Turtles

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<H1>Attn Andrew!!</H1><DIV id=Qtextbox><P><STRONG>Author: slotha</STRONG><BR><BR>Hi Andrew , i've lost 3 turtles to the same disease. The Vet did an autoposy and said it had liver disease. I"ve done everything right (light,food,habitat etc) They start off with a breathing problem and then their legs and feet (in the carapace) blown. They get real swollen. My Vet gave it a Vitamen injection and it did nothong at all. He asked if i wanted a Pathologoy Test, but it was going to cost a couple of grand! I am stumped and i'm wondering if there is some sought of virus in the water. Any help would be great.

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Thanks

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Tim

</P></DIV><H2>Replies »</H2><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: leptomaniac</STRONG><BR><BR>Hi Tim,

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I'm going to refer your question to Dr Glenn Shea, head of the Veterinary Faculty at USYD. He is a reptile specialist and the top mind as far as herp vets go. I'll try and get an email response (he would usually reply quickly), but I think it would be better for you to talk to him face to face. He does come to every meeting of the AHS.

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I'll let you know the response as soon as I have it.

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Cheers,

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Andrew.

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: leptomaniac</STRONG><BR><BR>Hi Tim,

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I just received Glenn's reply...

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He has said that he would need to talk to you in order to ask the right questions about what happened. Do you think you can make it to the next meeting? It is on 27.06.03.

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If not, I'll have to arrange something else, so get back to me on xxxxxxx during business hours or xxxxxxxxx after hours. We'll see what we can do for you.

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Did all the turtles come from the same supplier? If so, it may be that they originated from an infected population.

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Sorry to hear about the problems... We'll help as best we can. Have you asked Craig Latta? Or John Cann? They might be able to shed some light on it too.

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Cheers,

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Andrew.

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: slotha</STRONG><BR><BR>Hi Andrew, Thanks for the replies. Today i've been ringing round like mad for an answer. I got ahold of a guy from Manly Aquarium and he believes it is a mineral deficency(sp?). I had a read of a book i have by Danny Green, and in a passage of this book he relates the same symptoms to a mineral deficency. I've bought a bottle of Repta-Vite which is a mineral,trace elements solution which he thinks may do the trick.

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They were all roughly 2.5yrs old and hadn't hibinated yet. Would this be a factor to? Anyway he said to lower the level of water in the tank and divide half into an area which has leaf mulch so he has the option of hibinating in the water or in the leaf mulch. The turtles were from different breeders.

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I might send Craig a email asking his opinion to.

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I'll try to get to the next meeting, i'll let you know.

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Thanks for you help mate

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Tim

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</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: slotha</STRONG><BR><BR>Andrew, the swelling has now gone down and all seems fine again. I think i'll give Glenn a buzz anyway to stay on the safe side.

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When i go down to get some leaf mulch, can it be any type(eucalyptus etc)? How deep should it be? And if his in my room, can i still play music and stuff if he goes into hibernation? Sorry for all the Q's, if you can't answer them don't worry.

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Thanks

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Tim

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</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: leptomaniac</STRONG><BR><BR>Hi Tim,

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Glad to hear that things are on the mend... Is there no way that your turtle can live outside? The direct sunlight will mean that he will not suffer from vitamin defficiencies, and he will be generally healthier. Also, if your house is fairly warm, there is no way that the turtle will hibernate. He must be facing the same temperature extremes as those outdoors if he is to hibernate.

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For leaf mulch, it's best to collect relatively dry material, made up of eucalyptus and other native leaves. These leaves should be sealed in a garbage bag and shaken for a while with a pest strip, to eliminate the chance of introducing nasty pests into the enclosure.

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If he does manage to slip into hibernation, it should still be okay to play music (although don't play it loud enough for China to hear it...

). Just make sure the cage is well cushioned against the bass vibrations, and the leaf mulch will also offer the turtle some insulation against the noise.

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Hope all goes well.

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Andrew.

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: slotha</STRONG><BR><BR>Thanks Andrew, i have recently been looking at some plastic ponds. They were round and about 3mtrs in diameter and about 30-40cm high. Would this make a good enclosure? Or would it be better making it out of brick and sealing the brick? What way should it face? Sorry 1 more Q, If i went with the plastic option, would i leave it about ground or inground?

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Cheers matey

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Oh crap, i just remembered, the Vitamins i bought were out of date by 12months, would this affect the quality of them? If so, i'll take it back.

</P></DIV><DIV id=Atextbox><P><STRONG>Author: leptomaniac</STRONG><BR><BR>Those ponds are great for what you need... Install them as inground ponds and construct a perimeter fence, enclosing some land around the edge of the pond (they must have land as well as water). Turtles are great diggers, so you'll need to lay chicken wire down flat to stop them digging out of the enclosure. It doesn't matter if the enclosure receives full sun, but make sure there is a permanent shady retreat for the little guy.

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I don't know how well vitamins fare past their use-by date, so I can't really answer that question. In some instances, companies have a use-by date to sell more product, and in others, it's the difference between a quality product and a useless piece of crud. If it was already past the use-by date when you bought it (and if you kept the receipt), take it back anyway. Stores are not allowed to sell out-of-date products and they MUST replace it for you with a current batch of the supplement.

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Good luck!

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Andrew.