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Not eating for a week and a half but no other bad signs.

PostPosted: Mon Jan 11, 2016 4:21 pm
by astrozoologist
Hi,

This is my first post here but i will try to be as clear and informative as I can.
I have had my turtle for 4 1/2 years now. Recently I moved and I have brought her with me. I am now in the process of setting up her tank and lamps.
Where I used to live the themperature range and sushine was ideal for a turtle and so far I would let her bask in the sun in the summer and hibernate in the winter.
Where I live now this is not the case, so I bought a lighting/heating lamp(50W) and a UVB lamp(13W).
At the moment the temperatures she lives in are not the ideal ones with water temperature about 17C(62.6F) and basking temperature 20C(68F)
The problem is that she has stopped eating for about a week and a half. But other than that she is very active in the tank and I have seen her basking... maybe even more than usual.
She can see the food and moves towards it but wont eat it.
I am feeding her small dried crustaceans, which used to be her favorite (but for live insects), to get her to eat but she won't.

Below I have some photos of her.
My questions
1) Do you see anything strange??
2) Should I be worried?
3) How long should I leave the lamps on, how long should I let her bask
4) Given the wattage of the lamps I mentioned above how far should they be from the basking spot??

Please help me because where I live it is not easy to find a vet skilled with reptiles.
If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/1bca08yezfgrs ... 2.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/r8p3l3bznqf5k ... 7.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/syu1pgxdiaks4 ... 3.jpg?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/fxjkdqzd9bw72 ... 6.jpg?dl=0

Re: Not eating for a week and a half but no other bad signs.

PostPosted: Tue Jan 12, 2016 12:36 am
by steve
It's probably the temperatures, both are about 15F off.

1 - her eyes look a little cloudy, but I'm not sure if thats just from the camera
2 - I would raise the temperatures - could you elaborate on the temperatures/hibernation of the previous home?
3 - Basking/UVB lights go on at sunrise, off at sunset
4 - how close is it now? you probably need a higher wattage one

Re: Not eating for a week and a half but no other bad signs.

PostPosted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 3:31 pm
by astrozoologist
Thanks a lot for your reply.

1 ) Truth is I am a little worried about her eyes. What do you mean they look cloudy? what could be casusing it?
2) I will buy a water heater for her... i just haven't yet. I am thinking about a 25 W one. The tank she is in is filled with 20 liters(5.2 gallons) but it can hold up to 2 times that.
3) Thanks I'll automate them to do that.
4) Now both lights are 20cm(7 inches) away from the basing spot.

Re: Not eating for a week and a half but no other bad signs.

PostPosted: Wed Jan 13, 2016 9:51 pm
by steve
The eyes are pretty sensitive, so I'm not sure what the problem is. How do they look when out of water? Is she rubbing her eyes? Do you dechlorinate the water?

25 - 50W heater will do but you are setting yourself up for frequent upgrades. Go as big as you can to avoid it. I would think a 50 W basking bulb would be warmer than that, is it an incandescent?

Re: Not eating for a week and a half but no other bad signs.

PostPosted: Sat Jan 16, 2016 9:38 am
by astrozoologist
She is not rubbing her eyes no. I think raisig the temperature should solve the problem.
Thanks a lot for your help :)