Urgent Care :: turtle size

[mikedpirone]

Hi guys I've recently recieved 2 baby RES from my girlfriend as a gift. I have had them for about 5 months now and the one seems to be growing at an extremely rapid pace as compared to the other who seems to not have grown at all. When I got them the now bigger one was much smaller than the other and over the past 5 months has grown an enormous amount. He is about 5 times the size of the other turtle. My question is is the smaller turtle sick because he has not grown at all yet his shell seems not to be soft except for a little by its tail. They currently reside in a 50 gallon tank with a whisper filter, UVB light, Heating lamp, dock, water heater, calcium block. They both eat I just dont understand why the one has grown so rapidly and the other is still the same size.

[mikedpirone]

oh and their current diet consists of ReptoMin, small feeder fish (once a week), romaine lettuce and occasional chicken.

[mikedpirone]

here is two pictures so you can see the size difference

[daredevilgirl013]

One, get rid of the gravel. Two, your big guy is probably eatting all the food and the little guy is getting none. Plus in all honesty, they are not supposed to grow fast. The little guy is probably growing about right. I think the normal rate is about an inch a year.

So my suggestion, separate them when you go to feed. Put one in a rubbermaid packer with water in it and feed him and keep the other in the tank. That way, one doesn't chow down on all the food. The feeder fish though can stay in the tank, that gives them some good exercise to burn off what they've eaten, especially the big one.

But if they grow to fast that can cause a lot of health problems, so cut back a lil on the big guy and just separate them when feeding and that should solve the problem.

[mikedpirone]

thanks for the fast reply. just one question...well....2. whats the normal feeding scheduel/amount for them and why get rid of the gravel?

[sonyj]

Normal feeding schedule is considered to be the amount of pellets that would fit inside the turtles head if it were hollow - not including the neck - once a day up to between 6mos - 1yr. This is purely an estimate since all pellet brands make their pellets different sizes, it's up to you to judge but lean towards the conservative side. Live prey no more than once a week (due to high protein content) and a variety of veggies daily. As they get older(between 6mos-1yr) you feed the amount of pellets above every other day once a day with veggies daily.

RES are very opportunistic eaters and will try to eat anything smaller than themselves that's in their tank including gravel. This can cause major health problems (there have even been reports of death) if the stones become impacted and do not pass. Many keepers either use a few large river rocks to add to the decor and some just keep the bottom of the tank bare. Also, it's much, much easier to maintain the water quality level without the gravel to trap the debris. It makes cleaning your tank much easier as well.

[gammeragirl]

Mikedpirone, is the larger turtle pyramiding? Is the shell bumpy, and not smooth? That's one real sign of growing too fast. I can't open your photos.

[mikedpirone]

no his shell seems to look the same as the smaller ones except hes grown so much over the past 5 months. His growth has seemed to slow/stop over the past month though so i was possibly thinking he was older than i thought and just not well taken care of before. He seems to be healthy I was just wondering why he has grown so fast and the other doesnt seem to be growing (or growing at alot slower pace) compared to the big one.

[mikedpirone]

here is the pic uploaded to my flickr account. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mikedpirone/92786934/

[marisa]

From the picture, they don't look anywhere near the same age. What exactly are their shell lengths (not including the curves)? Genetics plays a part, but try feeding them separately if you don't already, just to make sure the smaller one is getting his fair share.

What size tank are they in?

[mikedpirone]

They currently reside in a 40 gallon tank. The larger one is 3 1/4 inches long and the smaller one is 1 1/2 inches long. What I'm finding strange is that the larger one was initially smaller than the other one. They both get fed seperatly each day. I feed the larger one first then remove him from the tank and feed the smaller one.

[marisa]

Do they each get to bask enough under proper lighting?

Has the little one grown at all since you've gotten him? When you pick him up, does s/he have any heft (although small, there should be some bulk). If s/he's healthy otherwise, perhaps there's nothing wrong. It would be good, however, to keep track of the growth by weighing them and measuring size regularly (I'd do it monthly and at the same time/day each month) to know for sure. You want slow, steady growth.

It is also possible, if the turtle is eating well yet not growing, that the turtle has intestinal parasites. If you don't concretely see growth (through measuring and weighing), it would be good to have the turtle seen by a vet and have a fecal check done.

[mikedpirone]

Yes they both back under the light even though the small one seems to do it more than the larger one. The larger one is a bit of a scaredy cat and freaks out still whenever I come in the room as where the small one just sits there unless I open the top of the tank. The little one has probably grown about 1/4 of an inch maybe a little more since I got him. My fathers friend came over (he was the one who gave me the tank and everything for them as he is the father of 3 6" + RES turtles named larry, moe, and curly). He told me that the little one seems to be healthy (his shell is hard enough for a hatchling) and his eyes look good and that perhaps the larger one could possible be older than I think he is. He said that seeing how it is illegal to buy turtles in NJ/NY that are under 4" the people who sell these small hatchlings don't take proper care of them and the larger one could of been lacking the proper nutrients to grow. I have read possibly every online guide and such on the proper care of turtles and followed them to a T. Sometime this week when I get paid I'm going on a turtle shopping spree and buying them brand new everything in their tank. Thanks for the help and I'll keep a better eye on the small one(lilly) and watch her growth.