Squishy shells

[Jason Wills]

I received two northern dbts over 48 hours ago. They were in the shipping box for about 30 hours. I have them under a 5.0 Uvb. So far they have not shown interest in food. Any suggestions on acclamation and the squishy shells. I have turtles but this is my first time dealing with shipping and acclamation. Any tips and advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Yvonne G]

I think that UVB bulb is one of those curly-shaped compact fluorescent bulbs, right? They really aren't much good at giving off enough UVB, plus, they sometimes harm turtle eyes.

If your new turtles have squishy shells, I would send them back to the seller. Acclimation has nothing to do with soft shells. They should have come to you with nice, solid firm shells. It sounds like they may be suffering from metabolic bone disease. But rather than take our word for it, as someone who really hasn't seen the turtles in person, you should get a better opinion from a water turtle person in your area who can hold and see them in real time.

 

[Eggtort]

Could you please give us more information? How big are these turtles? How old are they? Yvonne is right; older water turtles should NOT have squishy shells. Younger turtles may have slightly squishy shells but they should still be firm. If they are older and have squishy shells this is sign of malnutrition and disease.

 

[Yvonne G]

It sometimes takes a few days for a new turtle/tortoise to feel comfortable enough in his new surroundings to eat.