Urgent Care :: RES Shell Issues

[urs4everafter]

I've tried to take at least 100 pictures of this dude and EVERYONE of them are fuzzy!!! So here is the best one I could get.



So my lil guy is almost 3 years old and pretty big for its age (not sure if its a boy or a girl yet). I've noticed that when I clean out the tank, I'm never seeing any shedded scutes!! It looks like he needs to shed really bad but there's a lot of discoloration (whiteness) around most of his back scutes (almost like some kind of calcium build up). The discolored areas are not mooshy, slimy or smelly but it seems to be getting worse as it gets older. You can even tell from the middle scute on the very top of his back (in the pic) that he still has scutes from when he was itty bitty. Some of the scutes by the tail are peeling a little bit but I'm just concerned about shell rot occuring. Can anyone tell me what this looks like to them and, if it is just him needing to shed really bad, what can I do to help this along? He eats lots of greens which I heard helps with shedding and I have a great basking area and UBV light to help with vitamins and calcium. There is also one of those turtle calcium bones for chewing on. I'm really concerned and can't find a vet that looks a turtles!! Help please!!!

[Kemul]

When in doubt, the turtle is most likely a female. Anyway...

The shell looks like in need of a good shed. Try giving food high in vitamin E, like
sweet potatoes and blueberries. If you haven't changed the UVB, you may want
to check on that. UVB is only good for 6 months, I think. If possible, you can also
try basking the turtle under morning sun. Make sure both top and bottom shells
dry out several times daily.

You might want to read more of the main site: http://www.redearslider.com

Good luck!

[urs4everafter]

Thanx!! I was on that website too looking for posts that could be close to mine, trying to compare pictures. The UBV light has been changed recently, only had it less than a month, but I'll most definately head to the store today and get HER some vitamin E goodies!! Thanx again!!!

[gwennie]

If it's nice and warm outside, some natural sunlight would be really good for the shell, like Kemul suggested.

You might want to call a vet to see if there's anything more you can do as well, they might have some good suggestions.

[steve]

Looks like a mild case of fungus. I'd make sure t he setup is correct and pick some silver sulfadiazine cream and a checkup from a good herp vet.

[marisa]

More than anything, he needs to shed.

[urs4everafter]

thanks to all of u guys' advice!! im still trying to find a vet around here that knows anything about aquatic turtles because the last one i took him too didnt really seem to have a clue and made no mention to the shell issue ....his water temp is 73.6 on the basking side and 70 on the non-basking side (isn't there supposed to be a bigger difference in the water temp on the different sides? i have one of the long/wide and short 40gal tanks specifically for aquatic turtles) and his basking area is sitting at about 81...ive read in some places that the basking area only needs to be 10 degrees warmer than the water and others saying that 90-95 was the best temp. which would u guy's suggest the temp be sitting at? and i dont have a water heater currently but was wanting to get one. should i? and if i do will it heat ALL of the water up or will it just warm up the basking area side if i keep it on that side??

[marisa]

If you live in a place that has a winter/it gets cool and the air temp of the room your turtle is in is lower than 75F, then get a submersible water heater to keep the water temp constant. The heat will be circulated by the filter (which I assume you have). In a large tank, the water temp is apt to be cooler on the side farthest away from the basking area (no lights help warm it), however, with the heated water circulated by the filter, the temp shouldn't really vary.

To me, the basking area temp (81F) is too low. (Does your RES bask at that temp?) I'd raise it to about 88F and see if that helps. The basking area temp should be at least 10 degrees warmer than the water to enourage basking, but it can be more, especially if the water temp is on the lower side to begin with. (My adult RES lives in water that's around 70F and his basking area is about 88F.) Sometimes you have to experiment a bit...

In addition to the UVB light, is there a heat source (like a regular incandescent light bulb) to warm the basking area?

[urs4everafter]

Yes he does bask at 81 but maybe doesn't do it enough to help shed the scutes. I do have a filter that circulates 125 gallons. And along with the UBV, I also have a basking light, 25W I believe, hanging about 18 ins above the basking platform. I think I might need to up the wattage on the bulb to get the temp up above 81.

[Kemul]

Ah yes, 25W is too small. Use at least 60W and put it about 12" away from the
basking area.

[marisa]

Put the basking light at a distance where the basking area temp will measure 88 - 90F.