- Joined
- Feb 8, 2015
- Messages
- 64
Hi. I got a rescue baby box turtle with a very soft shell about 2 months ago. The turtle is a yearling with a SCL of 1.5 inches I've had no issues up to this point. In his previous home which he had lived a year in, was a 20 gallon tank with 4 other box turtles ranging from his size up to turtles with a SCL of 2 inches or so. The turtles received no form UVB for a majority of that year and revived little to no food that had been dusted with vitamins. The troubles I'm having just became apparent in the past few days I've noticed shell abnormalities that weren't presented when I received him, his shell has rapidly gotten the curved look of a turtle with metabolic bone disease.
I've been keeping by himself in a 20 gallon tank with a UVB light and a ceramic heat emitter. He has several inches of moist eco earth and several hides. I've been feeding him every other day, with foods like: earthworms,mealworms and some turtle pellets dusted with a multivitamin once a week and dusted with calcium at every meal (except when he gets the multivitamin). I'm curious as to why he's now getting the curved shell look and why so rapidly? Is there anything I should change or do? I also suspect a bit of shell rot (likely from me keeping him to humid) on his side marginals, do I just treat this with athletes foot cream or any other anti-fungal?
I've been keeping by himself in a 20 gallon tank with a UVB light and a ceramic heat emitter. He has several inches of moist eco earth and several hides. I've been feeding him every other day, with foods like: earthworms,mealworms and some turtle pellets dusted with a multivitamin once a week and dusted with calcium at every meal (except when he gets the multivitamin). I'm curious as to why he's now getting the curved shell look and why so rapidly? Is there anything I should change or do? I also suspect a bit of shell rot (likely from me keeping him to humid) on his side marginals, do I just treat this with athletes foot cream or any other anti-fungal?