Urgent Care :: Shell Problems Not sure condition

[kmettert]

I found my turtle on the side of the road at my college. I did a bit of research once I brought him home. He is about 4 in long, roughly 10 months old and lives in a 5 gallon tank typically filled with 3 gl. of water, has a filter, basking light and a bid appetite which I keep him in check even though he is always wanting food. Lately I have noticed his shell peeling, which I took for growning which it peels when it grows but today when I picked him up to let him stregth his legs the side marginal crack and broke of the egde. I dont know if this is shell rot, or soft shell, or normal. I do put shell conditioner on him to prevent cracks, and moisturize, I do you a thermemoter, his water is typicall 70-79 degrees F. He gets pellets, dried shrimp and krill to eat. If I could have some input to this or if I need to take him to my vet any information would be helpful.

[steve]

Hi, it's tough to tell from the angles. The first looks like it could just be tough edges of marginal scutes but it also appears fairly large. I can't really tell much from the other pictures. From the large space between the scutes, it looks like he's been growing a bit too fast as well. Also, shell conditioners like VitaShell are not recommended and it's possible they do more harm than good.

[kmettert]

So I should stop using the vital shell. But how do I keep him from growing too fast? Lately he has been peeling off his shell in flakes a lot more. The first picture is where it broke but it didnt bleed and the edge underneath the break is smooth, no odor, and he wasnt snapping at me when I was looing at it. Should I go to the vet to be on the safe side or wait it out?

[SSMcLeod]

Just to get it out of the way - did your turtle take a fall recently? Or is there anything infront of its basking area that it may have hit when diving into the water? (Just want to eliminate trauma as a suspect)

[steve]

I cannot determine the severity of the situation from the pics. Can you post more from different angles? If it looks normal, then you might not have to do anything, though make sure those scutes don't snag onto something.

He's growing too fast because he's getting too much food, particularly protein.

[regalesse]

if the areas around the crack is not soft, it is not shell rot. i have seen some really bad cases of shell rot and that looks nothing like it. i think that when it sheds, it will get better after he sheds that scute and the few around it. i think that he might have cracked that scute in his tank but it does not look that bad. but the pics are difficult to get a good look at the problem. if you can touch that area and the turtle does not try to bite you then chances are the area is not sensitive. sensitivity is a good sign of an injury. it tells you that you have a problem. it it is not sensitive then it is not as severe as the first pics looks. more pics would be nice tomorrow.

[kmettert]

As for the food he eats once a day reptomin baby with calcium and vitamin C, reptomin select a food with ministicks, mini-krill, mini-shrimp. He ususally gets 10 sticks or a mixture of ministick and shrimp or krill, typically finishes in about 5-8 mins. As for the tramua he was walking across my floor I went to pick him up to put him back in his tank and when I went to pick him up thats when his shell chipped, today when I was checking on it I felt the shell underneath the chip and he did try to kick my hand away so I am saying it is senstive now. The front of his shell and middle is not soft but the back margins are soft. Not sure if that helps anything. Any advice is helpful, I am currently looking for a vet that treats turtles. Here are new images.

[steve]

The retained scutes makes it difficult to determine the extent of the injury. The shell does look a little raw and discolored where it's hanging off, but I've never seen an injury - if it is one - like that. What does it look like between the crack (as far as you can see)?

You do need to scale back the shrimp/krill portions as this will lead to greater problems down the road.

[Diamondbacks4Life]

I would cut back on what steve said and then only feed him once a day. Also i really hope you have improved what he was living in. A 5gallon tank with 3gallons of water is way to small for him. You need try and get him into at least a 40gallon tank and look into getting a uvb bulb.

Next i really dont look of the whole back edge of his shell. In between each scute gap it looks like shell is being eaten away by some kind of bacteria. I would defiently try and find a vet and while your trying to find one go out and buy Zoo Med Repti Turtle Sulfa Dip to help kill any bacteria. Also you didnt say but if you smell hima round the edge of his shell does it smell bad?

[kmettert]

No his shell doesnt smell bad. I did cut back on the pellets. Is carrots a better subsitute for this grazing food. Im looking for a vet that treats turtles but there is none in my town is there a website to find local vets?

[steve]

Some here: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=370