How to treat shell rot in aquatic turtles?
For early stage shell rot in aquatic turtles follow these steps: Scrub the area gently with a toothbrush and lukewarm water to remove any dirt. Let the shell dry. Apply either povidone-iodine or silver sulfadiazine ointment to the affected area.
What happens when a turtle’s shell falls off?
You may also start to see soft spots forming or even have small areas of bloody discharge. If your turtle or tortoise has a very bad shell rot, it may cause entire scutes to fall off. This would expose the bone and nerves that are underneath the hard shell covering.
How can you tell if a tortoise has shell rot?
There are many symptoms that you will see if your tortoise or turtle has shell rot. For starters, you can usually see the cracks in their shell . These cracks will progress to a moth-eaten white appearance. You will then start to notice that their shell does not look even.
What kind of disease does a turtle have?
Turtle shell rot is also known in veterinary circles as ulcerative shell disease. It’s a generic term for a common infection that can appear in either the top half of the shell (known as the carapace) or the bottom half (known as the plastron).
What does it mean when a turtle has shell rot?
Shell rot is the common way to say a turtle has an infection of its shell, which can be secondary to damage or poor husbandry. Wild turtles generally present dehydrated and in poor body condition with a mosscovered malodorous shell.
What kind of damage does a turtle have?
This type of minor shell damage is common among wild semi-aquatic turtles. When the shell of an older individual is examined, one sees many small pits from old lesions. During times of cloudy, wet weather and little sun, a variety of pathogens can take hold and damage the outer layer of the shell.
What should I do if my tortoise has shell rot?
Pain management and systemic treatments are usually necessary. If you take a turtle or tortoise with acute shell rot to a reptile vet, they will start by assessing the animal and possibly administering pain medication. After this, they may decide that debridement of some infected areas is necessary under anaesthesia.
What causes cracks in the shell of a tortoise?
Many of these may have sharp edges that can injury your tortoise’s shell. Once your turtle or tortoise has damage to their shell, the bacteria that are living in their environment can cause these cracks to get infected. Your turtle or tortoise can get this infection from unclean water, moldy bedding, or unclean enclosure.
