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yesterday it was dinner time for my turtle and he ran into the water but i noticed he was swiming lopsidd to me what is wrong with him ?

he kind of looks tired and didnt really move like he use to when i started to feed him

Please read this http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2142 and answer the questions so we can help.

i know that lopsided swimming can mean a RI, they can have water in their lungs which can throw off their balance....it can also mean other stuff too, so yes do answer the questions so we can be of more help.

Are there any other symptoms? Is the turtle eating?

opps.
rasco is 1.3 inches he eating and if i bring him to a herp vet how much will the shots or w/e they do to him cost ? cause i've been saving money for him to get a new tank and new stuff and if i send him to the herp vet i might be broke

Is he consistently tilting to one side? Are there any other synptoms? How lethargic is he (how tired does he seem to be)?

If you think he needs to see a herp vet, call a few and find out what they charge. There's a link to finding one at the top of the Urgent Care Forum.

i wouldnt know how lazy he would be cause im not always home during the day but, when he usally see's me or anybody else he would dash acorss the tank and slam his head on the glass and beg for food, now he just doesnt care, and he costently tilted to one side

i got home today and rasco was still swimming lopsided but he was more active and begging for food

jn wrote:yesterday it was dinner time for my turtle and he ran into the water but i noticed he was swiming lopsidd to me what is wrong with him ?

he kind of looks tired and didnt really move like he use to when i started to feed him

When the turtle is just floating (not necessarily swimming on an angle, just FLOATING) lopsided this can be a sign of a collapsed lung from pneumonia, a VERY serious illness for a turtle. I would get this turtle to a qualified reptile vet immediately.

Have you noticed what he does when he is walking? My turtle was doing that, and it was because one of his legs was sprained, and he was favoring his other side. When I put him on the floor to watch him walk he had difficulty using that leg. It ended up being just a minor injury, but I took him to the vet for X-rays to be sure. Like the others said, I would take him to the vet as soon as you can.

My little Hoshi (1.5") is swimming lobsided too! She walks normal ouside the water and even underwater; but when she's swimming or close to the surface, she's on her side, on a 20 degree angle approximately, as if one side is forcing her to float.

Water temperature is 78-80 F.
She feeds normally.

One thing I notice is that Hoshi always jumps from the top of the basking area, when she sees someone getting closer to the room.

What should I do next?

How long has your turtle been doing this? There are no other symptoms---no open-mouth breathing or excessive basking, for example? Your turtle is eating normally, that's a positive sign. You could increase the water temp a bit (81-82F) for a few days and see if that helps. You didn't say what the basking area temp was, but try it at around 91F for as long as the water temp is a little higher.

The jumping from the basking area is normal. If your turtle just laid there and was oblivious to her surroundings, that would not be normal. Keep an eye out for other symptoms.

marisa wrote:How long has your turtle been doing this? There are no other symptoms---no open-mouth breathing or excessive basking, for example? Your turtle is eating normally, that's a positive sign. You could increase the water temp a bit (81-82F) for a few days and see if that helps. You didn't say what the basking area temp was, but try it at around 91F for as long as the water temp is a little higher.

The jumping from the basking area is normal. If your turtle just laid there and was oblivious to her surroundings, that would not be normal. Keep an eye out for other symptoms.

Thanks Marisa,

I just came back from Petsmart; I bought a water heater in case I needed to raise the temperature (Hydor THEO 50W, I was told is one of the most accurate units available ( ? ) ).

Basking area is around 90F, and both turtles spend time basking, but I imagine they should know by instict when enough is enough ( ? )

Hoshi breaths through her nose, I never see her breath with her mouth. But I do notice she has trouble swimming, as one side of her shell floats while the other side doesn't.

Today I decided to clean the tank; it took me about 2 hours, as I had to remove everything but the gravel, add and remove water several times until it got completely clean. Also I removed and cleaned the filter.

I have 4 snails (2 blue, 2 black) in the tank, supposedly doing some housekeeping, but I guess it's not enough, so I got EXO-TERRA Biotize, to help deal with the waste.

I noticed my sliders have what looks like some white tissue coming out of their skin. Hopefully is not bacteria... Do you think adding a block of Reptoguard (sulfamide) to the tank would help in any way?

They looked well and healthy last week when I took the pictures I posted on the forum. (http://www.inacom.net/RES)

Thanks for your help!

-John

I've been wondering what the sound was, until I finally realize it's a sneeze... One of them is sneezing, and I'll bet anything that it was Hoshi (the one swiming lobsided).
I'm raising the temperature of the water to 82F to help them out.

I'll better start looking for a good vet right away, before is too late.

My turtles are only 1.5" or less in size, and deserve to be healthy!

Sounds like the good choice...keep us posted!