Control Methods and Technical Key Points for Soft-shelled Turtle Diseases

Soft-shelled turtles have strong adaptability and resistance, and diseases rarely occur in farming production; however, improper feeding and management can also lead to disease. Common soft-shelled turtle diseases include:

Red Neck Disease

The pathogen is Aeromonas bacteria. The main symptoms are loss of appetite, sluggish movement, red and swollen congested neck that extends and cannot retract, red spots appearing on the abdomen, sometimes floating on the water surface, sometimes crouching on sandy ground. In severe cases, bleeding from the mouth and nose, intestinal inflammation and putrefaction, generalized redness and swelling, cloudy white eyes with blindness, enlarged liver and spleen, followed shortly by death.

Control methods: (1) Strictly prohibit ammonia-containing water from flowing into the turtle pond, always keep the water clean, do not allow diseased turtles to mix in, and pay even more attention to disease prevention when water temperature drops. (2) Mix antibiotics such as oxytetracycline, chlortetracycline, chloramphenicol, or sulfa drugs into the bait and feed; the dosage on the first day is 0.2 g per kg of turtle, halved from the second to the fifth day. (3) Prepare a vaccine from the diseased tissues of affected turtles, mix it into the bait for feeding or use it for intraperitoneal injection.

Skin Rot Disease

Caused by Bacillus monosporus infection; when turtles fight in the pond and are injured, bacteria infect the wounds, causing necrosis of the skin tissue around the injured area. The skin on the limbs, neck, tail, and skirt edges of diseased turtles putrefies, erodes, and necroses, forming ulcers. In severe cases, the skin of the limbs rots away, the claws also fall off, the bones are exposed, the muscles and bones of the neck are also exposed, and the skirt edges ulcerate.

Control methods: (1) When diseased turtles are found, isolate and treat them promptly; soak the diseased turtles in 100 ppm sulfa drugs or antibiotics for 48 hours. (2) Raise large and small turtles separately to prevent injuries from fighting over food, which can lead to bacterial infection. (3) When this disease is found, replace with fresh water and change the water quality.

White Spot Disease

This disease is also called mucormycosis. The pathogen is a mold of the order Algales, family Mucoraceae, genus Mucor. Spots appear on the limbs and skirt edges of diseased turtles; in the early stage they appear only on the skirt edges, and later gradually expand to form patches of white spots, causing epidermal necrosis and producing partial ulcers. Turtles raised in flowing-water ponds and recirculating water tanks are especially susceptible to this disease. Burrowing into mud and abraded skin may become gateways for mold infection. When the mold parasitizes the throat, it can affect breathing and cause death, but deaths are rare.

Control methods: This disease tends to multiply rapidly in flowing water; in fertilized water, mold growth is inhibited by competition from other bacteria, so the disease is milder, therefore do not use antibiotics. Thoroughly clear and disinfect the pond, apply fertilizer regularly to maintain a certain fertility of the pond water; handle turtles carefully to prevent body injuries; when the disease occurs, apply sulfa ointment to the affected areas of the turtle's body, which can prevent this disease.

Hemorrhagic Disease

The pathogen of this disease may be a virus. The plastron of diseased turtles is covered with red spots and hemorrhagic points, the carapace shows ulcerative growths with bleeding ulcers, and the inner wall of the throat has extensive bleeding and necrosis; in severe cases, intestinal bleeding and mucosal ulcers are obvious, and the kidneys and liver also show hemorrhagic pathological changes. This disease is highly contagious and often causes death in batches.

Control methods: When this disease is found, immediately isolate the diseased turtles, administer sulfa drugs and antibiotics orally, or apply antibiotics to the affected areas, which has some therapeutic effect. Treatment methods are still under research.

In addition, natural enemies of soft-shelled turtles include ants, rodents, snakes, and certain birds. Ants harm hatchlings and eggs. Rodents and snakes often harm young turtles and even adult turtles.