Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi there:

Recently at a tropical fish dealer, I purchased a red-eared slider from a large tub in a breezeway. It seemed active, and I watched it make the rounds. It looked pretty healthy. I asked to take a look at it. It had a healthy colorful shell that was nice and hard. It pulled tightly into the shell when picked up. I could only see the eyes and nose. The nose looked fine, and the eyes were bright and golden. After I brought it home, it withdrew. It was covered in fungus and parasites. I tried giving it medicine, but it was too late. It died today. I am about to get a new addition; a mud turtle. But should I feel guilty about the death of the RES?

DAVE

i would say no... u shoudlnt feel guilty for this lil guy dyin. sometimes turtles are sick whenever people buy them, even though they may seem fine at first. the best thing to do whenever a turtle isnt looking or acting right is to take it to a vet, sometimes things can be fixed by meds. sometimes though, sadly to say, they cant be fixed, and they are left to die. it sounds like you really cared about the turtle but that it didnt survive because of previous circumstances. i would say that as long as you fed him/her and had healthy conditions for the turtle to live in, then it wasnt your fault at all... i had a baby RES die on me, it was only about an inch long, i did everything i could to try and help it... but it was just too sick! sometimes there just isnt anything to be done! hope this helps...
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~ Evie

Pets:
German Shephard {Dusty}
German Shephard/Collie mix {Shadoe}
2 RES turtles {Booger and Snot}
African Clawed Frog {Bingo}
Snail {Gary}