Urgent Care :: near death experience

[pixiedust]

i thought i lost my peppermint today.

today is tank cleaning day. me and the maid were cleaning out the fish and turtle tanks. as the turtle tank was filling, i decided to go out and let my little peppermint bask under the sun. it's summer now here in the Philippines and the sun is wonderful. so i placed my baby res in a big basin and put small rocks in there because she likes to climb up and down them.

peppermint was ok then. she was just walking around the basin climbing over the rocks. nothing seemed wrong. i turned my back for a second to ask the maid if the tanks were ready. (i swear, it didn't even take minute coz i just shouted since the front door was open anyway) she said it was ready so i decided to bring my turt back in. when i looked at her, she was tucked in her shell with only the front legs hanging out. i brushed her front legs a bit. now, normally, she would retract it or at least give out some reaction like open her eyes a bit. but she did nothing. i brushed it again and still nothing. i was already panicking. i blew softly into her face but she wasn't moving at all! she looked very stiff.

i was thinking maybe it go too hot for her or something. i put her in water but she sank into the bottom without moving at all. i picked her up again and put her back into the water but she still didn't move. i was really really scared. my dad said she might be dead. i was about to cry.

i didn't know what was happening. ran to the computer. i was going to log on here and see if i could get anything. but the maid called me and said that peppermint was "alive" again. and she was. i found her on her basking rock and she was on all fours again and was looking at me. she seemed normal again. i really don't know what happened.

the whole afternoon, i was constantly watching her her as if nothing wrong happened. she would bask and swim like she would normally.

can anyone tell me what that whole episode was about?

[DavidY]

Did the water feel warm in the outside tub? It's very likely the RES got cooked under the full sun. It's always very important when putting any animal outdoors to provide them with a cool shady area so they can get out of the sun if they need to. The smaller the animal is, the more quickly they can overheat, and that can be deadly.

I'm very glad your turtle is doing well now. That must have been really scary! Just keep an eye on her for a couple of days for any unusual change in behavior.

[pixiedust]

i didn't have water in the tub. just rocks. i guess that was my mistake. i should have put some water in there too cool her if it got too hot. it could get pretty hot here sometimes especially now that it's summer. i'd definitely definitely remember to do that next time. right now i'm just glad she's ok.

you bet it was scary! i was really on the verge of tears. yes, i'll keep an eye on her. thanks.

[SpotsMama]

Whew! I'm glad that turned out ok.

Even if you've got water in a bowl it can get very hot in the direct sun. The water will sort of magnify the sunlight and it will heat up very fast. Best to make sure she can always get to a cool place when she's outside. In the wild they're always near deep cool water that they can dive in in an instant if they start to get uncomfortable.

[marisa]

Don't leave your turtle outside in the sun without water and some shade (and some very frequent checking on) and never in glass, even if there is water and shade. It sounds like your baby could have gotten fried---it doesn't take long for this to happen, especially for hatchlings.

[DavidY]

I also don't know what kind of big birds you have there, but hatchling turtles are a favorite food for a lot of different species of birds.

[pixiedust]

thanks for all your replies. i'll definitely keep everything you've said in mind from now on.

DavidY, the birds here aren't much of a threat. there aren't a lot of birds here in my area. if ever there any birds around they're usually small birds who feed on fruits. i don't know what they're called in english but here, we call them maya. but don't worry, from now on i'll keep my eye closely on my turt whenever i take her out to bask.

[DavidY]

That sounds like a good idea.

[myrtle1123]

Wow reading this scared me! Glad Peppermints alright!!