Sick RES

Question
I got 2 red eared sliders about 2 weeks ago. They are about 3-4 inches. I have them in a 10 gallon tank with filter, landing dock, basking light. Well they both developed "somthing". First their eyes swelled and shut. I got some eye drops from the reptile pet shop and it seems to be working for 1. The other one seems lazier then before and now has sores on him. They are whitish in color :( What do you think is wrong with them? I hope they make it through this.
Thanks so much and I look forward to your response,
JEn

Answer
Hi Jen!

There are two different things this could be. Neither of them are your fault since you just bought the turtles, it was who ever took care of them before you. Both only happen from relatively long term conditions, not just two weeks.

#1: The first thing it could be is from being in dirty water. Because turtles spend so much time under water with their eyes open, if the water is dirty all of the bacteria in the water gets on their eyes. This causes their eyes to get swollen and have an alarming buldgeing look. This can be cured by swabbing the eyes with 50% water and 50% boric acid. Also, do a few water changes (even though it's not your water that caused this). It should start to improve quickly because recovery is rapid, this is a fairly common problem with RES's and only becomes a problem if nothing is done, which can cause permanent blindness. If it doesn't seem to improve or you want to be sure, take them to the vet.

#2: The second possibility is a lack of Vitamin A in their diet. This causes the eyes to seal shut. This happens more in young RES's like your are. This also isn't your fault, this is another prolonged problem. Two weeks with out vitamin A won't cause that much damage. RES's with this problem normally can't see well or at all,
and have trouble eating because of it.  If this is more of the problem, they wil need a vet visit. The vet will carefully seperate the eye lids and swab under them to remove the damaged tissue. The vet will also probably give a shot of vitamin A and give you food with alot of vitamin A in it. One thing you don't want to do is give too much vitamin A because that causes problems as well.


Hopefully this info helps you to determine what your turtles's problems are, they should have a quick recovery.
Good luck with your new turtles!!! =D

best wishes, Chelsey

ps. this doesn't have anything to do with your question, but if you don't have a heater in your tank, you should consider getting one. Turtles love when their water is a round 75 to 80 degrees! I was just letting you know incase you don't have one. =D