Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I forgot to mention this in my previous post about the green water. My turtle also seems to have some white stuff on him. Its kind of feathery looking and floats around him when he swims. It kind of reminds me of peach fuzz, only longer. Its on his skin, not his shell.

Sounds sorta like a vitimin A problem...i think its too much vitimin a causes excessive sloughing of the skin that looks white and filmy. Im not positive though...
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0.1 Bearded dragon
0.1 mexican kingsnake
1.0.2 Leopard Gecko's
0.0.1 Rose Hair Tarantula
1.0 BTS
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The pet store said it was probably fungus and recommended a sulfa dip every day for seven days. They said if that didn't clear it up to consult a vet. That does make sense being my water is looking green. The turtle was over-fed terribly by my son so in the process of trying to get that cleaned up from the bottom of the tank I have really got the tank out of balance!

Overfeeding and poor water conditions cause the skin to shed uncontrolably. Once you correct the diet issues it should go away.
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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 you don't think it is algae or fungus? The pet store has me doing sulfa dips. I noticed the turtle doesn't bask on his turtle dock anymore. He used to be up there ALL the time and now he just hangs on the edge of it with his front feet with his body in the water.

Pet shops dont know anything. They probably just wanted to sell whatever treatment they had in stock. I would stop the treatments and correct the husbandry. Skin shedding is normal, especially when the water quality is bad and the turtle is overfed.
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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

____

sig file edited 1/29/05 [phw]

Ok. I have been faithfully doing partial water changes once a week and now I'm to the point where there I can barely find anything at the bottom in the rocks when I siphon, unlike the last 2 or 3 times when there was sooooo much crud being sucked up! I've got the feeding under control so he is not being over-fed. I also changed some of the media in the Fluval (2 new foam pads and new charcoal). Do you think the problem will remedy itself now? Between the fuzzy turtle and the green water, I'm at my wits end. We did so good for such a long time and all of a sudden every went to heck!

How much and how often are you feeding him? Is he eating mostly greens? Will he eat in a separate container other than his tank? Feeding in a separate container will help keep the bioload down.
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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

____

sig file edited 1/29/05 [phw]

I was only feeding him pellets 3 times a week -- about 10-15 per feeding. He also gets freeze dried krill once or twice a week (only a couple) as a treat. He has had feeder fish before. I've only bought them twice in the last couple of months, and I bought 3 at a time. He has had one left in his aquarium now for about 2 weeks and he doesn't want to eat it for some reason (I suppose if he has been over-fed he is not terribly motivated to catch it). I didn't know that my son was feeding him pellets every day after school until I went to pick up the can of pellets and it was almost empty! Not only was he feeding the turtle every day, I think he was feeding him a lot! I explained to him that the turtle can't be fed so much and that I would be in charge of that chore from now on, so it won't be problem anymore. So far the turtle has refused all greens, but I keep on trying.

the "fuzzy" should go away once the nutrients in your tank are under control...it will not go away over night however so just keep an eye on it for a few days and you should see it start to decrease. The green water will go away when the nutrients are undercontrol and when you are back on your regualr less strenuous water changing cycle

good luck!
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0.1 Bearded dragon
0.1 mexican kingsnake
1.0.2 Leopard Gecko's
0.0.1 Rose Hair Tarantula
1.0 BTS
0.0.1 Reverse Okeetee Corn
0.1 Bullmastiff
4.1 Cats