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I received 2 baby RES Tuesday and both turts seemed to be healthy and active. After a couple of hours in their new "home" one turtle is spending an extended amount of time in the basking area. Every now and then he will swim around in the water and climb and play but then he just sits in the basking area for hours on end. He has done the same today. He is not showing any other signs of illness - no foaming, "barking", sores, puffy eyes, or anything else. I have increased the temp of the water to about 82F and basking temp is just under 89F. I am going to try to find a vet in the morning but if anybody has any ideas as to what is going on, I would greatly appreciate it.

How big is your turtle? 1 1/2inch
How long have you had it? 2nd night

What is the water temperature? 82F
Did you use a thermometer? yes
Are you using a water heater? yes
How much water is in there? at the moment approx. 12 gal
Are you using a water conditioner? yes
Are you using any filtration? yes

What is the basking temperature? 89F
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? zoo meds medium dock
Is there a UVB light? yes

What have you been trying to feed it? pellets from supplier
When was the last time your turtle ate? very little tuesday late afternoon

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 32gal
Is the tank near a window? no
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? living room, yes

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

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? see above

Ok, so last night they both slept in the water all night and now are swimming around like everything is fine. Weird. Maybe this is just them showing signs of stress?

its normal behavior. they bask alot. its what they do.

keep us updated if anything other than that continues

it sounds like they are healthy normal basking turtles. I have two and one will bask more than the other and then it switches sometimes. Put the water back down to 78 degrees. It sounds like you will have two lifelong friends.

Thanks guys. Im not real sure as to what is considered basking too much, but today they are acting super cool. They started eating today and have been in the water more than just chillin on the dock.

its good that they bask alot. to keep their temperature up and stuff.

sadly, when i had mine as a hatchling i had her in cold water *about 67F* and no basking light. so she wasnt much of a basker at a young age. but thats changed now so shes fine and happy. hopefully yours is happy too