A turtle on its back?

Question

Well i know a so called "turtle" and its been driving my friend crazy. she wants to know whats wrong with her turtle because its flipping over so many times and shes worried that her poor turtle might die. This turtle turns a lot! She's scared because she has school and she can't care for the turtle, but she doesn't want to return the turtle back because she loves it, like a close friend even though she only had this turtle for 2-3 weeks and its never been doing this before! And it only happens because the turtle likes to squirm in its tank, Some advice.. please?

Answer 1

1. Being on its back is bad news, but not inherently dangerous (no special stress on lungs, etc., but not healthy). It is also a bad sign when it happens over and over.

2. We need to know the species. If this is a land turtle (tortoise, box turtle, etc.) then the issue is probably a cage design issue- crawling up stuff (including the walls) and flips, for example.

If it is water turtle and swimming upside down, it is often a signal of pneumonia, etc.

The best advice I can give until you share more information is that you need to learn more about caring for this kind of turtle. A good general turtle site is http://www.austinsturtlepage.com

Answer 2

What kind of turtle does your friend have? Different kinds require different care.

Regardless, a turtle on it's back is bad news. The position creates too much pressure on it's lungs.

Here is a great turtle forum site:

http://turtletimes.com/

The site above has care sheets and a first aid section. You can browse as a guest but will need to register (for free) to ask a question.

Answer 3

That can be very serious for a turtle she might want to try to put the turtle in the tub of water and see what he does. I study a lot of activity of a lot of different animals and reptiles. If he swims with no problem he might just needs some exercise or he might have a serious condition from birth she might want to get a vet to take a look at him that won't cost her anything unless she agrees to get the treatment that he needs.

Answer 4

I observed an episode of Franklin (the turtle) the place he replaced into afraid to sleep in his shell at night. WTF is with that? If the shell comes off, why even complication going back in that slimey element to sleep? Use a blanket. i don't think of turtles come out of their shells. it is like ripping all the exterior off your back, isn't it?