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My Murray River Turtle Has Shell Rot

This is the biggest visible spot of shell rot on Alfie's shell. I was absolutely horrified to see it - apparently it had been there for a couple of weeks before anyone told me about it.
This is the biggest visible spot of shell rot on Alfie’s shell. I was absolutely horrified to see it – apparently it had been there for a couple of weeks before anyone told me about it.

 

Here you can see Alfie's shell just after I have cleaned it with Betadine on a Q-tip. I've managed to remove the big lump of fungus that was there, but it has already gone into his shell.
Here you can see Alfie’s shell just after I have cleaned it with Betadine on a Q-tip. I’ve managed to remove the big lump of fungus that was there, but it has already gone into his shell.

 

This is Alfie's 'dry dock'. To try and keep it warm for him despite being in the dark the blue cushion underneath is a wheat-filled heat pack.
This is Alfie’s ‘dry dock’. To try and keep it warm for him despite being in the dark, the blue cushion underneath is a wheat-filled heat pack.
I set up a small isolation tank for Alfie, but didn't actually have a proper light. It's also a bit small for him - I just kept it small so I could change the water every day and add 'Turtle Fix'.
I set up a small isolation tank for Alfie, but didn’t actually have a proper light. It’s also a bit small for him – I just kept it small so I could change the water every day and add ‘Turtle Fix’. You can see him here sitting on top of the water heater that I borrowed from my fish tank. The temperature in there is about 24*C.

 

I splurged and bought Alfie this fancy 'Terrarium Canopy', which holds red and blue and UV lamps. I'm hoping this will help his shell firm up.
I splurged and bought Alfie this fancy ‘Terrarium Canopy’, which holds red and blue and UV lamps. I’m hoping this will help his shell firm up.

 

Here's Alfie's tank set up with the new lamp cover (it's actually too big, so I let the blue light part hang over the side). The toothbrush you can see there is what I have been using to wash Alfie off before I return him to the water. He sits in dry dock for a couple of hours with 4% Chorhexidine solution, then I give him a bath in the sink.
Here’s Alfie’s tank set up with the new lamp cover (it’s actually too big, so I let the blue light part hang over the side). The toothbrush you can see there is what I have been using to wash Alfie off before I return him to the water. He sits in dry dock for a couple of hours with 4% Chorhexidine solution, then I give him a bath in the sink.

 

Here's Alfie's shell 3 days into my intensive treatment of him. You can see that lots of scutes have shed (you have no idea how excited I was about that), and he is a paler colour. Unfortunately the fungus spot is still there, but I think it is growing smaller.
Here’s Alfie’s shell 3 days into my intensive treatment of him. You can see that lots of scutes have shed (you have no idea how excited I was about that), and he is a paler colour. Unfortunately the fungus spot is still there, but I think it is growing smaller. He managed to chase down a neon tetra feeder fish and eat it this morning, so I have hope he will get better.
Published inPets

10 Comments

  1. Eliezer company Eliezer company

    exactly right

  2. Ellie Clair Ellie Clair

    does the shell rot make the turtles shell look patchy because mine is mostly dark brown with pale splotches on her. Is that shell rot? If not, should I be concerned?

    • Hi! It’s really tricky to tell what you mean without a photo. Are the pale splotches attached/flush with the rest of the shell? Or does it look like there is water/grime getting stuck under them. If they look like they might come off, but haven’t, I’d encourage you to give your turtle some more time out of the water. They need a nice sunbaked area to dry out on, sometimes you will need to ‘dry dock’ them forcefully. You can also turn down their water heater, which will encourage them to climb out onto the nice dry area. Remember that I’m not a vet – if you are in doubt about your animal’s health, please take them to a certified aquatic vet.
      Bella

  3. Coby Grindlay Coby Grindlay

    Hi Bella, my turtle also has some park patches but I am unsure if it is shell rot. I have recently been using turtle fix to see if it would help if it is some sort of infection. I have taken a few photos as well if you would like to see them.

    • I’d like to see some photos, Coby. Remember that I’m not a vet though, just a fellow concerned turtle lover. If you upload an image to a shared cloud storage (eg. Dropbox, Google Drive), you should then be able to link to them in the comments.
      Bella

        • Hmm, I’m unable to access the link. You need to share it publicly šŸ™‚
          Bella

          • It’s still a little hard to tell, but I think your turtle is beginning to develop shell rot. Don’t worry, it is curable!
            To me, it looks as if your turtle isn’t shedding his scutes properly, particularly around the tail end of his shell. The white spots are also rather suspicious. I’d suggest visiting the vet, and getting some special Chorhexidine solution from them. If you are unable to get to a vet, you could consider using betadine (the drops) or iodine solution on the white areas. Make sure that you put it on and leave it for a couple of hours, and then wash him before you put him back in the tank.
            With enough sun time, the scutes should begin to come off. Resist the urge to pull them off if they are loose, because you may really hurt your turtle if they aren’t ready. Make sure your turtle has some rough areas in his tank to rub his own shell (we put old bricks in our tank, and Alfie loved swimming and scratching on them).
            I hope your turtle has a speedy recovery (but since he is a cold-blooded reptile, it’s likely to take 2+ weeks). Unfortunately our Alfie passed away after having what basically amounted to a turtle stroke. He was sun bathing, but suddenly lost use of his back legs. Less than 24 hours later he was dead, we didn’t even have time to take him to the vet.
            Bella

          • Coby Coby

            Thank you Bella, I greatly appreciate it and will definitely try everything to help them. I am so sorry to hear about Alfie, Iā€™m sure he is in a better place now.

            Thank you again,
            Coby

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