General Care Discussion :: Turtle's Hind Legs & Tail are Pink

[Litheus]

Today my slider was basking and I noticed his hind legs and the underside of his tail were noticeable pink--not a very dark pink, but a light to medium pink. The underside of his tail is a light pink sometimes but it usually doesn't get this dark. However, after he started swimming again the color seemed to fade.

Is this normal or does my turtle have an infection?

[steve]

It's likely normal, but hard to know for certain without seeing in person. See if you can gently rub it off, that would mean it's bacteria. It's also normal if there is a little pink where the skin meets the shell.

[Litheus]

Thanks, I'll try rubbing if it happens again next time. It wasn't just where the skin meets the shell, it was between the webs in his toes and the bottom of his tail. Luckily it went away when he started swimming--hopefully it's just a temporary result of basking.

[steve]

It sounds more or less normal.