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Living Fossil

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Hi, I joined the forum because I need some advice for one of my turtles. My oldest is Maxine, she's an Eastern Box that I found in 1969 in Bucks County, PA. She was pretty old when I found her. I took her to a local Herpetologist and she said that she was probably born around World War 2. She eats okay, but not as regular as she used to. I moved to S. Florida in 1981 and found an elderly female Florida Box in my yard a month after I moved in. So, I put her in with Maxine to keep her company. Both have done very well over the years, but for 2 months now, Star, my Florida Box has had problems with her hind legs. She doesn't seem to have any strength in her back legs, and she pulls herself around with just her front legs. She is also getting more fussy about what she eats, and will only eat small earthworms. Old dogs have problems with their back legs. I was wondering if box turtles have similar issues? I've read that Florida Boxes live to around 50, but Eastern Boxes can live to be over 100.
 

Grandpa Turtle 144

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Hello and welcome to the TFO from AZ. What's this living fossil ? I was born July 241955 and I'm not a fossil :)


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Yvonne G

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Hi, and welcome to the Forum!

There are a couple different things that cause weakness in the back legs - calcium deficiency, being egg bound, constipated. It would be a good idea to take the turtle to a vet and get an x-ray.
 

Living Fossil

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Thanks for welcoming me, and thank you Yvonne for the Vet suggestion. I'll make an appointment.

Oh, Grandpa Turtle 144, some mornings I feel like I'm a Living Fossil, but actually I was referring to our pet Turtles are.
There have been turtle fossils that have been found that date back to the Creaceous Period, 145 to 66 million years ago.
So, our pets are actually Living Fossils and their distant descendants date back to the days of dinosaur..
Just don't paint your turtle purple and call him Barney !
:rolleyes:
 

Grandpa Turtle 144

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Here the AZ fish and game calls our desert torts " Desert Dinosaurs" I thought it was cute .


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wellington

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Hello and Welcome:) I hope your old boxie works out what ever issue she may be having.
 

littleginsu

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Please keeps us updated on what the vet says and her progress. Do you have any photos of your boxies? We <3 photos almost as much as we <3 tortoises!!
 

bouaboua

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Hello and Welcome. Good to have you here.
 

Living Fossil

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Well, I took both of the ol' girls to the Vet today. He gave them both a shot of Vitamin A and gave Star a shot of calcium for her back legs. He said to give them both greens, but I've been trying that for years now. Both her and Maxine are very fussy eaters. Star used to eat mealworms, black Florida ground beetles that I find in the yard under buckets and flower pots, crickets and cockroaches. But now she will only eat a couple of tiny earthworms. At least she's eating something.
Maxine, is being ultra fussy now and is turning her nose up at everything. Back when I got her in 1969, during the Winter, everything was frozen outside. I was eating some mac and cheese for dinner and put a little in front of her and she gobbled it all up. I maybe give her that twice a year now as a treat, but lately she just walks away from it. She used to eat, cooked chicken without the skin, mealworms, earthworms, mushrooms, poached chicken egg, raw hamburger, cockroachs, beetles, tomato and cucumber, but would never eat any kind of lettuce or other leafy greens. Hopefully, she's just going through a hibernating stage or something. I know they both are getting old. I read somewhere about trying cat or dog food. Any ideas?
 

Yvonne G

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@Living Fossil I'm sorry to hear about the Vitamin A injection. This was way back in September. Have you seen any raw skin spots on the turtles since the injection?

Yes, I occasionally give my box turtles canned cat or dog food. When I do, I use the expensive brands. One of my favorites (thanks to TerryO) is Wellness brand venison and sweet potato.
 

Living Fossil

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Yeah, I've tried several types of fruits and veggies, like blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, cantaloupe, watermelon, apples, strawberries, cherries, squash, pumpkin, orange slices, bananas, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, mushrooms, carrots, lettuce, black olives, tomatoes, green peas, cucumbers, radishes, peaches, plums, mangos, celery, artichokes, dates, spinach, okra, pineapple, and many, many other things. One of them ate some pear slices at a Holiday Inn Express one night, but now she turns her nose up at it.
 

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