Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Dear friends,

My RES (one year old) seems to have a problem;
When he reaches out of the water to breath he whistle. Does this means he is having a breathing infection?? if so, how can I cure him and why has this happened...

Please help as I have no RES vet near me to ask.

Best regards,

Martin

if your res is gasping for air...opening and closing his mouth like hes breathing through it, ur res has a respitory infection, its usually caused by the water getting too cold...bust the temp up to 82-85 until he gets better, ull most likley need a heater to do that, so do what u have to do if you love the little guy!

Thank you for the suggestion.

Actually, he is not breathing through his mouth, but through his nose..It's just the wishle sound he is makeing that concerns me...On the other hand the water in tank is 26-27 Celsius which I think is normal. Maybe the termometer is broke I'll check on that.

Anyway, if it's a respiratory infection, is it serious? Can it be treated with medication?
Thanks in advance

Martin

Most vets seem to give Baytril antibiotic for upper respiratory. You have to inject this in the muscle just behind the upper leg. It is a little difficult to administer, as your turtle will probably not like being poked with a needle. I have injected my turts food pellets and fed him the Baytril in this manner. I think most upper respiratory has to be treated by a vet in this manner. If left untreated, if you have a young turtle it will most likely worsen and could die. Watch for bubbles coming from nose, lopsided swimming. Hope this helps.