We know that there is a species of turtle called the red-eared slider but even these turtles don’t have red eyes, if you see red in your turtle’s eyes in your turtle then you may start to worry.
This article is a look into why your turtle’s eyes are red
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Why are my turtle’s eyes red?
Red eyes in humans are usually a sign of mechanical irritation at the eye, an allergic reaction, an infection, excess sun exposure, or excess exposure to dry air.
You may be wondering why this may be happening with your turtle. Here is why your turtle’s eyes may be red:
Injury:
Just as with human eyes, turtle eyes that are injured can turn red.
If your turtle scratched its own eye, or if something else scratched your turtle’s eyes, then the eyes can become red and inflamed. Even a tiny scratch could have caused the redness and inflammation.
What to do:
You don’t have to worry too much if this happens with your turtle, the eye will remedy itself in the coming days and your pet’s eye will go back to normal.
Giving your pet an eye ointment, like Mycitracin may be helpful. This product is usually used to treat minor skin infections caused by small cuts, burns, or scrapes.
You can also have your pet seen by a vet if you think that something else is wrong, or, if the cut is not healing.
Irritation:
Eye irritation, from dirty water, may be another reason for the eye irritation and the redness in your pet’s eyes.
What to do:
Maintaining clean water in your pet’s enclosure is a must. You can do this by using an under-gravel filter with a simple pump like a powerhead pump.
Siphoning out the tank is necessary if you have this type of filter. Make sure that you also siphon the stuff hiding under the gravel.
You’d also need to make sure that the levels of ammonia in your pet’s tank are controlled, the water may have high amounts of ammonia even when the water is clear.
Clean out the water in your pet’s tank every week or so to avoid any problems.
Eye infection:
Another reason why your pet’s eyes may be turning red may be that the animal is suffering from an eye infection.
Turtles can develop infections in many different parts of their body, the eye included, and one sign of an eye infection in turtles is redness in the eyes
Other signs of an eye infection in turtles are one or both eyes becoming swollen, excessive eye discharge, and swollen eyelids.
What to do:
Eye infections are usually caused by bacteria, and bacterial infections are usually treated using antibiotics. So, you’d need to take your pet turtle to the vet if you think that the animal has an eye infection.
The vet will run blood tests on the animal to determine if your pet is suffering from an eye infection before treatment is given
If you enjoyed this article then you may also be interested in other turtle/tortoise related articles. Here are some articles that you may be interested in: Why Is My Tortoise’s Mouth Black?, Why Is My Tortoise Frothing At The Mouth?, Why Is My Turtle’s Mouth Green?, Why Is My Tortoise’s Mouth Green?, Why Do Tortoises Like Corners?, Why Do Tortoises Like Shoes?, Why Do Tortoises Like Feet?, Why Are My Turtle’s Feet White?, Why Is My Turtle’s Mouth Foaming?,