not eating

_sara_

hey, i bought a terripin on saturday and he was eating on sunday and monday but he stopped eating nowfine tho, does anyone know what could be wrong? tha2nx- x

johnnyrotten

Not being funny, but maybe it was'nt hungry

Shelli

Lots of questions.... first, where did you buy it? Whats the set-up like? What advice did the pet store give you? It usually takes them a few days to settle into a routine, sometimes they dont eat at all for the first week!

By the way, it's probably not a terrapin you have, it's probably a Red Eared Slider turtle, and these can grow very large and need a huge tank when they're fully grown.

Your best bet would be to post pics of both your set-up and your turtle and then we can tell better.

Wibbs

johnnyrotten's probably right. Turtles can sometimes refuse to eat after being moved to a new tank. I wouldn't worry yet. In fact I'd usually only feed turtles every second day. People tend to overfeed them(especially when they're young) and that can lead to problems.

I presume that it's a slider turtle of some sort. Little green fella with yellow stripes about 2 inch(in old money) across.

Make sure the temp is high enough. Has it got a basking area with a heat lamp above it as well? Changes in temp can put them off their food.

The biggest thing is the quality of their water. It may look clean but do partial water changes every fortnight if you can as all sorts of nasties build up. When you clean the filter try not to use tap water as the chlorine can kill the good bacteria(that break down waste). Better to clean it in the water you remove during partial water changes. All of the above sounds long winded but it's worth it.

tallus

they also have a calcium and viamin d3 requirement. do you have a UV light in the enclosure?

_sara_

k lot of quesstions there,ye i do have a uv light....ye he is all geen with yellow but the guy told me he was a terripin....the temp is the same in as the one in the pet shop cos the guy set it and told me it was the same.....i got it in the pet shop in the village in tallaght....and he was eating but now won't and just got a lil worried

Shelli

What are you feeding him? Mine get picky form time to time, sometimes they're fine with pellets, sometimes they wont eat anything but ghost shrimp for a while, but they always love their mealies and crickets

Do you have gravel in it's tank?, be careful with this as it has been known to cause impaction when they eat it, i'd be inclined to say stick with bigger stones (well washed of course), as a rule they should be too big to fit in the turtles mouth.

Oh, and the odd moth that lands accidentaly is always a welcom guest to my guys!

Shelli

PS. Has it's behaviour changed in any other noticable ways? Is it still active, basking, swimming etc?

_sara_

im feeding him the stuff the guy gave me its just called terripin food and in a blue container but he wouldnt eat the shrip at all only the ones that look like cornflakes but he wont even eat them now! iv tryed mushed banana a few mins ago but he didnt even try..ye i have biggish stones! he is swimming at the back of the tank alot! and constantly trying to fit in behind the heater but cant(pretty funnny looking at him try every two minutes)and when i took him out today he just went in his shell for a while before coming out! he doesnt seem to walk around outside the tank anymore!im not sure if he's just shy or sick

Wibbs

Well it sounds like you have a yellow bellied slider turtle*. They seem quite popular at the moment(and the red eared type is now illegal to sell AFAIK). Im not surprised he didn't eat the banana as those types tend to be carnivores, especially when young(some do vary though).

As for food, I've been lucky and never had a fussy eater. Any that were "fussy" usually had some other issue going on, especially if they were young. Art that age they're trying to bulk up so any that refuse food are generally stressed for some reason.

What I've found is that temperature can be very important with eating behaviour. I would go and get one of those stick on temp guages(about 2 quid) at any pet shop. I would keep the temp around the 26 degree mark and see if that changes things, regardless what the shop bloke told you.

Shelli mentioned the gravel/impaction problem. I've never had it with any of mine and it appears to be rare, but then it's not an issue till it happens to you and gravel bottomed tanks for a newbie will quickly foul up and endanger the turtle, so bigger rocks are the way to go.


BTW do you have a seperate heat lamp that shines on a basking area fully out of the water? If not, you need one.

Also you say he doesnt walk outside the tank anymore. If you want him to thrive don't take him out of the tank at all, particularly when hes so young. Unless you live in a house with heat on at 26 degrees he'll cool down too much. He may also pick up infection and it's very very stressful for him as well. Enjoy him in the tank for the moment.

The food you got I've used and it was fine, but maybe a different type might be the way to go as a change.

BTW Don't always believe what they tell you in pet shops(with a few exceptions, reptile haven for one). Most have no clue at all. Just because he runs a shop, don't make him an expert, believe me.

*The word terrapin refers to a particular turtle found in the US(diamondback), but everyone pretty much calls any of the water types "terrapins" so no biggie.

_sara_

thabks!! he's hiding behind the log alot now! like everytime i come in to the room he's hiding! could he be lonely cos iv only one?

Wibbs

I doubt he's "lonely". Its a new environment so that may take getting used to. They're not particularly social animals(in the way we think of it) in the wild and in fact I've found sliders can be quite agressive towards each other especially males. That bit I wouldn't worry about TBH. Leave him be and he'll get used to the new tank.

Shelli

Wibbs wrote:

I doubt he's "lonely". Its a new environment so that may take getting used to. They're not particularly social animals(in the way we think of it) in the wild and in fact I've found sliders can be quite agressive towards each other especially males. That bit I wouldn't worry about TBH. Leave him be and he'll get used to the new tank.

As wibbs said they're not particularly social animals, but sometimes they can do well with others, however if you do think you'd like another, just remember how big they grow and the tank size that you will eventually need will have to be much bigger for more than one turt.

Saying that, my guys are inseperable and I love watching them together!

Your little guy is only with you, what? Less than a week now? It'll def take some time for him to settle in, have some patience and he'll settle down and get used to you, they really are great pets and well worth the wait!:D