Urgent Care :: Please Help.... Tiny Baby Painted Turtle WONT EAT

[JohnA]

i know theres a million of threads about this.... but i have literally tried everything from feeding in seperate tank to all kinds of things turtles eat but he still wont eat. Its been about 2 in a half weeks now since ive had him. i tried taking my other turtles out of the tank to try to feed him but it wont work. He wont eat anything. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Please i dont want anything bad to happen to him. God Forbid. i love him to death...

[jwinters]

Have you tried leaving food (that doesn't get soggy) out over night? Keep him in a separate tank for a while in a quiet place with maybe some fish in it and edible plants.

[marisa]

I have to ask---when you say "tiny," is the turtle that small that there is any remnant of the egg sac left or even a place where you can see where the egg sac had been? I'm asking because I found a tiny Eastern painted hatchling last fall and took him in. It was over a month before he would even try to eat anything. The nourishment from the egg sac can sustain them for a while.

How big are the other turtles and what size tank are they in? A much smaller turtle in a tank with other, larger turtles is likely to be intimidated and/or stressed. If there's a real disparity in size between the little one and the others, I'd give him his own set-up until he grows some.

[JohnA]

hes shell is the size of a penny.... and the rest in there are the size of a quarter. i have him in a 29 gallon tank with a couple other baby painted turtles size of quarters.

[LilTurtSquirt]

[JohnA]

i have tried that tho. i set up a ten gallon tank with its own lamps for heat and uva/uvb, filter, and heater. i also tried every food possibly made for turtles and stuff around the house from romaine lettece to cut up fish. nothing is working im so scared im gonna lose him