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Oranate Wood Turtle shell problem...

icedearthgoddess Aug 30, 2005 12:48 AM

I work at a pet store and we got a shippment of reptiles and in that shipment was an Ornate Wood Turtle. He/she has some slight splits in its shell in few places, like the shell is dividing, possibly due to lack of humidity, that is my guess... anyone have any experience with this? We had one at the store a while ago and it had the same conditions and died a few months later. I want to save this one and make sure that he/she is well taken care of, please help. I am thinking of using a shell supplemnt (vita shell ??? I think thats what its called ???).. it is like lotion for their shells, I am guessing it would be good to "seal" the cracks with moisture so they become more flexible and they can bind back together and heal. Does this sound like a good idea? Any other suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks!!!
-----
~Laura

Rejoice, the age of the fall has begun
We'll dance as the palaces burn.
--Lamb of God, As the Palaces Burn

Replies (4)

casichelydia Sep 01, 2005 12:58 AM

There is possibility in the shell being the least of your concerns with regards to the shop's new acquisition. The shells of this species can appear to be somewhat eroded due to excessive drying during shipments. A turtle imported from the tropics to be distributed to a petshop does not receive any meaningful treatment for any overload of parasites the shipments may have induced. If the animal seems lacking in weight, body mass (muscle tone), or has sunken eyes, an excess of nematodes or protozoa could be one causative agent. A qualified vet (often hard to find for exotic turtles) could assess such a situation with a fecal exam, but this coming from a vet capable with exotic herps could mean no more profit margin for the animal (not popular with petshops). This species is semi-aquatic by nature. Although not big on swimming, they prefer to wade in water that almost or just covers the shell. The water and the air temperature should be warm - at least 75, to 82F, with a warmer basking area. This will facilitate more moisture and humidity than this poor species (that is now replacing the once-common box turtle as a petshop turtle staple) tends to get from petshops, which seem to favor bark and a shallow water dish as appropriate habitat.

The best plan would be to convince the petshop to not make such a shortsighted venture as an exotic imported turtle that it has already failed with once (and that literally hundreds of others have failed with as well). Other turtle species of legal sale size can be obtained as captive-bred animals. These will normally come in a far superior state of health. In the case that the above cannot be voiced, if you work for one of the big corporate petshop chains, recall that reptile orders are still store-specific. Some person that you work with is in charge of weekly/monthly reptile orders for your individual store, and it is up to that person whether to be concscienable or not with regards to chosing the species that are captive-bred (usually a few species of lizards and frogs) over species that are wild-caught (many species of lizards and virtually all available turtle species). Ornate wood turtles have a rather narrow band of distribution. They won't withstand the demand that American petshops are placing on them indefinitely.

buslady Sep 01, 2005 04:39 PM

That is so true. Ornate Wood Turtles are in a little area down there in Costa Rica/Nicaragua, they'll go extinct in the wild if they keep collecting them ...ever since I found my two adults, I never seen another adult in pet stores. I wondered if adults are far and few in between.
I hope next season I hatch eggs, this year...it was my first shot. 2 eggs were empty and the first one laid died.

buslady Sep 01, 2005 04:35 PM

I keep a pair of these and they are high humidity turtles, so jack that up. Heat & humid, maybe that'll help the shell. I would vet the turtle if ya ask me. And get him on fresh food with vitamin supplements and an earthworm or two could help. Give him a shallow tub to soak in too. Make it deep enough so he can submerge himself and touch the bottom. aaannnddd....they like to dig under substrate. make that deep too.

icedearthgoddess Sep 02, 2005 12:11 AM

Thanks for the help I appreciate it!
-----
~Laura

Rejoice, the age of the fall has begun
We'll dance as the palaces burn.
--Lamb of God, As the Palaces Burn

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