Water turtles are a joy to watch. A person could spend
hours just watching them. Here are some basic guidelines
for the care of you water turtle.
Feeding
"Mommie, I'm hungry!" One of
the other strange behaviors that turtles do. Turtles
love to beg. One of the ways that my turtles beg, is
they will swim up to the glass near the surface of the
water and they open their mouths as if they are chomping
on food. So in the begging aspect, they are a lot like
dogs.
Water turtles need to be fed in the water.
They can not swallow their food unless they are in the
water.
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Most people that I have read about feed their
turtles a prepared balanced food, such as Tetra
Reptomin or Purina Trout Chow. I call this the
everyday "dry" food. Some people say
that you can feed your turtles cat food (I guess
they are like cats too then!). They use a cat
treat called Tender Kittels. But you can't feed
them that everyday, because they are very fatty
and are high in protein. When your turtles are
young, they are carnivorous. They love chicken,
turkey and tuna. Always have their meats cooked.
And never feed them hamburger...too fatty! You
can occasionally feed them brine shrimp, ocean
fish, and squid. You can also feed them the little
creatures of the river. My turtles love small
salamanders, snails, and crayfish. Of course it
was a handicap match. My husband pulled off the
large front claws of the crayfish so that our
turtles won't get hurt.
Speaking of chasing their food, feeder fish or
gold fish are good foods to have, especially when
you go away on short trips. They will leave your
turtles entertained for hours. Crickets and worms
are good too, but make sure you rinse them off
first because of pesticides and fertilizers.
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As your turtles get older, they will start
to eat more fruits and vegetables. Some good fruits
and veggies to feed them include: bananas, strawberries,
blueberries, peas, mulberry leaves, escarole, endive
and romaine. Do not use iceberg lettuce. Lots
of leafy greens are good for your turtle because of
the natural vitamins and calcium. Dandelion leaves are
very high in the calcium and vitamin A they need. Do
not use spinach. They can also feed on plants like amazon
swords, anachris, water lettuce, and water hyacinth.
When your turtles are young you need to
feed them everyday. I used to feed my turtles once when
I got up in the morning and then again in the afternoon
right before I left for work. Now I just feed them once
in the morning. Occasionally I give in to their begging
and give them a little snack in the afternoon. As they
get older, you will only have to feed them once every
other day. Turtles aren't like us, they don't have to
eat everyday to survive. Hey, in the wild they don't
eat everyday!
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If you would
like more information on caring for turtles,
Amazon.com has this excellent book available for
purchase.
(link will open in a new window)
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Visit our Turtle
Setup and Supplies Section
for all of your turtle care needs.
