Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hello, I have 2 questions about 2 difernet RES,
1) we have a small pond close buy with 2 red eared sliders, one of them has what looks like a large area of red paint on it's shell, I was wondering if this is dangerous, I can catch it and try to remove the paint but want to find out if it is indead dangerous.

2) one of the local pet stores here has a res that was given to them and soon after they recieved it it began to swell up and could barely pull into his shell, the eyes also seem quite swollen, they asked me but I have never heard of this so I told them I woult post a message here,

any advise will be greatly appreciated

How large is the area of paint? Painting a turtle's shell can be fatal, but if there isn't much it should come off on its own. If you really want to try and catch it, go ahead and try. I am sure the turtle will appreciate it!

As for the other one, This happens to alot of aquatic turtles and can be remedied easily.A sore or swollen eye is caused by dirty water.
The CURE to this sickness is really easy.The condition can be treated by swabbing the eye with a cotton swab coated with diluted boric acid (60/40%) or the old standard sulfamethiazine. To avoid this from hapening again,CLEAN your turtles water frequently .Recovery is usually rapid,but if the problem persists then do to the vet.Beware that this sickness can cause permanent blindness!!

I got it from this site - http://uranium882001.tripod.com/redearsliderturtles/index.html

Overall swelling is often indicative of severe bacteremia (overwhelming bacterial infection) with a very poor prognosis. It may also be due to profound kidney failure hwich is also sometimes a side effect of bacterial infection. The turtle will probably be dead or near death by the time you get this. As for the red paint: if it is an adult, it will probably wear off before any major problems occur (or be shed with the scutes). Babies, back in the "bad old days" when dealers painted the shells of baby turtles (and added a small decal) for sales appeal, often had deformed shells, in the unlikely event they survived more than a few months of captivity with the primitive prepared foods (dried ant eggs) and care instructions of the day.

Rereading your message, the swelling may be due to other cuases. The neck skin of RES are often swollen due to infected bite injuries by their tank mates. As for the eys, if it is present on both sides, this is often a secondary symptom of a respiratory infection. Stuctures directly behind the eyes become swollen and cause the eyes to swell. If it is a local eye infection, boric acid is often helpful but I find triple antibiotic ointment most helpful in these cases.