Urgent Care

Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2010 2:12 pm **Shell pyramiding? something is not right**

tl;dr form: well, i have had my turtle for 5 years now, he has basking areas, and there are two turtles, but i had to seperate them because they were fighting, there are fish in the tank, but they go along well.
My turtle has not been eating well lately, he ignores teh food..
Also before he was fed hikari food sticks, and cucumber and lettuce now and then, I want to change his diet but I need help doing so..

he is in a divided 125 gallon long tank .
I think he is pyramding, the other turtle is fine. But this turtle's legs are weaker than the other, he is active though, they always incounter each other in the window of the divider, but when they meet they are somehwat agressive to each other now.. it has begun recently.

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How big is your turtle?
How long have you had it? 5 yrs

What is the water temperature? 78.5 F
Did you use a thermometer? yeh
Are you using a water heater? 2x
How much water is in there? about 107 gallons of 125
Are you using a water conditioner? yes
Are you using any filtration? fx5, marineland c-530. ( add uv sterilizer) 1,500 gph total

What is the basking temperature? not sure, around 89-90f
Is there a basking light?t-5 bulbs coralife, uv repti glo lamp
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on 1x log, 1 x basking island
What kind is it or what is it made out of? log is made of wood like plastic material very sturdy, the other is plastic like rock
Is there a UVB light? yes

What have you been trying to feed it? hikari sticks
When was the last time your turtle ate? 1 week ago

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 125 gallon long
Is the tank near a window? yes, but window has insulation
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? kind of.

Have you read the Basic Care section? yes
Have you searched the forums for similar situations? yes

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? not eating, hind legs weak, maybe pyramiding, agressive towards turtles.

I want to change the diet of this turtle, i think he needs more calcium and vitamin d3, but please help me make a diet plan, and identify if he has shell pyramid :mrgreen:

his shell kind of goes up curl? I don't know why he is not eating..

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It does seem like some pyramiding and retained scutes. What do you mean his legs are weaker than the others?

what are retained scutes? Also, how bad is the pyramiding, is it considered severe .

yes, his legs when i lightly pinch it to test his reaction, he is much weaker to withdraw his leg than the other turtle.

also- should I bring him to the veternarian?
he is not eating
I need to change his diet.. but I need help on that and specifically what he needs!

Retained scutes are ones that have not shed, usually because of a poor habitat or there is too much growth, and not giving it the time it needs to do so. I don't think I would consider it severe, though it does need to be addressed.

Can you try a different pellet? Have you gone over the "entice eating" page?

I should change his eating habits a bit, I will feed him leafy greens and pellets every other day.
yes i have seen that page but it failed to work on him.

also the turtles are fighting, but i diveded them, but the divider is not strong enough, Since i have a 125 gallon I made my own divider, I need to have a solution to make a better one, can you please tell me whats a good way to make a divider for a 125 gallon with turtles and fish?
My current divider is flimsy kind of art canvas, with boxes for fishes to swim but not turtles.
BUt the turtles try to always crawl over and the suction cups hardly hold.

And the other problem is the turtle i have is not eating, he is always ignoring the lettuce and greens as well as the pellets, whatever brand I try. I tried the enticing methods but it didn't work.

bump! i really need help in thinking of remaking my divider for the turtles! he is now always going over the the other side and fighting with the other one!!

I have fish in the tank though, so I need to think of something like acryllic that can pass water and fish through but hold turtle back.
or I can seal the suction cups to my current canvas divider, because thats the issue, the turtle's weight shifts the suction cup but it still holds on to the glass, but the divider and suction cup drops and the turtle goes over.

also the one turtle is still not eating! what else should I do

What's the divider you have now?

Since my aquarium is a 125 gallon long
I made my divider with artist canvas, and cable tied them. I cut holes for the suction cups to go through.

it held until the turtles were smart enough to put their weight to detach the suction cups from the holes in the canvas.

I guess this DIY type of divider was made for fish only =/
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Another method I could try is buying plexi glass or acryllic to wedge between suction cups with plastic clips.
I would have to drill holes in for circulation and possibly make bigger holes and sand them down for the fish to swim through.

If thats too much work do you think egg crate would work? Since i have fish and it's not feeder because the turtles get very well with the fish.. will egg crate damage the fish? I could cut that.. but I don't know what to wedge and hold it in place. thats the problem.

I think egg crate would be the easiest to work with, though the top portion needs to have some sort of cover because someone said their RES have scaled it before. Acrylic or Plexiglas is another option, but most pieces are not very rigid.

I've seen some suction cups that lock into place... I forgot what they're called, but they are stronger than normal suction cups. There are also those magnets people use in their aquarium to clean algae of the sides, I wonder if that can be used too.

*edit*

from a previous topic: viewtopic.php?f=6&t=23330

I know what you mean, I found some cheap magnet cleaners on line.. I could get around 4 to secure them on both sides, they are very sturdy.. hmm

But is egg crate sharp? for the fish.. i mean.. also is it easy to cut?? I could cut a few holes that the fish could go through.. and torch the sharp edges to melt them flat and not sharp :O or i could sand it down.. maybe?

Also update.. i have been feeding my turtles green's trying lettuce, zuchinni and cucumbers, the other turtle took a few bites but the one that has a bit of pyramiding did not. he is still not eating his pellets too.. I tried crushing them up.. wouldn't work, he sees the pellet and smells it, almost taking a bite but he decides not to.. I can see his stomach he empty.. he has gotten slimmer... I need another solution, if it continues like this for 7 more days I'm taking him to a veterinarian

The eggcrate I've handled isn't sharp but maybe you want to sand the edges you cut.

Have you tried the jell-o shot recipe? Maybe some boiled white chicken meat or canned tuna?

I will try that canned tuna, and the egg crate.

Thanks,
but if he continues to not eat, do you agree I take him to the veterinarian?
He's gotten awfully agressive lately, to other turtles and even to me, he won't let me pick him up without a fight.. crazy..

Your RES needs a good scute shed.

Update!!!

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Okay he is only eating freeze dried krill and shrimps ( treats..)
I tried 3 different kinds of staple diets, he refuses to eat them,
Though I don't know if it was him, but most likely since the tank is divided ( kinda flimsy)
But there was a peice of lettuce with a few bites out of it this morning.
so conclusion is he still isnt eating staple diets, but he does take bites out of treats.. only which arn't the best for him..

he basks way too much and slimmed down..
he's agressive and fights with the other turtle...

If he's eating the "treats" then cut them out all together. It might take a couple of days, but he'll take the pellets. Try using a veggie clip with some lettuce. It's a small clip with a suction cup... it will hold it in place for your turtle.

Urgent Care :: Shell pyramiding? something is not right

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