Urgent Care :: Help! My turtles' shell color is fading

[mini]

I have 2 red ear sliders that is a few months old. I bought them 2 weeks ago. One is about 1.5 inches and the other one is 1.25 inches. I've put them into a 10 gallon tank with water tempreture about 84F (29C). I have a basking spot lamp for them to sun bath. recently, I found that their shell color started fading. their color used to be like dark green and shiny. but now, part of the shell color is become dull and only small part of the dark geen left on the shell. Other than the color, they seem quite healthy. They swim freely in the water and also sun bath under the spot lamp. And they eat the turtle food I feed them.
Here's "Small Turtle":

Here's "Big Turtle":

Big turtle seems to grow faster than small turtle and big turtle's shell color fade faster as well. Is it something normal when they grow or they are actually sick? Please help me! Thanks!

[Spookster]

It would be better if you answered all the questions in this thread
http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2142

[mini]

Thanks. Here are my answer:

How big is your turtle? 1.25inches and 1.5 inches
How long have you had it? 2 weeks

What is the water temperature? 84F/29C
Are you using a water heater? Yes
How much water is in there? 2/3 full
Are you using a water conditioner? Yes
Are you using any filtration? Yes

What is the basking temperature? 89F/32C
Is there a basking light? Yes
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? Yes
Is there a UVB light? No

What have you been trying to feed it? Tetra fauna ReptoMin (turtole food)
When was the last time your turtle ate? a few hours ago. i feed them twice a day. about 12 hrs in between. about 10 - 12 mini sticks each.

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 10 gallon
Is the tank near a window? Yes
Is the tank in a room with a lot of activity? No

Have you read the Basic Care section? Yes
Have you searched the forums for similar situations? Yes

Is there any other unusual activity/symptoms? No. The turtles seems okay other than the shell color.

Here's the setting of my tank:

[Spookster]

Just a few things to note. You need a UVA/UVB lamp to put over your basking area. Just a heat lamp won't cut it. There should also be no glass/acrylic/water in between the UVA/UVB light and the basking area. Those will filter out the UV rays. It also sounds like you are overfeeding them. You will want to cut down on their feeding otherwise they will grow too fast and start pyramiding. You should feed them the amount of pellets that would fit inside their head if it were hollow once a day while they are young and then every other day once they become adults. Also provide them with vegetables daily. You can find a list of what to feed/not feed turtles as a sticky thread in the feeding forum. It's also a good idea to provide them with some cuttlebone for calcium. Your water temperature is a bit high. If you are using a heater with an adjustable temperature control I would turn it down. I would turn it down between 78-80 for younger turtles and 75-78 for adults. There should also be around a 10 degree difference between your water temp and the basking area temperature. Right now your temps are very close together and the turtles will not be encouraged to bask. Around 90 degrees is a decent temp for your basking area.

[mini]

Thanks for the advice. I have lower my heater and I will feed them less food. And I also have the cuttle bone in the tank (the white turtle look block).

I tried to feed them veggie but they don't eat it at all. My basking lamp said it "stimulates natural behaviour through UVA rays". does it man my lamp has the UVA? I'm using the Exo Terra Sun Glo Tight Beam (Hagen). I tried to find a lamp with UVB but there is only fluorescent lights has UVB and I need to get a fixture on the top of the tank. However, once I put the fixture on, It will cover most of the top and my basking light won't have the light go through. Is there any light bulb kind of UVB lights available or I should switch to the fluorescent light? And if I switch to the fluorescent light, will it generate enough basking light for the turtle? Seems like fluoresent light has less heat. Sorry, I'm a new turtle owner. lots of questions.

[Spookster]

I use the T-Rex Active UV Heat bulb. It provides everything the turtle needs in one bulb.

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/Product/P ... 006+113030

Keep trying different varieties of veggies. They will be stubborn until they realize they like them. Eventually you will come across one they will like. They can be very picky at times. Our turtle changes her mind all the time. One week she will love one veggie and the next week she won't touch it but now will eat another veggie she normally won't eat.

[missibsu]

Like spookster said, don't give up on veggies. The longer you wait to get them eating them, the harder it is. If they don't eat it right away, you can leave it in the tank, just be sure to watch it and keep it fresh if they don't eat it right away. It may eventually lead to withholding pellets to get them to eat the veggies. Worry about that later though.

You mentioned in an earlier post that your tank was sitting by a window. The sun coming through the window, and through the glass of the tank can cause the water temp to spike. If you aren't careful you could actually cook your turtle. It could also be part of why your water temp is too high. It be worth looking into.

When I had a 10 gallon tank, I had my basking area at the end of the tank and put the UVB light the short way across the end of the tank. That gave me more room to provide the UVA. Your UVA light does not have to be an expensive light either, a regular household bulb will provide the necessary heat.

Another thing to keep in mind, especially before you buy a top for your 10 gallon for the UVB light. You are going to need to upgrade soon. Rule of thumb is 10 gallons per inch of straight length shell. With that in mind, I would hate for you to spend the money on a light fixture that won't fit a larger tank. The bigger you can go the better. It will save on upgades every step of the way. Saves money too!

[sonyj]

Also, RES do tend to lose their bright green coloring as they grow. Their colors will range anywhere from brown to almost black upon reaching an adult, with a very rare chance of having a full grown green RES.

[marisa]

If you have a 10-gallon tank, I don't think you would want to use a T-Rex Active UVB heat light---they give off a lot of heat and really aren't for small enclosures. You do need a UVB light in addition to the heat source (the latter can be a regular light bulb, a wattage that will get the basking area in the 88-90F range)

In the first pic, the shell looks OK. In the second, to me, some of those whitish areas look like they may be lifting a big on the edges of the affected scutes. Are they? If the shell is firm (not soft to the touch), it could be shedding.

[Spookster]

For some reason I thought read they had a 55 gallon tank. Yes marisa is correct you should have at least a 50 gallon tank in order to use a bulb like the active UV heat because anything smaller and it will generate too much heat in the tank. With two turtles like missibsu said you really should be looking at a much larger tank to begin with though. With the size of your turtles right now you should have at least a 30 gallon tank based on the 10 gallons per inch of turtle guide. But since they are going to grow quite a bit in the first year or two you should try to get as big as an enclosure as you can get. Keep in mind that males grow to be up to 9 inches and females up to 12 inches.

[mini]

Thanks everyone.

I think my turtles are shedding. Their shells are hard. And I've seen "Big Turtle" having something like a "flake" attaching to its head and legs. I just talked to another friend of mine who also has a red ear slider. She said her turtle has the same flake looking thing attached to her turtle when it shedded.

And thanks for everyone's concern. Though my tank is beside the window but there is basically no sun light coming though coz my window is actually not facing east or west and my blinds are usually closed. I will continue feeding them veggies and I will see what's the best way to provide them with UVB lights. Can the turtles travel short distance? Like I take them outside my home to the apartment's front door area that has direct sunlight? Then the sun light can provide them UVB lights before I find something appriate for them. Yes, I know big birds like to attack them so I'll keep my eyes on them when they sun bath outdoor. Furthermore, I've already set up a "turtle fund". I will upgrade the tank when I have enough funding.

[missibsu]

You can take them outside, just make sure that you don't do it in the tank. I have a kiddie pool that is big enough to put water in and still not have them escape. They still have a basking area and a large plant where they can get to the shade if they want it. Make sure that when they are outside that they have the shade and make sure they have water so that they can stay hydrated. Most importantly, keep an eye on them, but you already know that. Getting them outside is the best thing you can do until you get the UVB light set up!

[marisa]

Just curious, but how much food do you feed them and do they get equal amounts of it? The one with the scute issue (2nd pic) looks like he may be growing a bit too fast. If the other one isn't getting a fair share of the food, consider feeding one of them in a separate container of water.

A water temp that's too warm will contribute to faster growth as well. Lowering it about 6 degrees (from 84F to about 78F) would be good, as would starting to look for a bigger tank/container.

[mini]

Thanks. I didn't think of the shade area idea. Will do that when I take them out. And the equal amount of food is my concern as well. When I'm around, they don't eat. I have to have a certain distance away from the tank when they eat. I'm also suspecting Big Turtle ate more coz it grows much faster. Small Turtle didn't seem to grow at all..... But I'm sure both of them eat when I drop the pellets. I will take small turtle to another container when feeding them.

[sonyj]

I would move the one you know is eating, and feed the smaller one in the tank. Some turtles take to being fed in a separate feeding container while others are more stressed over this move. Concentrate on getting the little one to eat his share without stressing him any more.

Or you could simply feed one at a time in the tank. While feeding one, the other is in a "holding" container then just swap. After both have gotten their share put them both in the tank together.