Urgent Care :: Trying to Nest, or Seriously Ill?

[JELslider]

Hi Everyone,

For the past few days now, I have been trying to help my female turt nest, but have been unsuccessful so far. She won't even dig!

Unfortunately she had been exhibiting weird behavior for little over a month! I had no idea what was going on... a month ago I put her in a new tank so I thought she just didn't like the tank and wanted out.

After a month passed, I thought maybe there is more to her behavior. Sure enough this website described all the symptoms she had and diagnosed it as a Gravid Turtle trying to nest.

She has been swimming endlessly toward the glass and back and forth. She digs like crazy inside the tank as well. The only time she was calm was when I took her out the tank to let her walk around. At the time that is all I thought she wanted, but then I noticed she would take her back legs and start kicking back tearing up the carpet!!

And that is not all, a few days ago... for the first time she actually climbed out of her tank! She only fell halfway into the window sill luckily because that is 4 ft drop to the floor! That is when I knew she was getting desperate.

So I look up all the ways to build a nest for a RES. I buy the dirt and sand, mix it together and put it in a clear bin (my turt does not like to be in anything she can't see out of). I clamped on the heating lamp, placed several plants real and fake around the bin to give it a more natural look, and a bowl of water. It actually looks kind of cool.

But it has been a few days... and she doesn't seem to like it... its like she can't just chill she is constantly trying to get out!

I have felt the soft sides of her to feel for eggs, but I don't feel anything.

1. I am now concerned if she has eggs, that she is retaining them and it could lead to her death!!

2. That she has no eggs at all but is exhibiting weird behavior for another reason that I don't know about. Could she be SICK??

I am prepared to go to the vet, but I wanted to give her time to accustomed to the nest I built for her... but I don't want to wait too long because what if she is sick and dies from all this stress.

I really need some advice from people that have done this before. How long should I wait before I take her to the vet?

Here is the information the website told me to include:

How big is your turtle? 8 inches

How long have you had it? 4-5 years

What is the water temperature? 78 degrees

Did you use a thermometer? Yes

Are you using a water heater? YEs

How much water is in there? 1/2 Full, only because of the escape attempt.

Are you using a water conditioner? No

Are you using any filtration? Yes

What is the basking temperature? I don't know

Is there a basking light? Yes

Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? Yes

What kind is it or what is it made out of? Large Turtle Dock

Is there a UVB light? Yes

What have you been trying to feed it?
Reptomin, Cooked Chicken, Turnip Greens, Peas, Fruit

When was the last time your turtle ate? Yesterday... but only two bites of chicken... and before that she hadn't eaten in days... she is not interested in food these days.

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 50 Gallon Wide Reptile Tank

Is the tank near a window? Yes, she likes to look outside

Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? Yes, it is my room so I walk around watch TV, but I am not here during the day. She wakes up and starts digging before I even get up in the morning.

Have you read the Basic Care section? Yes, very helpful, now I need advice.

Have you searched the forums for similar situations? Not yet.

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? She just doesn't eat, scutes shedding a lot these days, in the past few months.

[TheComputerGremlin]

I'm surprised you haven't had to deal with eggs before now!

Is it possible for you to take her outside? I know it's cold out in a lot of places, but if you are somewhere warm, often they prefer the outdoors.

I also remember someone's turtle laying their eggs under a bean bag chair? So you can try a variety of household items to see if it gets her to lay the eggs.

Othewise, your next move is to visit a vet. I doubt only a herp vet can do what's needed, so even if you have just a local vet. They will probably X-ray her and then give her a shot of a drug to induce her to lay the eggs.

[JELslider]

I am surprised too...

One time I did find her quite cozy underneath my bags in my closet. Not at all like the "nest" they suggest you build... but it is worth a try since she is comfortable in my room. She really is a "house" turtle.

I will take her out now.

I will keep you posted on the results. Thanks again for the advice.

[bradmeisel]

I hope it works out. I have a female and am curous how to deal with this future problem.

[SpotsMama]

Do let us know how it goes. This is a very common situation. Turtles can be picky about where they lay - any time someone's turtle lays successfully we need to share the information.

[JELslider]

So after a few days of watching her try to dig into the carpet, and show crazy behavior in the tank, I decided to take her to the vet.

My main reason is that she had been acting like this since October. And I could not even feel any eggs!

I take her to the vet and I explain her behavior. They suggest an x-ray. To my surprise SHE HAS NO EGGS.

So now the doctor and I are worried because she is acting extremely weird, he was especially worried that she is not eating as much. Not even her favorite foods.

They took a sample of her blood. And I will know what they come up with by next week.

The doctor could not physically see anything wrong with her. He said her shell looked healthy and shiny, her skin and eyes looked normal. She was very feisty with the vet staff... and was always trying to run away. (This is very different than her normal shy and quiet behavior)

It is like she is a totally different turtle.

[bradmeisel]

I hope she's OK. You did the right thing taking her to the vet. She is very lucky to have an owner like you.

Keep us posted and I'll keep her in my thoughts.

[steve]

I'd bump up the temps a little. Perhaps you can collect a stool sample as well, but your turtle might just be in a mood.

[marisa]

Could it be the change of seasons? This past weekend my male RES suddenly decided that he just had to try to get out of his tank and for a while he repeatedly kept trying to do so.

[JELslider]

Well the vet called to check in on Cortez. He said the blood tests came out fine.

I have not actually spoken with him yet but she is still acting different and weird. She is still constantly stirring at the same time every morning and night. Usually she is very still until she sees I am awake.

What is even more unlike her is that she is very physical with humans when she is out of the tank now. She would barely come walk over to me before, she would hide under the bed most of the time. Now she walks around me, sometimes on me, she buried herself under my fiancee a little while ago.

One thing has stopped. HER DIGGING. She no longer digs when I take her out of the tank.

Her appetite seems better, doesn't want turtle sticks anymore though.

Maybe she was in a mood, she seems to be a healthy turt. I just wish she didn't have me so worried about her laying eggs.

So no explanation from the vet, and no problems I can see. Just a turt effected by the seasons or her moods I guess.

[SpotsMama]

I'd say her new fearless interaction with humans is a positive sign that she's confident you're not going to eat her. My turtle was very shy as a youngster but gradually got friendly until now he follows me around like a dog. He's not unique - lots of people on this forum have friendly turtles. I think it's a sign of a good relationship between turtle and keeper.