My pet turtle is lethargic and won't eat. Is it sick or husbandry?

Question

My RES is not taking food for last 3 days. Becomes very lethargic. No activity.....there is no external sign of illness. As there is no reptiles specialist veterinary doctors, please help me.

Miranda Sadar, DVM, DACZM · Accepted Answer

Often when reptiles stop eating, it is due to suboptimal husbandry and diet. This may be what is occurring in Pilu. The reason that I say this is that from the picture that you have included, Pilu is actually not a red-eared slider, and actually looks to be a species of map turtle. Also, from the picture, it looks like Pilu has a very short tail, and may actually be a female turtle. This can drastically change how you will be housing Pilu, and may explain why she is not eating. I am not sure where you acquired Pilu, but it may be beneficial to first find out what species of map turtle she is (there are numerous types, and I am not sure what is most commonly available in your area), and then I would recommend adjusting her husbandry based on a care sheet (typically straightforward to find online once you know the species) that is specific for her species. Otherwise, the parameters for temperature, basking spot, type of haul out, amount of water in the environment, diet, etc. can be very different between species, and over time, Pilu may not be able to perform her normal body functions while being housed like a red-eared slider. Unfortunately, even if you have had Pilu for a long time, she may not have shown you that she was not thriving in her environment until recently as reptiles can compensate with suboptimal husbandry for a long time. Along these same lines, it can take them a long time to get better when their environment does improve, so do not become discouraged once you have made the changes. I hope that gives you a place to start, and good luck!

My pet turtle is lethargic and won't eat. Is it sick or husbandry?

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