Related Articles: Shell Rot in Turtles, Treating Common Illnesses of the Red Ear Slider (& other Emydid Turtles) by Darrel Barton, The Care and Keeping of the Red Eared Slider, Trachemys scripta elegans  by Darrel Barton, Red Ear Sliders, Turtles, Amphibians, Red Eared Slider Care, 

Related FAQs:  Shell Rot 2, Shell Rot 3, Shell Rot 4, Shell Conditions 5 Shell Conditions 6, Shell Conditions 7, Shell Conditions 8, Shell Conditions 9, Shell Conditions 11,  Shell Conditions 12, Shell Conditions 13, Shell Conditions 14, Shell Conditions 15, Shell Conditions 17, & Turtles, Turtles 2, Turtle Identification, Turtle Behavior, Turtle Compatibility, Turtle Selection, Turtle Systems, Turtle Feeding, Turtle Disease, Turtle Disease 2, Turtle Disease 3, Turtle Reproduction, Amphibians,  Other Reptiles, 

Hi I want to know if this is shell rot? – 09/10/13
Please help I came home last night and noticed its white where a scute should be Idk if it's a crack or rot, she's acting normal and when I touch the white part it's hard
<The last is a good sign... need to know re water quality (set up, maintenance) and nutrition. That the area is not putrescent (by your omission) points to damage, calcification instead of rot per se... Let's have you read re starting here:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/TurtShlCF16.htm
and the linked files above. Bob Fenner>

Re: Hi I want to know if this is shell rot?     9/11/13 when I picked her up she had a couple of loose scutes and I uncovered more white shell, is this fixable? The last picture is how I have the tank right now normally on top I have the lamp. She is about 5 years old and she lives with another red ear he's about 8 yrs but he doesn't have this problem <Hiya Annie.> <The problem shown in your4 pictures could have been caused by a fungus (which we often call "shell rot") but from the looks of the pictures, you are seeing the hard boney plate UNDER the scute which, for whatever reason, died and fell off.> <The key here is that the pinkish white area is hard… nothing scrapes off when you rub at it with a toothpick… and it has no odor.  If you meet all three criteria then it's not in itself a fungus, it's the bone underneath the scute.   If that's the case then no, the scute won't grow back and SHE will have these scars permanently.  The good news is that she'll recover and endure just fine and male turtles thing scars are hot looking!> <Pay particular attention to water quality -- make sure she has clean water and a UV-B bulb to bask under … and chances are she'll be just fine> <Darrel>

re: Hi I want to know if this is shell rot? Following directions; limit on WWM for file space, incoming      9/12/13
Hi when I was looking at her I noticed those white pieces were loose so I took them off  nothing scrapes off, should I apply hydrogen peroxide or iodine? I noticed that's what other people do with similar problems, when you mean they're gonna scar do you mean it's gonna stay white?
... re-size and re-send your msg. and image file... hundreds of Kbytes, not Meg.s B
re: Hi I want to know if this is shell rot?
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re: Hi I want to know if this is shell rot?     9/13/13
.... READ here re file size: http://www.wetwebmedia.com/WWMAdminSubWebIndex/question_page.htm
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re: Hi I want to know if this is shell rot?    9/18/13 Sorry about that, ok so I was wondering if I should be applying anything on it, those little tile looking things were loose and they came right off, and when you mean its gonna scar what color does it look like after scarring, ive just been lightly brushing off her back with a children's size tooth brush I did notice a very tiny red dot barely a needle size <the red dot is a tiny capillary that is open, so it would be best if you don't scrub the bare bone.  A cotton swab with Hydrogen peroxide is great - but we want what's there to heal over.   Keep her warm and dry except for her daily bath & feeding (read here about dry-docking http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/treating%20RES%20Dis%20DarrelB.htm)  and let's see how she's doing in a month. -- Darrel>

My Red Ear Slider; Am I worrying too much?       8/16/13
Hi, I'm Keyonna
<Hiya - I'm Darrel>
I've had my Red Ear Slider, Rye, for about a year and a half. He was very sweet when we got him, but now he's grumpy and mean like an old man.
<So am I. Although in my case I have a pretty good excuse - I *AM* a grumpy old man!>
The reason I'm writing to you is that, even though I've searched your site and others, I'm only finding general answers to my questions and those answers just won't do anymore. So, let me start from the beginning:
<OK - I'm ready!>
When we first got Rye, he was perfectly healthy. My mom had owned turtles before (4 of them, according to her) so I was counting on her "expertise".
Well, there wasn't any. It really didn't help that Rye was an impulse buy. So, on top of not knowing what we were doing, we weren't prepared for the responsibility of a turtle. We didn't get him a filter, a basking light, or even a basking dock. He had a rock and some water. So, needless to say, within the first 3 months of having him, his eyes swelled shut. And, what's worse, I didn't notice until a little over a month had passed. So, we're already off to a bad start. Fortunately, we did extensive research and found that Rye had all the signs of being calcium, vitamin A, and vitamin D deficient. And also fortunately, we found an at home solution that wouldn't harm Rye, even if it didn't help him. Daily, we gave him a drop of cod liver oil on each eye and a drop of vitamin A oil in his mouth and we put him in a small square bowl that had previously belonged to one of my most beloved pets, my beta fish, Rico (he's in a better place now). I know this is long, but please, bear with me. Rye (still unable to see) now had a basking lamp and we fed him mainly oranges; not because we didn't know what his diet should be, but because that was the only thing he would eat. He had enough water in there so that he didn't overheat and one day BOOM! He opens his eyes! (In real time, it was about a week and a half).
<Great to hear>
So, fast forward and I start to notice a few things: Rye's shell is curving upwards around the edges and the scutes (is that a word?<yep>) sections of his shell are a bit . . . lumpy. Again, I researched and found that the curving of the shell could be Metabolic Bone Disease (is that a correct diagnosis?) and that it often begins early on if they don't have a basking
lamp which, at one time, Rye did not. I read that the disease could be stopped if I got him a UVB lamp, which I need to buy. He has a heat lamp. I also read that the lumpiness of Rye's scutes is what's known as pyramiding.
It's not bad . . . well, I guess any kind of pyramiding is bad. But, I can't reverse it, so I have to work with it.
<I'll get into that a bit later.  Please continue>
Another thing is, when I pick him up, he is not at all sociable. If I try to tickle the back end of his shell, he snaps at me -- and he's caught me twice already. I've checked his shell over and there are no soft spots, no white spots, no sort of indication that there might be a fungal or bacterial infection. Is it at all possible that Rye was simply traumatized by his first sickness?
<Probably a more simple explanation>
About every 2 weeks, I go over Rye's shell with a soft tooth brush and some water. Is there a special solution I'm supposed to be using? Do I need to do this more frequently? Also, if Rye's shell curving p around the edges is MBD,  after I've gotten him a UVB, how will I be able to tell if MBD is no longer affecting him? I've recently introduced live protein (minnows) and
he loved it. He snubs the leafy greens, though; I've tried everything from Anacharis to duckweed to romaine lettuce. I'm at a loss. I read somewhere that younger RESs are more carnivorous than the older ones, but this is just ridiculous! Is there any way to get him to eat his greens? I put a Marimo moss ball in his tank, too. I read that it helps keep algae away,
but it seems to have given his water a green tint . . . . Will that go away?  I can't tell if I'm worrying too much or not.
<No - you're worrying exactly the right amount>
Sigh. I love my turtle, but he worries me more than my dogs and rabbit does. Anyways, thanks so much for reading this! It would be excellent if you'd reply, though!
<First, you have experienced first hand what it's like to be unprepared and to make an impulse purchase of a live animal.  The problem is that RYE has also suffered from the pitfalls of an impulse purchase.  Still, all things considered, most people who make impulse purchases don't notice their errors until it's too late, so really - congratulations on seeing the error of your ways before Rye became terminal!>
<Now let's start at the beginning.   Rye's behavior is not that unusual for an adult male, which is what you have.  He may have been traumatized by all the past treatments but what's more likely is that as a little guy he was intimidated by his surroundings so remained quiet.  It's likely that now that he feels grown up and not afraid, he's asserting himself.  Make sure that, when you handle him, you move him slowly, don't turn him sideways or upside down and that you keep your fingers away from his head.  If you interact with him slowly and calmly, he may settle down and do the same to you>
<Now the shell.  The conditions of the shell don't appear to be primary MBD as much a signs of an overly fed turtle.   It's normal that the edges of the shell curl a bit as they grow, but the curling and the pyramiding of the shell can be seen in turtles with bad nutrition and also TOO MUCH nutrition.   Surprisingly I see this all the time.  People who feed their turtles and tortoises a PERFECT diet - but simply feed them too much and too often - will see the pyramiding of the scutes almost as if the shell is growing faster than the rest of the animal so the shell grows inward and upward.   The solution is of course, proper nutrition.  For a Red Eared Slider or any water turtle it's either Repto-Min food sticks or Koi Pellets, which is the same as the Repto-min only much cheaper, but a COMPLETELY balanced food source.  I raise hatchling sliders that grow into full sized breeders on Kay-Tee brand Koi Pellets with an occasional (once or twice a month) earthworm as a treat.  Fish, amazingly, are not part of Rye's diet in the wild and aren't all that good for him -- except that the energy he expends trying to catch them is good for him.>
<Buy a small bag of Koi pellets, but don't feed Rye for 4 days.  He'll be good and hungry by then.  Float a very few pellets in front of him and give him the opportunity to feed.  If he does, great - if not, scoop out the pellets, skip a day and try again.  Trust me, it may be a test of wills to see which one of you will caved-in first, but he WILL eat the pellets eventually>
<For his treat, you can also try small pieces of beef or chicken liver. 
When I say small I mean no bigger than your pinky finger nail.   Place Rye in a shallow bowl of water (not over his head) give him a few minutes to settle down and stop trying to climb out, then drop the liver in.   If he's hungry he'll eat it quickly and you can give him a second small piece. 
It's a great source of minerals and vitamins, too.)>
<Rye does need a UV-B lamp.  Our friends at Zoo-Med make bulbs that are a combination of UV-b and heat lamps that fit in a conventional reflector bulb holder>
<Here is a link to all the stuff you need to know:
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/RESCareBarton.htm now, if you read, understand and follow the guidelines in that article, you may never need THIS article, but scan it anyway
http://www.wetwebmedia.com/FWSubWebIndex/treating%20RES%20Dis%20DarrelB.htm 
>
<Now, regarding the pictures, Rye is a handsome looking guy!>