Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi All, I live in Fla. and last April I got a pair of hatchlings (AST) and both of them were a little stubborn about feeding for the first several months. They weighed about 15 grames when I got them. In july they weighed 29 and 31 grams. I have observed them both feeding everytime I put food in their tank and both of them catch fish on their own once in a while. I feed them pellets,minnows,crayfish,nightcrawlers and sometime's lean beef. I have them in a 30 gallon tank at 78* water temp in about 6 inches deep water with floating vegetation and a pile of layered slab rock that goes to 1 inch above water level. At this time one of my turtles now weighs 80 grams while its sibling is at 34 grams in weight. The smaller turtle climbs out and basks on the rocks under a light, sometimes for hours ( 4 or more ). The larger turtle also basks from time to time but only for an hour or two. I had thought that Alligator Snappers didn't bask at all. And I am worried about why one is growing and the other hasn't changed in six months. Any suggestions would appreciated and or possible remedies. As I said they both eat and crawl around. Thanks in advance.

I had a similar problem with my pink snapper.
They usually don't bask. Mine finally got so weak and skinny...I broke down, and took him to a vet.
( $185)
Turns out he was sick and I had to give hime shots.

They normally don't bask. Basking is a natural instinct they have to try to get themselves healthy . The vet said it can be a sign that something is wrong and the instinctually need to bask.
first try raising the temp.
This wil also increase his metabolism and may prompt him to eat more. One of the first things they do when sick is quit eating. This actually makes the problem worse because they get weaker. A larger snapper can go a really long time without eating and its no big deal. But not the small guys. The vet has me raise the temp to 92 for a while.
Also make a better cover so the air in the tank is warmer.
( not airtight....jut more warm and humid. ) he said warm water and cooler air can give their lungs a rough time if they are sick. (this is a good thing to do even for healthy guys )
I used plastic wrap on most of the tank. Left an open area at one end for fresh air. It raised the humidity in the tank right away. MAke sure he has a place to bask if he feels like it.
And check how he looks underneath. If he starts looking really drawn and skinny ...especially around the back legs...get him in to a vet.

OK having said that.......my pink skin snapper is just a really weaker...less agressive turtle. He doesn't eat as much..gets sick easier...and he always wants to bask. They all are sort of different.
You might not hav a problem at all.
I have a tank with (3) 3-year olds.
They are all healthy and good eaters. One is about 1/3 smaller than the other two.
I have a tank with (3) 4year olds and same thing...one is much smaller than the other two.
YOu might not have a problem at all.
ne of the things I do when I'm not sure is isolate the problem guy.
Raise the temp ( air and water ). They really are sensitive to water temp and how much they feel like eating. My really big guys will pretty much quit eating under 65 degrees....and they'll eat aton if it goes over 80-82. This also makes it easy to see if hes eating if hes the only guy in the tank . You're doing a good thing by weighing him. If he really starts to lose weight...then get hime in.

Good luck and let us know how its going
Mike

WHen you say raise temp to 92 you're not talking water temp are you?

the first year i had my turtle his water temp hit the low 90s for a couple days. (kinda freaked me out having them that high cause i was worried about cooking him lol. but he did just fine) reason being i lived int he attic of my house and my room temp sometimes hits in the 100s during the hottest days of summer. that first yr i would say his water temp avg the mid 80s. man he chomped down food. fish, pinkies, worms, reptimin, trout chow, crickets......anything. i offered him a basking spot that first yr and he never once climbed out so i eliminated it. that first yr he grew from the size of a 50 cent piece to 4.5 inches in shell length. not 6 yrs later he is close to 16 inch shell length and still doing good. id say rasing the water temp into the low to mid 80s wouldnt hurt at all. this pic of him was taken in early summer of 2005.

HOW LONG IT TOOK HIM TO GROW 16 INCH?

hes close to 16 inch shell length...havent meassured him in a yr. i bought him in may 2000 at the size of a 50 cent piece. so i have had him for almost 6 yrs now...so i guess he is around 6.5 yrs old.....( just a guess because of his size when i got him) ( also, dont know if it is a him )

Sorry..i was off for a couple days..
Yeah , I meant 92 degree water temp.
And that was only what the vet said when he was sick.
Just to get him out of it and help recover.
I loosly covered the tank with saran wrap to raise the air temp. But more important...it raised the air humidity.
Think of little kids that get respiratory infections..they always use a himidfier. Same thing with the turtles . Vet said it can be a shock to sick lungs to come up for air out of warm water and breath cool air.