Shell Rot in Turtles & Tortoises

Shell Rot in Turtles & Tortoises

Fungal and bacterial organisms have been associated with the condition known as shell rot. Small scratches or abrasions provide entry for these organisms. As they take hold in the living bone beneath the keratinous covering of the shell, they begin to erode the bone and may penetrate into the body cavity, causing serious, even fatal, systemic infections.

Initial home care for non-penetrative lesions
If the area of infection has not yet eaten through the shell, you can try initially to treat it at home while at the same time assessing the care setup to figure out why the defect occurred to begin with that enabled the fungal or bacterial organisms to get started.

The infected area should be swabbed with a dilute povidone-iodine solution. The areas of infection can then be gently scraped away using a blunt edge such as a disinfected table knife. The scraped areas are then swabbed with povidone-iodine solution or ointment.

Since you don't know if the infection is bacterial or fungal, first try a topical antibiotic ointment, such as a triple antibiotic ointment, which contains three different broad-spectrum antibiotics. Dab a bit on the infected. If the chelonian is an aquatic turtle, keep the turtle out of the water for at least 10 minutes to give the medication time to penetrate. If there is no observable improvement within a couple of days, try an antifungal cream. There are several available, each with a different active anti-fungal ingredient. Try one, keeping aquatic turtles out of the water for at least 10 minutes to give the drug time to penetrate. If there is no improvement after a couple of days, take the chelonian to your reptile vet. These infections are not something to mess around with for very long at home, given the potentially lethal nature of systemic infections.

How do infections get started?
When fungal and bacterial shell infections occur, they are usually found in aquatic turtles. Pits of varying size and depths have also been found in terrestrial chelonians, typically the result of the animal being preyed upon by invertebrates while in hibernation. When the shell is scratched or punctured, even if it does not penetrate all the way through the shell, it is like getting a scratch or puncture wound on our skin: a defect is formed in which bacteria or fungi can collect and grow, causing infection. In the wild - and captivity - this can occur by rubbing up against a too-rough surface, falling on or against a sharp object, or being preyed upon (or being used as a chew toy).

In the case of aquatic and semi-aquatic turtles, the situation is complicated by the water quality. Depending on the situation, dirty water can cause the infection, or can exacerbate one. Keeping the water clean is essential in helping to prevent health problems and to aid - or at least not hamper - recovery when illness and shell infections occur. When your chelonian has an infection, you also need to clean and disinfect the tank and keep the water clean by use of a regularly serviced filtration system and frequent water changes.

When you need a vet
The bottom line is your chelonian's health. What may look to you like a minor infection may be the tip of a much more serious problem. A shell or skin infection may be a primary problem, or may be secondary to an underlying, more serious, health problem. If there is a change in the chelonian's daily routine and behavior, that is yet another sign that something more than a minor superficial infection is happening.

So, don't try treating a non-penetrative lesion on your own for more than a week. If you can't tell if the lesion penetrates through the shell, or the lesions grow or new ones appear, don't wait even that long: get your turtle or tortoise to your reptile vet. If there has been penetration into the body cavity, the cavity will need to be flushed out, checked for possible parasites and infection, and the veterinarian may determine that a course of systemic antibiotics is indicated. Deep erosions may need to be sealed with patches similar to those used to repair broken shells after the underlying tissues have been cleaned and the chelonian treated systemically.

Talk with your vet about how to keep your aquatic turtle during its recovery period. You may need to keep the turtle dry and out of the water as much as possible, allowed in daily to feed, drink and defecate only.

Eastern Box Turtle

Box Turtle

Taxonomy
Order: Chelonia
Family: Emydidae
Genus/species: Terrapene carolina
Subspecies: Terrapene carolina bauri (Florida box turtle)
Terrapene carolina major (Gulf Coast box turtle)
Terrapene carolina triunguis (three-toed box turtle)
Terrapene carolina carolina (eastern box turtle)

There are six subspecies of box turtles. The four listed above are found in the United States; two subspecies are found in Mexico.

This fact sheet describes a general box turtle, unless otherwise mentioned.

Description
All T. carolina have a bilobed, hinged plastron that allows the box turtle to close its shell almost completely. They have a steep-margined, keeled, high-domed, rounded carapace with variable markings. Concentric growth furrows can be seen on the carapace, although in some older individuals they become very difficult to see. The upper jaw is slightly hooked. The toes are only slightly webbed.

Males are slightly larger on average than females, the posterior lobe of their plastron is concave, and the claws on their hind legs are short, thick, and curved. Males also have thicker and longer tails. Females' rear claws are longer, straighter, and more slender, and the posterior lobe of their plastron is flat or slightly convex. Males have red irises and females have yellowish-brown irises.

Environmental temperature determines activity rate. Preferred body temperature is between 84 and 100° F (37.8° C). In the heat of the summer, box turtles largely restrict their activity to mornings and after rain. When it gets too hot, they hide under decaying logs and leaves, crawl into mammal burrows, or into mud. When it is really hot, they go into shady pools and puddles to cool off. In the spring and fall, they may be out foraging during all daylight hours, and they sometimes bask in the sun to get warm. Box turtles are diurnal and scoop out a shallow indentation in which to spend the night.

In the northern regions, box turtles go into hibernation in October or November, but farther south they remain active later in the year. To hibernate, they burrow as far as two-feet deep into loose earth, mud, stream bottoms, old stump holes, or mammal burrows. They may return to the same place to hibernate in successive years and sometimes more than one turtle hibernates in the same hibernacula. They usually emerge from hibernation in April. They sometimes wake up and find a new hibernacula on warm days in the winter.

These turtles usually have a home range with a diameter of 750 feet (230 m) or less in which they normally stay. Occasionally, for unknown reasons, they journey out from their home range. Home ranges of different individuals overlap frequently, regardless of age or sex. The turtles are often found together and show no antagonism towards each other.

Distribution and Habitat
Exclusively North American, box turtles occupy the eastern United States ranging from southern Maine to Florida along the East Coast, and west to Michigan, Illinois, eastern Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas. Due to their popularity as household pets, box turtles are sometimes found far outside their normal geographic range.

There are four subspecies of T. carolina in the U.S. Terrapene carolina bauri (Florida box turtle) lives in the peninsula of Florida. Terrapene carolina major (Gulf Coast box turtle) ranges from the panhandle of Florida westward along the gulf coast to eastern Texas.

Terrapene carolina triunguis (three-toed box turtle) lives in the Mississippi River Valley from northern Missouri southward across southeastern Kansas and eastern Oklahoma into south-central Texas, and southeastward across western Tennessee and Georgia to the coastal lowlands.

Terrapene carolina carolina (common box turtle), covering the largest area, lives from Michigan and Maine in the north, and ranges south to the boundaries of the other subspecies. Very little overlap occurs between the ranges of the subspecies of T. carolina, except for a region in Mississippi and Alabama where T. carolina triunguis and T. carolina carolina overlap.

Box turtles live in open woodlands, pastures, and marshy meadows. They are often found near streams and ponds.

Diet in the Wild
Omnivorous, these turtles eat snails, insects, berries, fungi, slugs, worms, roots, flowers, fish, frogs, salamanders, snakes, birds, and eggs indiscriminately. They have been observed eating carrion, feeding on dead ducks, amphibians, assorted small mammals, and even a dead cow. Their preference varies greatly by season but there is one definite trend. Young are primarily carnivorous while they grow during their first five to six years. Adults tend to be mostly herbivorous, but they eat no green leaves. Young often hunt in ponds and streams because the type of food they prefer is easier to catch there, but adults usually feed on land.

Captivity Diet
In captivity, they are fed salad, earthworms, and crickets; rarely mealworms.

Reproduction
There is some variation between the courtship rituals of the subspecies. The courtship of both T.c.carolina and T.c.major is divided into three phases: a circling, biting, shoving phase; a preliminary mounting phase; and a copulatory phase. T.c.triunguis and T.c. bauri both have somewhat different rituals, which may represent the ancestral method. Both triunguis and bauri males have added the behavior of pulsating their throats. T.c.triunguis does this in front of the female, and bauri males climb up on the females' carapace with all four feet and then pulsate. The actual copulation is the same in all subspecies, with the male standing somewhat upright, leaning the concave part of his plastron against the back of the female's carapace. It is in this balanced position that the male fertilizes the female with his penis. Males sometimes fall backwards after copulation, and if they can't right themselves they die of starvation.

The mating season begins in the spring and continues throughout summer to October. Males may mate with more than one female or the same female several times over a period of several years. A female may lay fertile eggs for up to four years after one successful mating. Nesting occurs from May through July. Nests are usually dug in sandy or loamy soil, using the hind legs. Then eggs are laid in this cavity and the nest is carefully covered up again. Females lay three to eight eggs, usually four or five, and they are elliptical with thin, white, flexible shells. The female lays several clutches each year. Incubation normally lasts three months, but this varies according to soil temperature and moisture.

Life Span
Box turtles may live more than 100 years.

Status
Box turtles are listed on CITES Appendix II. Collection for the pet trade and habitat destruction and fragmentation threaten the box turtle population.

Fun Facts
When frightened, box turtles retract their head, tail, and limbs into their shell and clamp it shut. They wait in this position until the perceived threat is gone. While juveniles have several predators, very few species can prey effectively on adults due to this defense technique.

Box turtles are most famous for their hinged shell, which allows them to retract almost completely into their bony armor to hide from danger. This shell has great regenerative powers. A case was reported in which the carapace of a badly burned box turtle underwent complete regeneration.

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Captive bred Vs. Wild Caught Reptiles

Wild Collared Lizard Shown

Question: Should I get a Wild Caught or Captive Bred Reptile? Answer: In short, captive bred is best, so if at all possible get a captive bred reptile as a pet. It is true that some species of reptile do not readily reproduce in captivity so for these you may need to get a wild caught reptile. However, for many commonly kept species, captive bred animals are quite readily available. If you can find a captive bred reptile this is the best option for a number of reasons:

• Captive bred reptiles are generally healthier than wild caught. The stress of capture and transport and adjustment to captive conditions is extremely stressful and leaves reptiles susceptible to illness. Wild caught reptiles also tend to carry very heavy parasite loads.

• Captive bred reptiles are generally less skittish and easier to handle than wild caught.

• Captive bred snakes accept pre killed prey more readily than wild caught snakes (especially true for ball pythons).

• Buying a captive bred reptile helps to maintain wild populations. For every wild caught reptile that makes it to a pet store and into a home, many more die from stress, injury, and/or illness related to capture, transport, overcrowding, etc.

Unfortunately it is often less expensive to buy a wild caught reptile over a captive bred one. However, when you consider the rates of illness and parasitism in wild caught reptiles as well as the rates of mortality, it is often much less expensive over the long run to purchase captive bred than to treat or replace a sick wild caught reptile.

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