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How big is your turtle? Almost 3 inches
How long have you had it? 1 year

What is the water temperature? 75-80
Are you using a water heater? no
How much water is in there? 15 gallons
Are you using a water conditioner? yes
Are you using any filtration? yes

What is the basking temperature? 85
Is there a basking light? no
Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on? yes
What kind is it or what is it made out of? plastic platform with rocks for the top of the platform and a rock waterfall that the turtles may climb on to get dry
Is there a UVB light? no

What have you been trying to feed it? will eat juvenille pellets, but won't touch the plants or meat
When was the last time your turtle ate? this morning

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure? 20 gallons
Is the tank near a window? on a table near sliding glass doors
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




ok, so I have two small turtles, Gamera and Morla, that were placed into my care a year ago. One has pretty much doubled in size since I got him, and one is growing, but not as fast. They are both very active and love to swim and play and eat, nothing wrong with their behavior. Recently (two days ago) I saw that the smaller of the two had what looked like almost a chapped lower lip. It was a little flaky just at the tip. And now the entire lower lip in the "beak area" is hanging free except for a tiny piece of skin that is holding it on. There is no blood, and the turtle doesn't seem to be in pain and eats/swims/basks regularly still. Should I be worried? Is this happening because he is growing? Does anyone know what this could be from? I'm in the upper peninsula of Michigan, which means that the closest vet that would know about RES is pretty much at least a 4 hour drive away...

I dont know about the beak,but if it is something bad.Then you will HAVE to go see a vet if you want your turtle to live.

Also You should have a UVB (very important for your turtle) light and a water heater (to keep at a constant temperature).

Do you have a picture of what you are talking about? Are you saying that the whole beak area is coming off of the turtle? I'm getting a very vivid and unpleasant picture in my head.

There is such a thing as mouth rot. I don't any details on this, other than it is contagious and needs to be treated by a vet. I can't say this is what your turt has, it's just what came to mind. There is more information on the main site, if you search.

Have you noticed any aggression between your two turts? If one turtle is 3 inches, he should have at least 30 gallons of water...adding a second turt to that mix increases the amount of water that they should have. Lack of personal space can cause aggression and be cause for one to snap at the other causing great harm.

If the entire part of the lower beak area is just hanging by a piece of skin, it would be best to find a herp vet and have him seen. Just a guess, but he possibly could have been bitten by the other turtle. Even though there's no blood, the area could get infected. Take him to a herp vet.