Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm in tears, I can't believe this!

Today was the first warm and sunny day we had in weeks, so I thought it was a great opportunity to let my turtle bask in unfiltered natural sunlight, so I put her in a small box, opened the window and put it under the sun on my bed... I went out for a couple of hours and when I came back I thought she was sleeping and enjoying the sun, but when I took a closer look I noticed that her eye lids were VERY dry and didn't look normal at all, I lift her up and she didn't move, then I realized that she is completely dehydrated!! She was so stiff and dry I couldn't move any of her limbs, then I knew that she's most likely dead and I had this horrible, horrible feeling come over me knowing that I killed this little cute thing by a stupid mistake :`( I put her in the water immediately but she still didn't move at all and remained like that, I tried forcing her mouth open to let water in but it was hopeless...

I have been reading about red-eared sliders constantly for the past few months, researching and learning everything I can find about them, and never did I read that they can dehydrate and die so quickly! How come nobody told me about this??

I hate myself

Sorry to hear about your loss

In the future, if you want you turtles to enjoy some natural sun, they need to be in water, with access to shade if they want to get out of the sun. Most people set up a kiddie pool or something like that, so the water doesn't get too hot. Supervision is also important, to make sure the turtle isnt getting overheated or that a predator doesn't get him.
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
2 male RES, born 1999
1 ribbon snake, age unknown
3 FBT, ages unknown
1 female bearded dragon, born 5/2002
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04

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sig file edited 1/29/05 [phw]

so what are you gonna do now? I had baby RES before and left them under the sun like you did but never in my life experienced what you have.

Im sorry if this is gunna come out rude, but how could u pull this one off?

If you have been reserching like u said u have you would have noticed dehydration is a major issue, its one of the first things i learned whith taking care of turtles

Especially RES who are an EXTREMELY aquatic species, honestly i feel bad for the turtle, but not the owner. Would you leave your childeren unatended for hours without water or anything of the sort

im sorry for being mean but it kills me that neglect is wat killed this animal

Bill

You don't need to be sorry for being mean, I deserve it... I can't forgive myself for what I've done, I feel so bad and tears start building in my eyes every time I remember what happened.

But I swear I never read about this before, and I did a lot of reading about RES turtles (and still do), I read that they need a "few hours of direct sunlight" every day if you don't have a special UVB light, nowhere did it mention that they need to be in water during that time, and I thought the water would filter the UVB rays they need just like glass does, so that's why I left her without water, and it was only for a couple of hours... And a person that replied to my message said that he does that with his turtles all the time and this sort of thing never happened.

Anyway, I know that nothing I say will justify what happened, it really was my fault and I plead guilty... But I learned from my mistake and it wont happen again.

I think its nice to see someone who accepts the blame for negligence rather than trying to blame the forum for mis-information. Information provided here and at many places on the web are opinions of the provider and are not necessarily facts. Research requires comparing information from many sources and investigating reliability of those sources.

I have found many places on the web that specifically say not to leave turtles in direct sunlight because of the chance of overheating. Ive never heard of putting basking aquatic turtles in direct sunlight with no water source.

Even when I need to make adjustments to my tank that require removing my turtle, I always place him in a container with water. The turtle feels much safer being able to submerse.
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iturnrocks.com

Sometimes when we post a message, we assume that some things are understood without being stated explicitely. Since most of us have been around turltes and understand that aquatics bask on land but return to the water to thermoregulate, it wouldn't occur to us leave a turtle in the sun without water. To a newbie with little turtle experience, though, that might not be as apparent.

A dishpan or Rubbermaid container filled up a few inches with water, with a small piece of floating cork bark, might be something better for placing a small turtle in the sun. That way the turtle can bask as it likes, and then dive and hide under the cork bark to rehydrate, cool off, or hide when it feels in danger. Checking the temperature of the water every 15 minutes or so would help to make sure the water isn't overheating.

Katrina

I would feel bad if something happened to my turtle too, but it was an honest mistake. Think about it-- every summer at least one human baby dies because someone forgets to drop it off at daycare and it gets left in a 120-degree car all day. How would you like that on your conscience instead? I guess what I'm trying to say is yes, it was unfortunate, but people do worse things than accidentally kill their turtle. Don't let this stop you from getting another turtle and enjoying him/her--I'm sure you won't make the same mistake again.

woah... people forget their own babies in cars and forget to take them to daycare??? wow... i can honestly say that i've never heard of that!! i guess i learn something new everyday... hmmmmmmmm.........
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~ Evie

Pets:
RIP 0.1.0 German Shepherd {Dusty}
0.1.0 German Shepherd/Collie mix {Shadoe}
0.0.2 RES turtles {Booger & Snot}
1.0.0 African Clawed Frog {Bingo}
0.0.2 Snail {Gary & Larry}

Actually that happens here all the time.

We had a lady leave her baby in the car while she went inside to do drugs a few years ago, and the baby died. She parked right in front of what is now my house, but we weren't living here at the time.
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
2 male RES, born 1999
1 ribbon snake, age unknown
3 FBT, ages unknown
1 female bearded dragon, born 5/2002
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04

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sig file edited 1/29/05 [phw]

OMG... are you seriuos??? how can people do that to their babies?!?! i mean... i couldnt even do that to my DOG let alone my child (if i ever do have one someday)! i think that's just nuts... i mean obviously a crack head or heroine addict wouldnt give a flying [bleep].... but are there NORMAL parents (non crack or drug addicts) that do this to their children???

i live in PA and i have honestly never heard of someone 'forgetting' to take their baby to day care and 'accidentally' killing them!

and i'm sorry... but i dont think any kind of drug addict did anything accidentally... everything that they do is a consequence of their 'habits'!

but forgetting a baby is a different story... craziness, i say!
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~ Evie

Pets:
RIP 0.1.0 German Shepherd {Dusty}
0.1.0 German Shepherd/Collie mix {Shadoe}
0.0.2 RES turtles {Booger & Snot}
1.0.0 African Clawed Frog {Bingo}
0.0.2 Snail {Gary & Larry}

I heard one story last summer where the baby fell asleep and the father forgot to drop him off at daycare and just drove straight to work, because the baby was so quiet. The poor baby died in the parking garage.

I don't think I could forget my baby ever, but I don't give that same credit to my husband...he is a good daddy, but men just don't have the same connection with their babies.
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A mans got to do what a mans got to do. A woman has to do what he can't.

Mom to:

1 little boy born 7/19/04
2 male RES, born 1999
1 ribbon snake, age unknown
3 FBT, ages unknown
1 female bearded dragon, born 5/2002
1 male lab mix, born 5/24/03
1 female calico cat, born 6/7/04

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sig file edited 1/29/05 [phw]

we have parents gambling while they leave their kids in the car.. some leave them to shop.. could not imagine going into a mall and leaving my baby locked in the car even if the weather was great.. but in the heat .. that in my book is murder no matter how you look at it...

Seems like every summer some idiot leaves their kid in the car and it dies... last summer a Dentist in FL left his child in the car. He was only running into the office to grab something, got side tracked and started seeing patients all day, and when the end of the day came around, his child was dead... its terrible.

I live in Nevada and sad as it is this happens every summer here.. we have adds on tv about not leaving kids, animals, etc.. in the car.. but still almost everyday it is on the news that another child was left in a car... if it is 110.. 115 outside imagine how hot that car gets closed up.. amazes me.. very very sad but true.

I had a similar thing happen almost five years ago with three beloved rabbits. I put them in their cages, outside in a shady, grassy area, so they could get some fresh air. I lost track of time and shady spot became "unshady" as the earth turned. Because if the proximity of trees, I didn't think it could happen. Went out to check on them and found one dead, two dying and one was not severely affected and I still have her(she hadn't been out of the shade as long).

I highly recommend having a wading pool with a basking platform for red-eared sliders, placed in a spot that is part sun and part shade.

Predators are a concern however, I lost 3 of my 6 last summer.
I had kept them in a wading pool at the top of our very long driveway at the edge of a wooded area. Had no problems for several months, but in spite of partial shade, the water was getting to warm in July, so I moved them to a more secluded, shady spot, with spotty sun, in between our house and our neighbors. I went out one morning to find two missing and half of one on the sidewalk, the other three had some slight shell damage, but were otherwise OK.

I moved their wading pool to a second floor deck that has a perfect mix of sun and shade, and they've been fine. I should have had them there all along, but I though changing the water would be too difficult. Its not been too much of a problem, I got a siphon hose that was designed to drain aquariums, and I drain the dirty water into the gutter and drag a hose up to the deck to refill it.

Probably told you more than you wanted to know, but try and forgive yourself. You'll know better next time.