Baby slider turtle-girl or boy?
i have a new pet turtle, and i dont know how to tell whether its a boy or girl. what are some cluuues.
take it to a vet.
Well it's hard to sex any animal and with turtles, the best mode is to compare it to another turtle that you know what it is. If you don't have another turtle, search "sexing turtles" and just look at a few sites.
Another impulsive part to this is that the different sexes of turtles don't start showing differences until their about 5 years old. But the biggest difference I know is near the plastron (bottom shell plate). Males have a concave plaston which makes it easier to mount the females. Females plaston is flatter because they aren't the ones mounting... (or shouldn't be :-P ).
Answers: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29035692(a)N0...
Total Body length: 5-8" average for males, up to 12 inches max for females. Life span: 15-25+ years
Males enjoy the longer front nails and are used in mating. And are considered ripened at about 5 yrs old. You can’t start sexing till about 3” across.
some guidance..
Remember 10 gallons for every inch of turtle. I have used kiddy pools and plastic pond liners from most nurseries and now a 150 gal pond.
They are the coolest. Not cuddly pets at adjectives. And a life time commitment.
Sliders, cooters , painted, map, yellow bellied all are vitally the same and require the same basic thoroughness.
For their needed protein and calcium drop 20 or so feeder guppies, goldfish or minnows in the tank and watch them disappear contained by a few days! When I got these two 36 yrs ago all we had within back then were goldfish to nurture , so after 36 yrs and still going strong. They can eat goldfish!
This way when they swim for their dinner they get exercise also! TOSS within a bird cuttle bone in the water for calcium that will promote better shell growth, it will dissolve real slow and whether they eat it that’s fine!!
They can have garden worms, meal worms, snails, crickets, flies, crayfish small frogs, slugs, tadpoles dragon flies and anything that moves, but individual as a treat.
They need leafy greens Romaine, Butter lettuce. (Iceberg and cabbage are bad for them, any other leafy greens will do) for vitamin A that they need at most minuscule 3 to 4 times a week.
They love grapes and strawberries and squash..
These two females of mine are which I have carted around for 36 long yrs plus 3 adoptees in the later 6 yrs. Which my kids aren’t even that old. And having 5 for the last 6 yrs I spend over 300.00 a month which includes over 400 goldfish and minnows per month. Leafy greens and fruits 4 times a week and plus electricity plus I also nurture dried cubed blood worms or tubiflex worms at least 5 times a week. For one turtle its still going to cost ya. The setup alone tank, Big tank, space heater, GOOD filter, UVA/UVB rep light, basking dock. Feeders, greens, fruits, dried turtle food. and electricity?
Did you know that they need to bask underneath a reptile light UVA/UVB for up to 8 hrs a day for the vitamin D that they need to grow. So that resources getting a turtle dock also.
Leave the heater on 75 to 78 degrees always.
These turtles surrounded by captivity do not hibernate their eating may slow down some but they will not hibernate.
These are not cuddly pets and will bite very very rugged.
Under 4" they carry a disease called 'salmonella'. So you must wash after every handling. These guys can become cannibalistic and will murder the smallest turtle if there is not enough room and food.
And my pictures don't tell stories. All ages and all sizes get along as long as their is allot for swim room and plenty to eat!
Their hose needs to be clean otherwise they get sick confidently from dirty water cause they poop allot. You need a well-mannered filter system!
Gravel larger than they can swallow.
They sleep at the bottom of rivers, streams. lakes or ponds or your tank to avoid predators like coyotes, foxes, owls, hawks, possums, raccoons and even some huge mouth bass and us humans.
You probably already know that they get sick easily, shell rot, respiratory sickness, lopsided swimming, coughing, blowing bubbles from their nose. Fungus white cotton patch on their skin?
**Swollen cloudy eyes which means lacking in Vitamin A. Which we adjectives need for good eyes. Google ‘vegetables with Vitamin A.
Contact the “www.anapsid.org/societies, for a turtle vet / RESCUE contained by your city and state. I wish you luck.
You can't give an account, not safely, anyway. Wait a few years and ask again.
I have a red-eared slider turtle who is masculine. The males claws are longer and larger than the females. The tail is also a good clue. If your turtle's tail is long and thin, it is most likely a girl. If it is thicker and longer, it is probably a boy.
