Now what? My turtle seem elated anything else?
My small turtles (red eared sliders) are in a 50 gallon tank with a dock, warmth lamp, lots of food, I ordered some plants, got feeder fish, water heating system, etc. Is there anything important that I'm missing?
Answers: http://www.flickr.com/photos/29035692(a)N0...
Sounds resembling the perfect setup..
some advice if I may from someone that have two that are 36 yrs old?
Remember 10 gallons for every inch of turtle. I have used kiddy pools and plastic pond liners from most nurseries and presently a 150 gal pond.
They are the coolest. Not cuddly pets at all. And a life time commitment.
Sliders, cooters , painted, map, yellow bellied adjectives are basically the same and require the same central care.
For their needed protein and calcium drop 20 or so feeder guppies, goldfish or minnows in the tank and survey them disappear in a few days! When I got these two 36 yrs ago all we have in back then be goldfish to feed , so after 36 yrs and still going strong. They can eat goldfish!
This way when they swim for their dinner they catch exercise also! TOSS in a bird cuttle bone in the water for calcium that will promote better shell growth, it will dissolve indisputable slow and if they eat it that’s fine!!
They can have garden worms, teatime worms, snails, crickets, flies, crayfish small frogs, slugs, tadpoles dragon flies and anything that moves, but only 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 necessitate at least 3 to 4 times a week.
They love grapes and strawberries and squash..
Did you know that they need to bask under a reptile frothy UVA/UVB for up to 8 hrs a day for the vitamin D that they need to grow. So that means getting a turtle dock also.
Leave the furnace on 75 to 78 degrees always.
These turtles in captivity do not hibernate their ingestion may slow down some but they will not hibernate.
These are not cuddly pets and will bite very very hard.
Under 4" they convey a disease called 'salmonella'. So you must wash after every handling. These guys can become cannibalistic and will kill the smallest turtle whether there is not enough room and food.
And my pictures don't lie. All ages and adjectives sizes get along as long as their is allot for swim room and plenty to eat!
Their water wishes to be clean otherwise they get sick easily from dirty dampen cause they poop allot. You need a good filter system!
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 fully developed at about 5 yrs old. You can’t start sexing till about 3” across.
Gravel larger than they can swallow.
They sleep at the bottom of rivers, streams. lake or ponds or your tank to avoid predators like coyotes, foxes, owls, hawks, possums, raccoons and even some wide mouth bass and us humans.
You probably already know that they win sick easily, shell rot, respiratory sickness, lopsided swimming, coughing, blowing bubbles from their nose. Fungus white cotton patches on their skin?
**Swollen cloudy eyes which ability lacking in Vitamin A. Which we all want for good eyes. Google ‘vegetables with Vitamin A.
Contact the “www.anapsid.org/societies, for a turtle vet / RESCUE in your city and state. I decision you luck.
