It's good that you're offering food every day. At this point, I think you have two problems. Obviously, you have the fungus. Additionally, I think the turtles are suffering from caloric intake problems. You should have seen growth rings beginning at just a few weeks of age, and now they should be robust and more hardy. I've had this problem before when I was just starting out with hatchlings.



Here's how I kind of see it - When the yolk sac is used up, brand new hatchling turtle needs high calorie food items that are easy to catch and digest. That way, they won't have to spend much energy but they get a big reward (calorie-wise). This will help them add muscle and fat, which will in turn give them strength and energy to catch and digest more difficult prey. I offer "high reward/low expense" food items to the youngest hatchlings until they get more robust and chubby. Then, I add in items that they have to chase, tear, and that are more difficult to digest.



I can't find information on nutritional content of sowbugs, but I suspect that they have a low meat to shell ratio. They can also be hard for the turtles to catch and swallow. Most millipedes release toxic chemicals and are not edible for box turtles. If you squish one in your hands, you may smell a very strong, almond-like odor. To a box turtle, this is like a mouthful of wasabi. They usually spit the creature right out. Some have chemicals that irritate or are toxic.



It sounds like you have some difficulty getting your hands on food items. Mail order feeder suppliers are wonderful. If you have access to a credit card, you can get just about anything shipped right to your door. Most companies have even eliminated "minimum order" requirements.



Here are some higher calorie food items that require little energy to catch and/or digest. You're on the right track with waxworms. Also; earthworms chopped into pieces until they just barely move, soaked Reptomin, soaked dog or cat food, mouthbite sized chopped fish and shrimp, TEENY TINY strips of beefheart or beef liver, and finely chopped pink mice. Besides earthworms, most of these items should only play a small role in the normal diet of a box turtle, but right now I think that they need a "calorie burst". Also, most of these items are available at any grocery store. You can buy nightcrawlers at any Walmart (24 for $2.88). You may need to ask about the beefheart.



Your turtles may need to be soaked in Pedialyte for some glucose and electrolytes. This could give them an energy boost for catching prey. It really is a vicious cycle...they need energy in order to eat and digest, but they need to eat and digest in order to have energy.



Handling them for treatment of the fungus is stressful, and they expend energy trying to escape. You really have no choice, but I'd keep handling to a minimum.



I'm sorry for the long email...I hope it helps.



P.s. In my experience, the beefheart is eaten with such voracity...it's scary! If a cow ever stumbled into my turtle pens...I just can't imagine the carnage!



Good luck! Keep us updated. I'm sure that if you posted an update further up the forum, you'd get some more replies.

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