Urgent Care :: Gastrointestinal problems with my RES

[abeiland]

What can cause our red sliders to develop gas problems. I have my RES in the vet now, medicating her for the intestinal gas, and she has not pooped in five days. Is this a common issue? Any recommendations?

[marisa]

Welcome. I would ask your vet (a herp vet?) these very questions, since that's part of what you're paying the vet for (advice/recommendations).

A turtle that doesn't/can't poop may have an intestional blockage from something eaten. (You're sure the poop is not just being eaten?) Do you happen to have gravel/very small rocks in the tank? If you do, take them out. (If you still want some rocks on the bottom of the tank, make them large enough so that your turtle can't swallow them.)

Gas can be caused by food as well. What have you been feeding your RES?

I'd be curious to know what your vet thinks the problem is. Please post the outcome of your RES's treatment.

[abeiland]

Yes, I have gravel in the bottom of the tank. I feed her meal worm, pellets, superworms, freeze dried shrimp, and nitecrawlers. The vet is saying the x-rays appear to show gastrointestinal blockage, and they are administering for five days a medication for the gas blockage and a medicine for parasites. My pet is one and a half years old, weighs 3.2 pounds, red slider. I appreciate your feedback, and I will pose to my vet. I will also let you know how things unfold.

[abeiland]

Just a quick note, my slider stopped eating last thursday, and I took her to the vet on friday, they started the medication and she did not begin to eat very small amounts till Sunday. She is slowing getting better, but they say she is not out of the woods yet. I am very concerned.

[marisa]

You're turtle is one and a half years old and is 3.2 pounds? That's a (real) lot of weight...How big is your turtle--the shell length down the spine not including the curve of the shell?

Take the gravel out of the tank. It's been known to cause inpaction/intestional blockage if ingested, and this likely is what caused your turtle's blockage.

Your turtle is also getting a diet that's high in animal matter/protein. How much do you feed your turtle at feeding time an how often? At your turtle's age, s/he should be getting pellets every other day at the most (the amount being that which would fit into the head), and the other foods you mentioned as occasional treats. I'd even skip mealworms, since they've got a really back calcium phosphorus ratio and can almost literally suck the calcium out of your turtle's system. Offer plant matter daily, especially leafy greens like dandelions and red-leaf lettuce daily (look on the site for other plant matter to offer). If your turtle has been eating gravel, it's likely s/he's looking for calcium (too many mealworms?). Get some cuttlebone (the stuff for birds), take off the hard backing, break it into pieces, and leave a few in the tank for your turtle to nibble on. It's a good supplementary form of calcium.

Do keep us informed about your turtle's condition...

[abeiland]

I will take your advice and let you know of the results. The vet informed me that my RES ate very well yesterday, but did not eat at all today. The vet says that she feels it will take a couple of weeks before we see any feces, that it is a slow process. I am scheduled to pick my her (RES) tomorrow. I will closely monitor her and keep you informed. I asked how long should we wait before we see any poop from her? Well, the answer was stated above, RES have a slow digestive process. Thank you for your insight in this matter.

[marisa]

I hope your vet is right. To me, two weeks seems a long time to wait to see poop if a turtle is eating, assuming the blockage has been eliminated. When your turtle does poop, see if there's any gravel in it. (And please take it out of the tank.)

[abeiland]

I hope your vet is right. To me, two weeks is an long time to wait to see poop if a turtle is eating, assuming the blockage has been eliminated. When your turtle does poop, see if there's any gravel in it. (And please take it out of the tank.)

I feel the same way you do, I hope the vet is right. I took the gravel out of the tank this morning. How long do you recommend I wait to see if the turtle will poop? She claims to me that the x-rays did not show any blockage in the intestine area. The turtle did not eat at all yesterday, and I pick her up today. I am going to change her diet to the pellets and vegetables for a while. Let me know if you have any other input.

[marisa]

Then from what's been posted, I'm a little confused because above you wrote that the vet said that x-rays appear to "show gastrointestional blockage," which I understood as having been an actual blockage. Then you most recently posted that the vet said the x-rays "did not show any blockage in the intestine area." The "blockage" is gas only? If so, at some point I would think it would released...Just curious, but what medication did your turtle receive for the gas?

At any rate, glad to hear you took the gravel out of the tank...

Regarding the gastrointestional problem, the only thing I can think of from what you wrote of his diet is that mealworms (in addition to the calcium issue) have very tough skins that are difficult to digest. Has he been fed a lot of them? Changing the diet as you indicated you were going to will be healthier for him. Don't forget to try some cuttlebone.

[Pam]

What temperature is the water in your tank? Warmer water will help a turtle poop easier. My 2 adult females were constipated a few months ago when they were kept in cooler than normal water when coming in for the winter. Raising the temperature in their water and feeding lots of lettuce seemed to help. Maybe this might help you. If the water is too cool their systems will shut down more. Don't make the water too hot though. It took them at least a week or more to get their systems working well again. Hope this helps.