Reptile & Amphibian Forums

...for the last 2 days he hasn't been eating, has been pretty sluggish, and has puffy eyes...My book suggested to raise the water temp, it's now about 80, but he still looks pretty bad...can anyone offer me any assistance? Thanks

He could have an eye infection if his eyes are puffy. Most likely you need to take him to a herp vet or read up on some diseases that sliders get to see if you can fix it yourself (by changing temp, food, water cleanliness, etc).

Here I just looked this up, it came from http://www.sliderhome.nl/index.html.
Hope it helps!!

Eye-problems
Symptoms
The turtle keeps her eyes closed, they are swollen and she refuses to eat. When it is not treated it can lead to permanent blindness. Eyes problems are often a sign something else is wrong. They can be the first symptom of diseases like shell-softening or other infections which are characterized by a drop of the immune system.
Causes
These are poor quality of the water, lack of vitamin A and improper care.

Treatment
The eyes should be treated with diluted boric acid (60/40) or sulfamethiazine. The water in the tank must be kept clean to avoid infections. Give your turtle a reptile vitamin supplement on a regular basis. If you do not see an improvement in 5 days take her to the veterinarian.

Thanks Beth....

I just changed the water, and raised the temp to about 80 (based on the advice from my book)

Now where can I get boric acid?

I've never had to use boric acid before, but I know that some humans have used it for minor eye infections for a while. Maybe a pharmacy?? Ask around, I'm not sure. Sorry!