Urgent Care :: Diarrhea and undigested letuce

[Bi1l]

I dont know if this belongs to here since my turtle is active basking etc but it doesnt diggest lettuce. When i first got it i was giving only pellets and the poop was solid . Then i gave it lettuce and the poop became loose and was going out in pieces , but what concerned me that it was pooping pieces lettuce completely undigested ( not green like fresh lettuce but dark green),
i stopped giving i lettuce for about a month . Then i gave it some other plants in tiny quantities , with grapes seemed good. Poop was never like it was at the start but quite solid. Then i gave it lettuce again and again the same problems. I have stopped giving it lettuce since some days now but still it poops lettuce (eating its poop doesnt help this also). Today it had diarrhea(i haven't seen it again or maybe happened and missed it) with undigested lettuce leaves. Note that the piece of lettuce i gave it wasnt bigger than its shell. I have my turtle for about 3 months it is 6,5 something centimetres long and it has doubled its size since i got it. It lives in proper environment with lamps heaters etc.

[untsmurf]

What kind of lettuce were you feeding it?

[Bi1l]

The usual one, i think 3 different brands all very good quality organic products. We ate from them too and we are perfectly healthy. If this is iceberg lettuce
http://www.gearfuse.com/wp-content/uplo ... 491_st.jpg
neither me or my turtle has ever eaten of it. Actually first time i saw the name iceberg lettuce was on this site.

[spaceapple]

That particular kind of lettuce isn't so great for turtles, mostly because it just doesn't contain very many nutrients. Try giving him a bit of red leaf or green leaf lettuce and see if you have better luck.

[marisa]

What kind of lettuce is "the usual one?" The pic is indeed iceberg lettuce, and it's good that's not the kind you're giving him.

Their metabolisms are slow, so it will take a bit for him to eliminate all the lettuce. If the lettuce is making his stools loose, feed less of it. Try dandelion greens as well.

[steve]

If you are seeing it undigested, is it possible it was thrown up? How often and how much of it are you giving to your turtle?

[Bi1l]

I am very sure it wasnt thrown up since i saw it. This is the lettuce i find here
http://www.chow.com/assets/basics/produce/83-4.jpg
I gave lettuce to my turtle for 3 days, a leaf at the size of its shell each day.

[taurusgirl]

mine dose it too

[SpotsMama]

How much does of it does your turtle eat and how often?

[taurusgirl]

i feed mine one leaf of a romaine lettius a day

[SpotsMama]

If a turtle is having diarrhea when eating lettuce, I'd first try cutting back on the quantity of lettuce. Too much fiber (lettuce or other veggies) can give anyone the runs.

[novroz]

mine does the same but over carrot...she kept pooping carrot undigested

she had loose poop and then I took her o the vet, and her poop became normal again...but recently she had loose poop again and can't aford another vet.

what should I do?

[ScrewZoo]

It can be an infection.

[SpotsMama]

If carrots seem to be causing a problem, then I'd avoid giving my turtle carrots. Sometimes the problem is the quantity - too much vegetable matter usually causes the runs. Try cutting back and see if it helps.

[novroz]

the vet gave her shots at that time.