Turtles like swimming but you may start to worry if you notice that your turtle isn’t swimming anymore, the turtle is floating.
This article is a look into why your pet turtle seems to be floating
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Why is my turtle just floating?
All animals can float, turtles included, but if floating is all your turtles do then you may start to worry. Here are the reasons why your turtle may be floating:
Just floating:
One of the reasons why your pet turtle floats is because it enjoys it. These animals can adjust their buoyancy when they desire and will choose to do this in order to float on water.
The animal’s body will float and its head will be looking up, this is normal. If your pet is floating and its head is facing down then this is not normal and you should worry
What to do:
This is normal behavior, as long as the animal’s head is up then you can let the animal be, float, and enjoy itself.
The animals may simply need some well-deserved time of inactivity or a well-deserved snooze
Respiratory infection:
Another reason why your pet may be floating may be because the animal has a respiratory infection.
Respiratory infections cause air to be distributed abnormally in your turtle’s body, this will cause your pet to float, even when it doesn’t want to.
Other signs of a respiratory infection in turtles include sneezing, bubbles at the mouth nose, or mouth, abnormal body posture, wheezing when breathing, open mouth breathing, and exaggerated head or neck movements when breathing,
This condition can be caused by parasites, fungi, viruses, or bacteria infecting the turtle.
What to do:
Because this condition can be caused by a variety of things the treatment for it can be one of a variety of medications, or a combination of medications.
You would need to take your pet to a vet, preferably a vet who has experience with turtles, for an examination, diagnosis, and treatment
The turtle’s lungs may need imaging, such as an X-ray, to evaluate the animal’s lungs.
If it is found that your pet does have this condition, then your pet may be given antibiotics, antifungals, or anti-parasitic medications.
If you can’t immediately get your pet to the vet make sure that you maintain a clean environment in the enclosure and increase the temperature of your pet’s enclosure.
The increase will help the animal fight the infection. Raise the temperature to 83.6 – 84. 6 degrees F not hotter no lower.
Gastrointestinal issues:
Another reason why your pet may be floating may be that there is an issue with your pet’s gastrointestinal tract.
Your pet may have excessive gas in its gastrointestinal tract and this will result in high buoyancy.
High buoyancy will cause the animal to float, even when it does not want to float.
What to do:
If you think that your pet has gastrointestinal issues then you can wait it out and allow the issue to remedy itself, it usually does.
If the issue does not remedy itself or if the condition keeps coming back, then it’s suggested that you put the animal on a diet of a lot of antioxidants.