3 out of 4 turtles died

Question
I purchased 2 very small "semi-aquatic" turtles for my daughter. Within one month, one turtle began swimming lopsided. I took to pet store and they checked the eyes (which were clear) and recommended that I give it a turtle bath every two days. It died within one week. I replaced the turtle. At that time I upgraded my filtration system to a super high end one.I was told to start adding enzymes ($40 a bottle..went through 3 bottles).Then I had two turtles and got a 3rd turtle that died within 24 hours. (leaving two again) About 2 weeks later, one of the original ones died this morning. Last night I came home and it was not swimming as fast. I took him to the pet store and was told to put him under a light for 15 minutes and put him back in the water. So I now have one turtle and dont know what else to do. I put cholorine remover and water conditioner in during the partial water changes. Should I get some goldfish to monitor the water and keep the lone turtle company.

Answer
The first turtle had pneumonia, which can be caused by many sources- picked up the virus from a person or another turtle, had it in the pet shop or earlier, etc. Stress often causes pneumonia to flare up.

It sounds like the habitat may need some tweaking, but sadly enzymes, chlorine remover, water conditioners, etc. really do not touch most disease processes. Unfortunately, few pet shop people are equipped or trained to deal with real illnesses. Even a vet can have a hard time successfully treating pneumonia and related illnesses when they get to the 'lopsided' stage.

As far as water quality goes- the rule of thumb is that if you can drink it, it is OK for the turtles. Plain tap water in most of the US is perfectly safe right out of the tap. Chemical build-up- nitrates, ammonia, etc. are usually taken care of with decent filtration, removing old food, and doing partial water changes. I think I would not worry so much about that.

My suggestion would be:
1. Go to http://www.redearslider.com and/or http://www.austinsturtlepage.com for a good care sheet for these kinds of turtles.
2. Review the recommended cares- tank size, filtration, basking, temps, lighting, etc. as well as diet issues.
3. Adjust whatever you need to adjust to bring the cares in line with their suggestions.
4. Review their recommendations for dealing with medical issues. You may see signs that it was something totally different than what it sounds like to me here.
5. If you decide to replace the turtles, use a different shop. I suspect they were sick or possibly weak to begin with and it does not sound to me like the staff was doing you any favors.

Good luck!