General Care Discussion :: Turtle isn't eating

[Mr.Carson]

Hey Everyone,

I posted a thread in the URGENT CARE forum a week or two ago. Honestly, it probably wasn't urgent, and this probably isn't urgent either so I am posting it here.

My turtle, Mr. Carson, has recently stopped eating. He usually eats voraciously. He usually will eat as many pellets as I will give him and he grazes on red lettuce that I just leave in the tank. He also recently started eating dried shrimp.

Anyways, I put a pleco fish in the tank a few days ago and since then Mr. Carson has been spending waaay more time on his basking dock completely out of the water. This is unusual because just last week I was actually worried that he wasn't basking and drying himself off enough. Anyways, Since I put the pleco fish in there I haven't seen him eat all. Is it possible that he is just stressed out about a semi large being being in the same tank?

There have been around 10 feeder fish in the tank for a few weeks. Mr. Carson won't touch them. I only mention this because I have noticed a ton of white stringy waste on the bottom of the tank over the last few days. I was a bit worried that it was just MC pooping somewhat irregularly, but I am still seeing his regular poop in the mix. I have another theory that the feeder fish might be getting more aggressive and annoying to him. They keep swimming around like they own the place. Also I am positive that the fish are not eating MC's food.

Anyone have experience with this? Any tips or help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

-Paul

p.s. the water temp is around 80 degrees.

I will admit to my filter being somewhat inadequate (it is meant for 30 gallons and I have a 55 gallon tank) could that have anything to do with anything?

[ljapa]

If you have a Pleco, ten feeder fish and a turtle in a 55 gallon with inadequate filtration, do you know what your water parameters are? You may be getting ammonia or nitrite buildup and Mr. Carson just doesn't like what's in the water.

[Into_the_Mystic]

I would ditch the fish(or maybe leave just one) and get a better filter. Not sure what the white slimy stuff is...

[steve]

So he stopped eating but will take the shrimp? What brand pellets are you using? If there is a local pet store nearby, I'd pick up a veggie clip - it's a plastic clip w/suction cup to hold plant matter.

[Mr.Carson]

@Steve
He just started eating shrimp in the last week or so. But as of 2 days ago I haven't seen him eat anything. :/

I moved all but 4 of the feeder fish to a new tank and changed around 40% of the water.

I'll look into the nitrate levels and getting a better filter.

I just don't have too much cash to drop on a new filter unfortunately.

Stupid question. 2 30 gallon filters would give the same amount of filtration as 1 60 gallon right?

I'm not sure what the cons are of using two smaller filters. Thanks for the advice all.

I'll check back in a day or two if anything changes.

-paul

[Into_the_Mystic]

I would think 2 filters would be o.k until you got enough money to put towards a bigger canister filter. I also wanted to mention that your water temp seems a bit high. You may want to lower it some to where it is between 76 to 78. I had my water temp too high couple years back it it caused my turtle to grow to fast and the algae to grow.

[Mr.Carson]

Well, I raised the temp because it's been so cold where I am (MI) and I was getting pretty worried that MC was getting sick (he was listing pretty bad, but still eating a lot, for a week or so). The weather is getting a bit nicer now though, maybe I'll turn the heater down a bit tonight.

[steve]

You can get a decent smaller brand filter for less money, and a lot of people use some generic filters that are sold on eBay. What kind of treats does he normally go for? Anything?

[Mr.Carson]

Ok, so I removed all of the fish, changed the carbon pad in the filter, changed about 40% of the water, and ordered a 2nd filter for a good price. The good news is that after these changes Mr. Carson has started eating and swimming around again. He seems to be having some trouble eating the way he used to though. He used to swallow pellets whole but now he can't seem to do that. He ends up just spitting them out and letting them float away. I have a bag of tiny baby turtle pellets that he has no trouble eating. I also saw him taking bites out of the red leaf lettuce and he ate a dried shrimp.

The bad news is that he seems to be listing more than ever. When he is at the bottom of the tank one side of his shell will float to the top until he is pretty much vertical. He can still swim, even if it is somewhat lopsidedly, wherever he want to go. I have also seen him spit out a few bubbles occasionally. Is it time to take MC to the vet? Or should I wait a few days to see if he keeps getting better?

I think he needed the changes I made and since then he has been acting more normal, but I don't want him to get worse again.

I have left the water heater at 82 since winter refuses to quit here in MI.

thanks!

[ljapa]

Sounds like water quality may have helped. However, listing that severely could mean pneumonia. One ling is filled with air, but the other could have fluid and air. I'd recommend having a vet check your turtle out.

[penelope]

The loss of appetite could have been the first signs of feeling cruddy. Even though he is eating somewhat, the bubbles and listing are worrisome signs. Are his eyes looking a little buggy - that can accompany not feeling well. Because of the listing, I think a vet busy is definitely in order.