Turtle as a Pet

Health and Medical

Plans of Action

Turtles are an ancient, cold-blooded reptiles (Testudines), with a boney protective shell – top shell (carapace) and a bottom shell (plasrtron).

1. Turtle Key Types
2. Sea Turtles

• Exclusively marine creatures
• Streamlined bodies and flippers
• Migratory
• Come to shore just to lay eggs

2. Freshwater Turtles

• Semi-aquodic species – Painted and Snapping turtles
• Live in rivers, lakes and ponds
• Webbed-footed for swimming
• Claws for climbing on logs

3. Tortoises

• Strictly land-dwelling
• Sturdy and solid feet for walking on land

2. Turtle Veterinary Care

Exotic Pet Veterinarian

Turtles require specialized care from an Exotic Pet Veterinarian.

• Annual routine checkups
• Emergency care as required
• Early medical symptoms – do not ignore them
• Annual fecal testing
• Nutritional counselling
• Parasite checkup
• Quarantine before introducing new turtles

You must have your new pet turtle examined within 48-72 hours of purchase – this establishes a baseline and the veterinarian can check for signs of malnutrition and dehydration.

3. Diet and Nutrition

For your Pet Turtle

A balanced healthy diet includes:

• 50-60 % leafy green vegetable
• 25% commercial pellets
• 10-15% protein fish/insects
• Young turtles can be carnivorous
• High calcium for shell health
• Vitamins A D
• Fruits occasionally
• Protein crickets’ mealworms earthworms’ snail’s feeder fish
• Overfeeding protein kidney damage
• Lack of variety nutrition deficiencies
• Feeding pellets only long-term nutritional imbalance
• Obesity fatty liver disease organ issues

Always scoop out uneaten fresh food and pellets after a few hours – decomposing food can lead to illnesses.

4. Shell Health

For your Pet Turtle

A robust shell-care regiment focuses on four pillars:

1. Diet Supplements

• Calcium – for shell health
• Vitamins as recommended by your Exotic Pet Veterinarian

2. Lighting and Heat

• UVA and UVB Light necessary for to synthesize Vitamin D3
• Basking spot – dry and warm – restricts fungaland bacterial growth

3. Clean Habitat

• Fresh clean water daily
• Dirty water causes shell-rot (ulcerative shell disease)
• Assure there is nothing in the environment that can cause shell damage

4. Routine Health Checks

• Shedding or shell rot
• Discolouration
• Shell Rot bacterial/fungal infection from dirty water
• Retained Scutes improper shedding due to lack of UVB dry basking
• Soft shell in juveniles – lack of VB calcium

If in doubt about anything medical – consult your Exotic Pet Veterinarian immediately.

5. Dental Care

For your Pet Turtle

Pet turtle dental care involve maintaining a healthy beak, preventing over-growth while keeping gums and soft tissues free of infections like mouth rot.

• Veterinarian use dental resin filler v curing lights – repair broken cracked injured shells
• Provide edible shews – Med Turtle Bone or natural cuttlefish bone.
• Balanced Nutrition – proper calcium, Vitamin D3 Vitamin A
• UVA and UVB lighting

Weekly checks of your Pet Turtle’s mouth is essential for health. 

6. Common Medical Conditions

Your Pet Turtle

Common medical conditions in a Pet Turtle usually are caused by poor diet, inadequate heating, dirty habitat and insufficient UVA/UVB rays.

• Respiratory Issues wheezing bubbles from nose
• Vitamin A deficiency swollen eyes poor immunity
• Dehydration lethargy kidney issues
• Injury and disease – accidents infections predation
• Nutrition deficiencies
• Abscesses especially near eyes
• Diminishing reproductive ability/success
• Shell infections

Most Pet Turtle health emergencies can be avoided with a constantly  healthy habitat.

7. Allergy Issues Possible

For your Pet Turtle

Sneezing, wheezing or runny eyes may be caused by:

1. Dusty substrate
2. Airborne mold
3. Changes in food
4. Swollen puffy eyes
5. Nasal discharge or sneezing
6. Lethargy or lack of appetite
7. Buoyancy issues – Turtle tilts to one side

Food to avoid:

• Avoid spinach cabbage interferes with calcium absorption
• Avoid citrus fruits digestive upsets
• High-phosphorus foods

Inspect your Turtle’s habitat, review your turtle’s diet and review your hygiene routine – if conditions persist immediately consult your Exotic Pet Veterinarian.

8. Parasite Issue

For your Pet Turtle

Turtles can suffer from both internal and external parasites

• Internal worms – nematodes tape worms flukes
• Protozoa – coccidia cryptosporidium flagellates
• Leches
• Barnacles
• Flukes
• Ticks and Mites

Parasite Symptoms in your Pet Turtle

1. Unexplained weight loss
2. Diarrhea
3. Slimy blood spts
4. Off-colour stools
5. Vomiting or regurgitating food
6. Lack of appetite
7. Refusal to eat
8. Lethargy or weakness
9. Visible worms in stool or tank water

If you suspect parasite:

1. Isolate the turtle in a quarantine tank
2. Thoroughly and cautiously/meticulously sanitize you Turtle’s primary enclosure

Immediately contact your Reptile-Savvy Veterinarian for an examination.

9. Joint Problem Issues

For your Pet Turtle

Caused by infection trauma nutritional deficiencies

• Septic arthritis
• Osteomyelitis
• Gout
• Metabolic Bone Disease (MBD) lack of UVB poor diet
• Osteolytic Lesions/Necrosis bone breakdown around joints
• Pseudo-gout (Hydroxyapatite Deposition Disease (HEDD)
• Traumatic injuries

Exotic Pet Veterinarian’s advice is necessary.

10. Cancer Risks Turtle

• Fibro papillomatosis virus-linked cauliflower-like skin tumor
• Viral trigger (ChHV%)

 

11. Hygiene Skin Care and Grooming

For your Pet Turtle

Maintaining a healthy Pet Turtle is less about cosmetics and/or grooming and principally about environment/habitat cleanliness.

• Salmonella Risk bacteria harmful to humans wash hands
• Cross contamination spread pathogens – dedicated turtle cleaning tools

Healthy Pet Turtle happy owner.

Your Turtle will give You

Activity and Friendship

Your Emergency Photos/Video on

PeTrackers.com

Made finding your Lost Turtle

Quicker and Easier to Find

And Happily Return to You!