Urgent Care :: White Spots on Shell?

[Anoldturtlelover]

My 8 month old RES Hekyll has some white spots on his shell that appear to be the inner shell or something. They don't smell and the shell is still hard, turt acts normal. I have three pics. There are two closeups, on of the general area (3 spots) and one is a closeup of the scute itself. There appears to be a pinhole in it.

I have the proper setup, complete with UV Reptile light and basking area around 95 degrees, H20 temp is currently around 85, have 30 gal of water in 40 gal tank. Have Fluval filter setup. He eats freeze dried crickets, pellets, feeder fish, ghost shrimp once a week.

Can anyone help me out here?

Thanks

[vieniebebe]

did you give him any cuttlebone?

[Anoldturtlelover]

What is cuttlebone?

[sonyj]

In the pics, the shell still looks wet so I'm seeing a lot of glare. Try posting a pic while the shell is dry. If the spots aren't soft or smelly, it could be trapped air under the scute that you are seeing. As the scutes get ready to shed they will lift up and get air trapped under them.

Cuttlebone is given as a calcium supplement to help provide healthy shells and bones. Also, his diet sounds extremely high in protein. Too much protein can lead to shell problems as well. Things like shrimp, feeders, live prey etc should be given as treats occasionally in a well balanced diet. A well balanced diet consists of pellets once a day every other day only the amount that will fit inside his head if it were hollow and a variety of veggies should be given daily.

Also, the water temp is too high... should be 72-75F with the basking temp around 88-90F.

If it is the start of shell rot, maybe someone else will be able to identify it for you so you can get him to proper treatment at a qualified herp vet.

[Anoldturtlelover]

OK, thanks for the explanation. It's kind of tough right now to get the temp down, inside the temperature has been above 80 degrees. It's getting a little cooler now so that should help. I'll cut back on the protein and up his vegetables. Next time I hit Pet Smart I'll look for the cuttle bone.

[missibsu]

Look for the cuttlebone in the bird section!

[marisa]

Need a pic of the shell dry. None of that white (especially on the marginal scutes) comes off if you gently rub it with a q-tip?

[Anoldturtlelover]

The white doesn't come off easily.

Look at the closeup of the scute. Do you see what appears to be a pinhole in it?

[Pokey's Grandpa]

I see what you are talking about but it is probably unrelated, a scar from an earlier clumsy incident that just happens to be where the scute is shedding?

[marisa]

I see what appears to be some pitting on the scute. It could be a bacterial issue or not.

[Anoldturtlelover]

It could be a bacterial issue or not.

This is what I am wondering. Or possibly even parasital, but I can't imagine where that would come from. It almost looks like the sub-carapace is coming thru that section of scute. Growing too fast?

[marisa]

I've never heard of too fast a growth looking like that, where the underlying scute breaks through the top layer. The scute could be coming off in pieces, though.

[samandnelly]

You need a Dr. Turtle sulfa block and you need to dust your veggies/meat you feed with calcium D3

[sonyj]

It is not recommended to use the sulfa blocks with your turtles. They're a waste of your money. They will build up an immunity to the sulfa and they have no form of calcium that will benefit your turtles.