Your turtle doing anything frantically will raise your eyebrows, and this is understandable, anything done frantically usually means that something is up.
This article looks into why your turtle may be swimming frantically
Table of Contents
Why is my turtle swimming frantically?
Being worried about any odd behavior that your turtle exhibits is perfectly normal and is an appropriate response to have, one behavior that is not normal is the animal swimming frantically.
Here is why your turtle may be swimming frantically:
It is scared:
If your pet turtle is acting out of the ordinary, if it seems to be swimming like its life depends on it, then that may be the case.
Your pet may have seen something threatening, like a new human in the area, or a dog or cat, and may interpret this as a threat, as a result, your pet may start to swim around frantically.
The animal may even bump into the tank’s glass because it doesn’t realize that it can’t swim past this invisible barrier.
Red-eared sliders, when scared, will slide into the water when a threat comes around, that’s why they are named “sliders”.
What to do:
Limiting the amount of time that new people can be around your turtle is recommended.
If you want new people around your pet then bring them in at short intervals and start them off far away, like at the doorway, then allow them to get closer to the turtle as days and weeks go.
Also, keeping your turtle separate from your dogs and cats should help to keep your turtle calmer. You can use a privacy screen to separate the two of them
It wants food:
If when you come around, your pet starts frantically swimming towards you, splashing around and following you, then the animal may simply be begging for food.
Begging for food in this case will not necessarily mean that they aren’t being fed enough, only that they always want food
These animals are opportunistic feeders and they will beg for food every time you’re around because they don’t know if they will ever eat again.
What to:
Don’t give in when you see your pet doing this. Giving these animals more food than what they’re supposed to be eating will cause your pet to become overweight and this can negatively affect the animal’s health.
As long as you’re feeding the animal the right amount of food for its size and age then the animal will be fine.
Incorrect tank conditions:
Sometimes your pet may swim frantically because of the conditions in the tank. Tank water that is clear is not necessarily clean, the unclean water may be irritating your pet’s skin, mouth, or eyes.
In addition, the water in the tank may be too hot for the turtle. Most turtles will only feel comfortable in water that is between 75 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit and this temperature has to be kept consistent.
If the water is too hot then this will stress the turtle and cause it to swim frantically.
What to do:
Testing your pet’s water conditions for an imbalance of chemicals, and then changing the water if needed, is recommended.
You’d also need to measure the temperature of the water, and change the temperature, if it is too hot for the turtle.
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 Does My Turtle Hiss At Me, Why Does My Turtle Pee On Me?, Why Is My Turtle A Picky Eater?, Why Is My Turtle Panicking?, Why Does My Turtle Have A Lump On His Neck?, Why Is My Turtle Digging In The Rocks?, Why Does My Turtle Move His Rocks?, Why Is My Turtle Digging In The Sand?, Why Is My Turtle Burrowing?