Urgent Care :: Turtle acting weird...

[phobull]

How big is your turtle?

about 15cms

How long have you had it?

2 years

What is the water temperature?

28degrees so its quite warm

Did you use a thermometer?

Yes

Are you using a water heater?

Yes

How much water is in there?

Not sure

Are you using a water conditioner?

Yes

Are you using any filtration?

Yes

What is the basking temperature?

Dont know

Is there a basking light?
Yes

Is there a basking platform that is easy to climb on?
Yes

What kind is it or what is it made out of?
Is there a UVB light?

Dont know.

What have you been trying to feed it?
Meal worms and pellets.

When was the last time your turtle ate?

48hrs ago

How big is the tank/pond/enclosure?
2foot

Is the tank near a window?

No

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?




Ok so heres the main story, my turtle of 2 years started acting very very very different, his not active and wont eat and isnt even happy to see me like he use to,

Some recent changes:

-> new turtle which is way bigger then him but they seem to get a long.
-> new filter
-> water change

So yeah he wont even swim just stay at the basking area again which is weird. I had a small turtle before that use to stay at the basking area and refused to eat. Im hoping its not doing the same thing physically he looks normal.

Any tips of similar encounters please let me know.

[megcornell]

I'm going to say your problem is the new turtle.
You should NEVER put new turtles together, especially if there is a size difference. RES are notorious for aggression and chances are the new turtle is bullying the smaller one. Not only that, but there's always the chance that the new turtle could be ill and the smaller turtle could have caught something.

How large of a tank do you have them in? Usually tanks that are 2 feet long aren't larger than 20 or 30 gallons and that's just too small for two turtles.

[phobull]

Yeah thats what i was thinking, do you think if i took out the bigger turtle my small one will be back to normal?

[megcornell]

They should absolutely be separated for their own safety.

[phobull]

Im going to put them together during summer cos im making a pond at the moment outside so there will be heaps of space. Im hoping they breed since the female is the larger one.

[spaceapple]

Yeah, your turtle is almost certainly acting this way because of his new company. They should be fine in a large pond together. Maybe you have another small tank you could put one of them in for the time being? I know you would hate for them to hurt each other, which is a definite possibility for two larger RES who have just met!

[mzkitty23]

yeah, maybe put one in a rubbermaid for a while until the new pond gets finished...but of course you'll have to get a few extras to keep the temps and basking area optimal and all that, but better than a hurt turt.

[untsmurf]

The larger turtle could be starving the younger turtle. You need to separate them immediately. Why do you want to breed them?

[phobull]

The odd thing is that it was all good for about 5 days they were just sharing the food but now my current lil turtle doesnt want to even come near me. Nothing worng breeding them i want to have a big family of red sliders

[megcornell]

But, you don't even have two tanks for the two turtles you already have.
Unless you know you can house each hatchling you choose to hatch separately if need be, there's really no need to breed turtles.
Plus, there are already so many turtles that need good homes, why add to the overpopulation?
I love hatchlings just as much as the next person, but they only stay small and green for so long and then the next twenty years you're trying to figure out where to put yet another 90 gallon tank.

[untsmurf]

I agree 100% with Meg, if you can't even house your current animals properly, you should seriously reconsider breeding.

Aggression can start at any time. Unfortunately, when it does, it usually doesn't stop.

[phobull]

Well it is almost summer here that is why they got a pond outside, fyi i would love to house some turtles but there isn't any around here.

[megcornell]

Having a pond for the summer is a wonderful thing, your turtles will love it. BUT, keep in mind that if they fight you'll need to divide the pond to give each turtle its own space. Just because you give them more room, it doesn't mean they'll stop fighting. The aggressor will hunt down the other turtle and continue to attack it.

What are you planning on doing with the turtles in the winter? Do you have separate tanks for them? And have you already separated them to stop the aggression you've been seeing?