Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all,

My little rescued 3 yr old snapper has stoppped eating! I've had her for about 7 months. I found her with two legs ripped off, bleeding, and very malnourished. I've managed to nurse her back to health and she now is nice and fat and healthy. She's been a big eater but now she won't touch her food!

I've tried steak, live minnows, salmon, chicken livers, Reptomin sticks, almost everything. She used to eat all of the above but now she just sniffs them and moves on.

Her tank is always clean and her water temp is about 70-73 degrees.

Please help me! This little turtle has been through so much that the thought of her dying upsets me so much! My vet told me not to worry but it's been two weeks since she's eaten and I'm beginning to think my vet has no clue what he's talking about.

Any advice would be great. You may also email me at jkhenaghan@aol.com

Thanks so much!

It is true that snappers can go for awhile without eating, especially if they fill themselves up. I think that if you live up north, it could be the snapper's instincts telling he/she to hibernate. That's my thought. Other than that, it could be parasites or some other illness thats causing it to not eat. Good luck

Yeah, i live in Maine and the snappers here may not eat during the fall and winter months. It is just natural instinct. If it starts getting weak and skinny, then you have something to worry about. Like any other reptile, they can go sometime without feed. It could be parasites if not the above, althought i doubt it. Did your vet check for this?

Dallas