Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I'm seeing some people use bleach to "clean" their turtle's and/or tortoise's shell while some use vinegar. I'm wondering if this is safe to do. I'm sure vinegar is okay but not so with bleach. Won't it kill them?

No it probably won't kill them unless you submerge them completely in bleach. But my question is why would you use anything to clean a turtle's shell? If it's dirty and you don't like it just use water and a toothbrush.

Bleach should be used to sterilize containers, tanks and equipment. Even then you must have a 30 minute contact time for the bleach to be completely effective.

Hey,

That is the most retarded thing I have ever heard. Bleach is toxic, and it could result in chemical burns to the shell. Vinegar breaks down calcium, so it could very definitely erode or weaken the shell.

If you feel cleaning the shell is absolutely necessary, use a weak solution of betadine and water. The end product should look like watered-down tea. Or, get some Novalsan from a vet and mix 1cc/29cc of water. I use cotton pads to apply this when I have treated my guys for shell infections or brought a new one in to the house.

--Matt

Thank you for that sudden outburst of emotion and guide lines how to clean a turtle although I didn't need it. Just to be clear, I'm not the one trying to clean my turtle with bleach. I was just asking because I saw several people doing it and I even saw people selling tortoises that used sandpapers and bleaches to clean their shells.

If you didn't need the guidelines, why the post? And you apparantly did need direction as you were under the impression that vinegar was harmless to chelonians.

If you like, print out my post and show it to the retards using sandpaper, bleach, etc.

--Matt

I created this topic to see if anyone else is doing it and to confirm that this is a bad thing to do because I'm open to the fact that I may still not know everything that is going around. So MATT, if you need to show off your knowledge to feel high and mighty, do it with someone else.

While I normally would not get involved in such a discussion, I have only seen bad advice, across the board, to this regard.
Should one feel inclined to clean the shell of a chelonian, a simple rinsing, and perhaps a soft brush, are all that should be used.
If one is inclined to disinfect a plastron or carapace, the use of bleach or betadine should be avoided, as there are safer, equally effective alternatives.
Bleach, as we all know, is toxic and really shouldn’t even be used to clean an enclosure or tank, as it’s toxic to you as well.
Betadine would not be a choice, as some specimens have incurred severe anaphylactic complications from such applications.
Chlorhexidine gluconate 2% is extremely safe and so effective. The majority of universities, zoological institutions, hospitals and infectious disease research labs use it for disinfection purposes, instead of bleach. It can also be used to cleanse the carapace and plastron, treat fungal, bacterial, yeast and viral infestations, and is absolutely wonderful for the disinfection of enclosures, as it cancels the need for rinsing, simply spray, allow to sit for a few minutes and wipe dry. The stuff is so safe; it is used to treat open wounds on amphibians.

Best regards,

Jeff Snodgres
University of Arkansas
snodgresjeffreys@uams.edu
501.526.4856

Chlorohexadine Gluconate 2% is generically called what?
Would that be Nolvasan?

Yes, but there are several manufacturers who sell it for half of what Ft. Dodge sells Nolvasan for. You can get it from Valley Vet for 24.00 per gallon..
Keep in mind, one gallon lasts me one year, when mixed correctly, and I clean over 50 enclosures two – three times weekly…

Best regards,

Jeff Snodgres
University of Arkansas
snodgresjeffreys@uams.edu
501.526.4856

While I agree with you completely, I would like to add that bleach is more effective when used properly, albeit more dangerous. Personally, I use both Chlorhexadine and bleach (for different applications).

The Columbus zoo historically is one of the most successful turtle breeding facilities in the world (more so in the 70's, 80's and 90's). They were the first to breed many species in captivity. They have always intentionally added bleach to their aquatic turtle enclosures at a dilution of 5cc of bleach per 10 gallons of water in order to cut down on bacteria, fungus and parasites. This is a formula that has always work for them with some of the greatest turtle breeding success on the planet.

That's intteresting, as I have always thought the Queensland Zoo and the University of Canberra to be the most reknowned turtle husbandry facilities in the world and leaps and bounds above any facilities we harbor here in the US.
As yo umentioned, bleach was commonly used in the 70's - early 90's, but with the advent of Chlorhexidine, there is no reason to risk the use of bleach.
I have to ask, would you dare to take a bath in such a solution on a daily basis?

Jeff Snodgres
University of Arkansas
snodgresjeffreys@uams.edu
501.526.4856

Queensland Zoo? Do you mean the Australia Zoo in Queensland (Steve Irwin's place)? Arthur Georges is at the University of Canberra and is world reknowned for turtle ecology but I'm not so sure about husbandry. I talk to him on a regular basis...I'll ask him what kind of turtle husbandry they have going on there. I can't imagine they have much of anything besides Australian native chelonians. And in that regard I can't see how they are leaps and bounds above some U.S. and European intitutions and private facilities when it comes to husbandry and captive reproduction of turtles of the world.

I guess you didn't know Mike Goode (Columbus Zoo) when he was alive. He was a true turtle nut. The 70's and 80's were the haydays of chelonian husbandry and reproduction at that zoo. They've successfully reproduced 57 species of chelonians to date. There are very few institutions or individuals that can boast that.

What about Bronx? Their chelonian husbandry and reproduction is pretty top notch too. I know private breeders that do far better than most zoos when it comes to husbandry and reproduction. Private turtle nuts with million dollar budgets are where it's really at.

I hear your point loud and clear. Bleach is dangerous and chlorhexadine is not. I agree with you on this point. But bleach is inexpensive comparatively and it works just as good, if not better, if used properly. I use both for different applications.

So, pig-nosed turtles...eh. They are great animals aren't they? I've been keeping them myself for many years. Of the 150 or so aquatic turtle species that I keep or have kept, I find that PNT are just about one of the hardiest out there. I've found that they have little to no special requirement whatsoever. Give them at least half way clean water and food and they're solid and good to go. I've brought many back from near death situations with little to no trouble. But then again, I know turtles well and have been rehabing turtles and other wildlife for over 20 years.

If you ever find yourself needing to visit SREL for any reason, drop me a line and I'll get you a visitor badge so you can check out our non-native chelonian research collections.

Bill McCord chlorinated part of his huge set-up with a swimming pool sanitizer ( I believe). I don't know what concentration he used, however. Dilute bleach is still the gold standard for simple container cleaning but I would hesitate to use it in any strength directly on a turtle.

I know a lot of folks who have been doing things the same way for a number of years, but that doesn't mean it's the most conducive, or safest, way.
If you feel inclined to using bleach, as it’s the "age old" standard, go right ahead, as I was merely attempting to inform you of a better, much safer, product.
Heck, most hospitals, universities and research facilities once used bleach as a general disinfectant, though no longer.
We quit using bleach, here at the University of Arkansas, quite some time ago. My wife, who works within the Pediatrics Infectious Disease Research Dept. of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, has informed me that they use Chlorhexidine almost exclusively, but no bleach, and believe me; they work with some truly nasty microbes on a daily basis.
I realize there is no single way of doing something correctly, but I believe the bleach is obsolete, as do the majority of my colleagues.
The simple truth is, bleach is dangerous and Chlorhexidine is a much safer product, for both the keeper and the kept.
In short, I have kept the most aquatic of all turtles, Carettochelys insculpta, for the past ten years and have not incurred a single bacterial, viral, fungal or yeast infection amongst the specimens in my collection and I attribute this in part to the use of Chlorhexidine to disinfect tanks and cleanse the plastron and carapace of the specimens in my care.
If bleach works for you, I guess you should continue using bleach, as I know change is very difficult for some individuals..

Best regards,

Jeff Snodgres
University of Arkansas
snodgresjeffreys@uams.edu
501.526.4856

Jeff,

Is there anything that Nolvasan DOESN'T kill? I still have to wonder how anything that can be that broad spectrum for disinfecting enclosures doesn't pose some health risk. Nolvasan works on spore-forming bacteria as well, such as Clostridium and Bascillus? What about crpyto? I thought that amonia was the only thing that worked well with crpyto.

Do you have the website for the supplier you mentioned? You get in in the mail or UPS/FedEx?

Katrina

Yes Katrina -

I believe that Psuedomonas (sp?) is not sensitive to it.