The remarkable effects of "Brackish Water"

[Redfoot NERD]

.. when it comes to healing - Malaclemys terrapin terrapin - aka Northern Diamondback Terrapins.

The only ANYTHING used from August 2014 to March 2015.. ( 7 months ) was chlorine-free fresh water and pure 100% rock salt [ not sea salt or any of that expensive stuff marketed as 'best' ]. No high-powered filtration was used.. just a small submersible filter with nothing but a piece of 'blue-air filter' that I use as media. This was conducted in a "40-breeder' aquarium.

An acquaintance emailed me.. that because he traveled all the time.. wasn't able to care for his turtles properly and asked if I would take them. When he sent the pics I knew that my work was going to be a challenge - after I came to!

2 adult male terrapins and an adult male 'Pearl river' map turtle in about 20 gallons of foul fresh(???) water - the pics stunk!!!

This is how one of the males looked..



I soaked the 2 terrapins in fresh water changed daily for 3-4 days and then gradually brought the salinity up to 1.020 [ almost 'salt water' ]. Because of this high reading I "rinsed/fed" them every other day in fresh water in case they needed to drink. The above was the worse of the 2.. so his "healing" procedure to longer.

As explained earlier.. no chemicals etc.

Look at the results that "Brackish Water" accomplished -



Any questions?

 

[wellington]

Wow, he was awful. Looking pretty good now that you have him. Amazing what just salt can do actually. We always put salt in our human itchy wounds/bites. We would scratch the bite, not to bleed, but to kinda open the skin a bit and dab a little salt on it. It stung for a few seconds, but the itching was gone and the bite healed quick. I'm not surprised salt helped, but yet I am surprised it did so well.

 

[Loohan]

Their immune systems did not evolve in fresh water, i guess.

 

[Redfoot NERD]

Their immune systems did not evolve in fresh water, i guess.

NO.. don't go "evolution"! They were created to live in "Brackish Water".. PERIOD!

I have an opinion on why the "Diamondback terrapins can live in fresh water..." concept got started.. but that's not the purpose of this topic.

It costs less in $$$ to filter.. ( plus filter media replacement ) it costs less in TIME to maintain ( water changes, etc. ) .. and the terrapins thrive with no issues ever because it's NATURAL. { imagine no VET bills, etc. }

And that's not easy to accept. I could show a number of pics of what terrapins look like when kept in "Brackish Water". I have heard a number of times from those that have had terrapins for years in fresh water.. and are amazed how much better they look and act when they get it right!

30 month old "macro".. kept in "Brackish Water" for past 20 months..

 

[Loohan]

I'm not the hugest fan of Darwin or anything, i just meant that it stands to reason that if a life-form always bathed in antimicrobial brackish water, it would never have a need to develop its immune system for the rigors of fresh water.

 

[Gillian M]

He really is good looking!

 

[Rue]

I agree! Very good looking.

Er...what did Darwin do wrong?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I've used salt water baths/dips in the past for parasites on aquarium fish and in the gills.
If done correctly, salt is great at healing.

 

[Rue]

Dentists have you rinse with salt water after a procedure to promote healing as well.

 

[Redfoot NERD]

I agree! Very good looking.

Er...what did Darwin do wrong?

Er...what did Darwin do wrong? He was an evolutionist.

I'm not the hugest fan of Darwin or anything, i just meant that it stands to reason that if a life-form always bathed in antimicrobial brackish water, it would never have a need to develop its immune system for the rigors of fresh water.

I'm not the hugest fan of Darwin or anything, i just meant that it stands to reason that if a life-form always bathed in antimicrobial brackish water, it would never have a need to develop its immune system for the rigors of fresh water.

Loohan.. this is the "un-dignified" response to your statement(s)

 

[terryo]

We have a very large pond where I live with narrow's down at one point and then empties into the bay. At that point the water is considered brackish. If you go there in the Summer you can always see a bunch of Northern Diamond Backs basking on logs or big stones. A long time ago someone bought me two very small babies, which I raised in fresh water, not knowing a thing about brackish water and having no computer to do any research. They turned out to be a male and female, and six years later I gave them to a friend who has a pond with fresh water and Koi. The Northern's are not as pretty as yours, but they grew up to be smooth and beautiful with no problem. The friend I gave them to moved up state and still has them in a large fresh water pond. They hibernate outside and he told me they are doing fine.

 

[terryo]

Oh wait a minute.....I think I read your post wrong. Those are Northern's aren't they?
Here's another picture. Pretty good for fresh water?

 

[Levi the Leopard]

NO.. don't go "evolution"! They were created to live in "Brackish Water"...

You just made my day

And this is a wonderful thing to see. Thanks for sharing the before and after photos

 

[Redfoot NERD]

You just made my day

And this is a wonderful thing to see. Thanks for sharing the before and after photos

You are welcome Heather.. not sure what all that other has to do with the purpose of this post.. do you?

 

[terryo]

"And that's not easy to accept. I could show a number of pics of what terrapins look like when kept in "Brackish Water". I have heard a number of times
from those that have had terrapins for years in fresh water.. and are amazed how much better they look and act when they get it right!"

"You are welcome Heather.. not sure what all that other has to do with the purpose of this post.. do you?"

I thought the purpose of your post was to show how much better DBT look when "they get it right".....meaning that they look better when raised in brackish water. I only wanted to show that mine were raised for 6 years in fresh water and I thought they looked pretty good too. Mine were raised 24/7 outside in a fresh water pond too.
Sorry for posting where I wasn't supposed to Terry. I was only trying to add to your observations.

 

[Redfoot NERD]

"And that's not easy to accept. I could show a number of pics of what terrapins look like when kept in "Brackish Water". I have heard a number of times
from those that have had terrapins for years in fresh water.. and are amazed how much better they look and act when they get it right!"

"You are welcome Heather.. not sure what all that other has to do with the purpose of this post.. do you?"

I thought the purpose of your post was to show how much better DBT look when "they get it right".....meaning that they look better when raised in brackish water. I only wanted to show that mine were raised for 6 years in fresh water and I thought they looked pretty good too. Mine were raised 24/7 outside in a fresh water pond too.
Sorry for posting where I wasn't supposed to Terry. I was only trying to add to your observations.

No prob. Terry - the point was.. there is a friend who kept his Ornates in fresh water for some 20 years and they survived and reproduced. Some of them did O.K. and some always had shell and skin issues. He then gradually acclimated them to "Brackish Water". When asked how they responded he told me it was if they "came alive" .. active as not before with no issues at all - they never looked better!

We will never know how those you showed would/could look when kept in the brackish water they came from.

BTW... if after 6 years they were the same size they are both males - based on the size of their tails and the small head of both.. in those pics. The "comparison" shown is male [ except for the young Ornate ].

Most all of the "white / blue" of mine you probably refer to are what is called "Concentrics".. "technically" not Northern.. AND are not "Gulf Coast" either.

This is one of my "Gulf Coast" females.. they typically are 7"- 8" with that big head - from around
Louisiana -

 

[GotTort]

Over what time frame should the transition from fresh to brackish water be?

 

[Redfoot NERD]

@GotTort no rush.. follow the method(?) here.. http://turtletary.com/diamond-care.html

 

[GotTort]

@GotTort no rush.. follow the method(?) here.. http://turtletary.com/diamond-care.html

Thanks!

 

[Moozillion]

No prob. Terry - the point was.. there is a friend who kept his Ornates in fresh water for some 20 years and they survived and reproduced. Some of them did O.K. and some always had shell and skin issues. He then gradually acclimated them to "Brackish Water". When asked how they responded he told me it was if they "came alive" .. active as not before with no issues at all - they never looked better!

We will never know how those you showed would/could look when kept in the brackish water they came from.

BTW... if after 6 years they were the same size they are both males - based on the size of their tails and the small head of both.. in those pics. The "comparison" shown is male [ except for the young Ornate ].

Most all of the "white / blue" of mine you probably refer to are what is called "Concentrics".. "technically" not Northern.. AND are not "Gulf Coast" either.

This is one of my "Gulf Coast" females.. they typically are 7"- 8" with that big head - from around
Louisiana -

I live in Louisiana and have been wishing I would come across one of these beauties! So far, tons of sliders, muds and boxies. Mind you, I am NOT really complaining! I'm very grateful to live in an area that has so many wild turtles.
After all, I've always got "Nerd's" incredible Terrapins to enjoy viewing!