swims.. he just floats.. it looks like in the past few days he got skinnier, his shell is getting soft..u can't dent it but u can push down and feel a little mushiness, and now he won't eat. he lacks energy.. his head sticks out..ocassinoally it will be insider the shell.. i read on sites it could be stress. i've called vets but there's no one who will see a turtle apparently it's illegally to have? i'm so worried.. i want my squirt to be better..someone please help me .. i can't watch him suffer.. he looks so exhausted.. and the outer rim of his shell.. looks like it's peeling off.. which i realize is normal..someone please help me!!

[ladievicious]

forget it... it's dead now. thanks for nuthin

[ellman605]

hey, dont go blaming us, no one had a clue, i feel sorry for you, but dont go saying "tanks for nothing", because obviously no one had a clue.


EDIT: in the ""i feel sorry..." i said us instead of you

whether you had a vet or not, why do you have one if it's illegal, people need to realize, if it's illegal, there wont be vets around, and this is the kind of think that can happen...

[daredevilgirl013]

I agree with ellman if it's illegal you shouldn't have it. Though like with our small turtles that are considered illegal due to their size, our vets will take care of them because they are our hobby now and we aren't selling them. If a vet refuses to treat an animal because of the 4 inch law on a RES then you need to find a different vet. It is different if the animal is banned/illegal (example, tigers) because of it's danger, then I can see where they would refuse treatment.

But it sounded like he was too far along to have much help anyways from any of us. You really should have pushed to have found a vet as soon as things were starting to look bad. Also next time if the other turtle would get sick, raise up the water temperature.

But make sure you clean out that tank very well now and keep an eye on the other turtle to make sure it doesn't start to get sick

[bradhart]

yeah, its our fault you didn't do research before buying an illegal pet, then looked for help 3 hours before it died. (1st post 06/01/23- 0641h; 2nd post 06/01/23- 0954h). It sure is our fault. sheesh.

[steve]

forget it... it's dead now. thanks for nuthin

That's some attitude. It is not illegal to own or keep a RES of any age or size in the US. It is not illegal for a vet to check any RES either. You obviously let his habitat deteriorate and you didn't do anything to help him.

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