Looking for some advice... (Flaky unhealthy-looking shell)

Rachael403

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I am going to skip the somewhat long story that comes with this turtle and skip to the basics. I am sure you do not want to read a LONG story about a turtle. So heres the main points. A friend of mine got a couple of turtles about 6 months ago. She could not keep them any longer and wanted me to take them. I said yes. So, I get this turtle and it has a really flakey shell. I guess she was chipping it off, so it is hard to see from the pictures. I am concerned about the shell, it appears to be slightly caved on both sides about 3 inches. I know after speaking to her that the owners prior to her did not take care of him. I assume we are looking at MBD but wanted to ask and see what you think.

I also thought that I would add that he does have a proper cage setup now and a vet appointment on Thursday to address his upper respiratory.


I am correct this is a male, right?

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Rachael403

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I also forgot to add that I have had turtles with shell rot before, but this does not appear to be shell rot to me. It looks different in the pictures. Thanks in advance for your advice.
 

Moozillion

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I don't know anything about his shell issues, but I tend to agree that you've got a studly-sort of guy there! ;)
 

Anthony P

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Definitely a male Chrysemys pitta bellii. I don't think there is anything wrong with the shell. He is going into a shed, which accounts for the flaky areas and the bumpy parts of the shell are just uneven growth probably due to a past diet too rich in protein. Not bad at all though. He looks healthy.

What symptoms does he have related to the Upper Respiratory Infection?
 

Rachael403

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Thanks for the update, Anthony. I took my kid to the vet today. With the proper diet my vet feels that he is on his way to recovery with his shell issues. He was sticking his head out of the water regularly and he was wobbly when swimming. The first 24 hours or so being here he was also showing some labored breathing, but that has subsided. My vet did not feel there was a URI. I suppose since he was kept in a 20 gallon tank about half full that he did not have enough room to swim. He seems to be enjoying the 55 gallon.
 

Anthony P

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Yes, sometimes it can take aquatics a while to get used to deeper water, even if they are a species who should be good with depth. Transitioning after being kept in water where their feet can always touch the bottom isn't always instantaneous.
 
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