I think my RES has pneumonia - Help!

Question
I'm an American living in Japan and found myself the owner of 2 small RES (less than 2 inches). One of them has a puffy eye (for a wk now) and has stopped eating. It's wheezing and often opens and closes it's mouth. I've set up the tank perfectly (I think....) and change the water every other day. I'm living up in cold Hokkaido so have put in a heater to keep them warm. Have a filter set up, a UVB lamp, an island.....I don't think the conditions in the tank are unsatisfactory. But then again...? I took my turtle to the local vet who gave it a shot (vitamins) and admitted that he knew nothing about turtles and furthermore that there were no turtle 'specialists' (including turtle stores) in Sapporo. So, I've been trying my best to make it better. I bought liquid turtle vitamins and place a dropper-full in a little water in a small container and have been putting the sick turtle in it twice a day for a week now. It's not working. Does anyone have any advice? I don't want my cute turtle to die!

Cheri

Answer
I am not a vet, but...

Good diet and vitamins will help, but it is not going to be enough by itself to fight off what is probably a minor infection.

Prepare the poor guys a 'hospital tank'- a little warmer, a little cleaner, a lot quieter and less stressful, and overall top quality basic care.

I strongly suggest that you review some good care articles to make sure you are really giving good care- sadly, there is a LOT of bad advice being given out to turtle keepers. A good starter article is http://tortoise.org/general/watcare.html The www.tortoise.org site has lots of good stuff on it!

In my experience, RES are not the easiest turtles to raise, but if you are willing to do what it takes, they are great pets and will respond well to your care.

Good luck!