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This week i have to take care of my cousin's baby RES since he is out of the country. I'm not sure if its just me, but does this look like early shellrot?? The scutes look kind of crusty. the borders of scutes have a flaky-white appearance





hope someone can help me clarify this.

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Is the area soft and squishy? Does it have a bad odor? Those are a couple signs of shell rot.

There's no shell rot that I can see. He's growing, though. The flaking around the borders---what kind of set-up is he in? Does he have both a UVB light and heat source to bask under?

Do those edges look like they're going to lift at all?

we recently put him in a small 10gal rubbermaid for now; he gets both UVB + lightsource regularly.

the area isnt soft/squishy and does not smell at all; it doesnt look like the edges are going to lift up. im really confused as to whats wrong with his shell.

Make sure he gets some extra calcium... as a supplement through some RepCal or some very small pieces of cuttlebone.

What are the basking temps? Is there anyway you can get him some direct, unfiltered sunlight?

ive fed him cuttlebone regularly with his diet, his basking temps are around 80º, he has plenty basking time, but i rarely see him basking.

recently, ive become even more concerned because it looks like this thing is spreading! as u can see, comparing previous photos, the white flaky textures on his shell seem to be spreading all over his shell! i am very confused...

i've raised 5 RES from hatchling to adult size, one female thats 12", and never seen this before..

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This happened over the course of 2 days? Is it visible out of water, when the shell is dry? Does it easily scratch off? How is your water quality - could it be mineral, calcium deposits? If the water is around 80F, then 90F is OK for the basking temp. He needs to get his UVB as well.

Here is some more info:
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/medshell.htm

His shell is under the water in the second pic, but was out of the water in the first pic? I would put a little white vinegar on a q-tip and gently rub an area. If the white comes off, it sounds like it's mineral deposits. If not, I'd get him basking more. You might also try an aquarium salt soak for 30-60 min for several days to see if that helps.

i dont freak you out or make you sad... but a buddy of mines turtle's shell got like this and then turned completly white... like a week later it passed away =(

i dont think he ever found out what happened or what it was either...

i hope ur this doesnt happen to your turtle he is so cute!!!