rgalpin
New Member
I have a Common Musk (Wild Turtle). I have had him since he was a baby. He is about 10 years old. Has lived in an aquarium where he has spent 99% of his time underwater. He got stuck/wedged under his fake log that has been in the tank for 5 years. He is at home is in that log.
Thursday morning I noticed he looked kind of stuck - but not really. Not struggling. Just in a weird spot that I don’t usually see him. I left him to his own devices figuring he was fine.
Thursday evening - he was still in that spot so I pulled him out of the log. His shell was slightly wedged when I freed him. But he was limp. He responded to touch by moving his legs and head a bit. I put him on his basking rock and he just laid there, limp. I figured he was dead and his reactions to touch were simply nerve responses.
Friday - all day he remained on that rock. Although I saw him do a couple things that looked like more than just nerve response. He picked up his head and opened his mouth - in a yawning type motion. Thought it might be him getting his last gasp of breath. ?? Other than that he just laid there looking dead for nearly 48 hours!
Saturday late afternoon - I looked in on him and he wasn’t on his rock. I figured he fell off and would be dead in the water. No! He was back in the log relaxing under water with his nose poking up as usual. I was astonished. I took him out of the log and removed the log from the tank since it was the original cause of the perceived drowning. His tank usually has about 12 inches of water. Without the log I was concerned he would be too weak to get a breath without the log to hang on to. So, I lowered the water down to about 4 inches and built a ramp out of the stones (that were already in the tank) to give him easy access to a breathing position.
Sunday afternoon - he is walking around on the bottom like his old self - awesome!
Sunday evening - I find him in a strange looking position. He is between the filter and the aquarium wall (though the filter is not locked in position - loose suction cups - he can easily push it out of his way if needed) - he appears to be forcing his head into the bottom corner of the enclosure. Looks like he is struggling to push his head “thru” the corner if he could… I pulled him out of this predicament figuring he might just be dazed and confused after the drowning incedent.
A half hour later I see he is doing the same thing but in a different corner of the enclosure. What is he trying to do? This time when I picked him up, he was super limp. Only the very slightest reaction to touching his back feet - and his head hanging way out his shell. Whatever he was doing jamming his head in the corner seems to have been the end of him. I have put him in a couple different positions in the tank hoping he will magically revive again like he did before. But he hasn’t moved at all now for 12 hours.
I am sharing this story in detail in case it might help someone else - and with some hope that someone may read this and be able to explain what happened. What happened to my turtle? How did he seem to resurrect from the dead - only to die a day later? Weird!
Thanks to anyone who has anything to share in regard to this upsetting - and possibly avoidable thing. Did I do something that caused his death after he recovered?
His name was Mr. Savage (because he ATE all his room mates).
I haven’t completely given up yet - after witnessing the resilience this little guy demonstrated the first time I thought he was dead.
The image is of him today - he stayed in this position all day. I think he is gone... too sad.
Thursday morning I noticed he looked kind of stuck - but not really. Not struggling. Just in a weird spot that I don’t usually see him. I left him to his own devices figuring he was fine.
Thursday evening - he was still in that spot so I pulled him out of the log. His shell was slightly wedged when I freed him. But he was limp. He responded to touch by moving his legs and head a bit. I put him on his basking rock and he just laid there, limp. I figured he was dead and his reactions to touch were simply nerve responses.
Friday - all day he remained on that rock. Although I saw him do a couple things that looked like more than just nerve response. He picked up his head and opened his mouth - in a yawning type motion. Thought it might be him getting his last gasp of breath. ?? Other than that he just laid there looking dead for nearly 48 hours!
Saturday late afternoon - I looked in on him and he wasn’t on his rock. I figured he fell off and would be dead in the water. No! He was back in the log relaxing under water with his nose poking up as usual. I was astonished. I took him out of the log and removed the log from the tank since it was the original cause of the perceived drowning. His tank usually has about 12 inches of water. Without the log I was concerned he would be too weak to get a breath without the log to hang on to. So, I lowered the water down to about 4 inches and built a ramp out of the stones (that were already in the tank) to give him easy access to a breathing position.
Sunday afternoon - he is walking around on the bottom like his old self - awesome!
Sunday evening - I find him in a strange looking position. He is between the filter and the aquarium wall (though the filter is not locked in position - loose suction cups - he can easily push it out of his way if needed) - he appears to be forcing his head into the bottom corner of the enclosure. Looks like he is struggling to push his head “thru” the corner if he could… I pulled him out of this predicament figuring he might just be dazed and confused after the drowning incedent.
A half hour later I see he is doing the same thing but in a different corner of the enclosure. What is he trying to do? This time when I picked him up, he was super limp. Only the very slightest reaction to touching his back feet - and his head hanging way out his shell. Whatever he was doing jamming his head in the corner seems to have been the end of him. I have put him in a couple different positions in the tank hoping he will magically revive again like he did before. But he hasn’t moved at all now for 12 hours.
I am sharing this story in detail in case it might help someone else - and with some hope that someone may read this and be able to explain what happened. What happened to my turtle? How did he seem to resurrect from the dead - only to die a day later? Weird!
Thanks to anyone who has anything to share in regard to this upsetting - and possibly avoidable thing. Did I do something that caused his death after he recovered?
His name was Mr. Savage (because he ATE all his room mates).
I haven’t completely given up yet - after witnessing the resilience this little guy demonstrated the first time I thought he was dead.
The image is of him today - he stayed in this position all day. I think he is gone... too sad.