Vitamin K

If the gums of your turtle are bleeding and no other health issues are present, this is usually a case of a lack of vitamin k. If this is the case you can add a vitamin k supplement to your turtles diet. You can also add more green vegetables to the turtles diet to increase the intake of vitamin k.

The most common cause of a lack of vitamin k in your turtle is prolonged antibiotic use. Antibiotics can cause significant damage to helpful bacteria that resides in the intestines of turtles. When this bacteria is lost the turtles production of vitamin k is hampered. For this reason amongst others, antibiotics should only be used when absolutely necessary. You should never give your turtle antibiotics unless they have been prescribed by a veterinarian.