Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Our turtle is shedding. Is that normal? Are we doing something wrong? Is he growing? He doesn't seem unhappy, or ill he eats well (didn't like the gourmet crickets we got for him), he's pretty active. On a different note, is there a place to get reptile lights that last longer than a week? For that price, I'd like them to last YEARS, but the six-day light really hacked me off.

Some shedding is normal. The center-most part of each scute will often peel off, revealing healthy, bright shell underneath. Also, some skin shedding is normal. Pardon the obnoxious picture, but it can often look like snot gathering around the arms and legs. This is very commonly seen around where the front legs meet the neck. If in doubt, a picture would sure help us determine how normal it is.

A six DAY light?? I'd be hacked off also. You received either a defective light, or the wattage did not match up to your fixture. I've had great luck with most of the Zoomed products...in fact, all that I've tried have worked famously. I try to replace them at 6 MONTHS due to the apparent decrease in effectiveness. I've never had one burn out before I replaced it at 6, maybe 8, months. I used to use ESU bulbs, and I was not satisfied with them. There's a great series of posts on the "Box Turtles" forum of this site regarding lighting. Check out the links, and also "streamwalker"'s post. The original post is by "petriglas".

I hope you have better luck.