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.
Hibernation
Do not hibernate your turtles if they
are unhealthy or sick.
I recommend not hibernating your turtles
unless you are going to breed them. Besides, it's not
fun to watch a sleeping turtle, is it?
Sliders in the southern states can be
kept outside all year round, in which they will hibernate
on their own. That's if you have provided them with
a deep enough pond with a thick mud bottom for the turtles
to bury themselves in.
Breeding
Ah, the subject of love and reproduction!
Here are some basic steps of breeding your water turtles.
However, if this is a hobby that you are interested
in getting into, I highly recommend that you first research
the subject for more extensive information. If you are
willing and able to keep all the baby turtles, or able
to find homes for these baby turtles, then it is okay
to breed your turtles. If you answered no to one or
more of these questions, then I recommend not breeding
your turtles and to destroy the eggs.
Be responsible!
To begin, you need to have at least a
pair of sexually mature turtles. That means the female
is at least five years old, and the male is at least
three years old. They must be healthy. If your turtles
are new, wait until after you have had them for a year.
Breeding usually starts in the fall. It is recommended
that you cool the turtles that you want to breed. You
do this to simulate the actual seasons of breeding.
It also brings better breeding results. January and
February is the cooling period lasting 6 to 8 weeks
long. To do this, turn off all the heating and keep
the temperature around 50F to 60F degrees. It's normal
that your turtles will eat little or nothing at all.
Let your turtles have their quiet time and leave them
be. You want to feed your turtles well during this breeding
season of love. Ensure that the female gets enough calcium
and vitamin D3.
You must provide a nesting area. For this,
you can use a box. It has to be easily accessible for
your turtle. It must have about 12 to 16 inches deep
of slightly moist soil, sand, or moss. Water turtles
can lay several clutches per summer consisting of two
to ten eggs. There are a few weeks between each clutch,
and their laying usually takes 24 to 48 hours per clutch.
After the eggs have been laid, remove the eggs. DO
NOT TURN OVER THE EGGS! To help, you can mark the
top of the egg with magic marker ensuring that you don't
turn the eggs over.
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If you would
like more information on breeding turtles,
Amazon.com has this excellent book available for
purchase.
(link will open in a new window)
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Incubation
Have a box with moistened Vermiculite
(equal parts water and vermiculite; by weight). You
can get Vermiculite from most garden centers. Make small
impressions in the Vermiculite and gently position the
egg in. You can separate stuck eggs by gently pulling
them apart. If they won't come apart easily, leave them
alone. Seal the container and make air holes. Inspect
at least once a week, but not everyday. Keep the temperature
around 82F degrees. It has been said that the temperature
around 75F degrees yields mostly males and around 85F
degrees mostly females. Do not keep them too warm as
temperatures around 100F degrees will kill them. Keep
the eggs moist by spraying them carefully. Depending
on the temperature, hatchlings can take between 60 to
120 days to hatch. After hatching, keep the babies separate
from the adults and in shallow water. Feed them at least
once a day. The babies are mostly carnivorous, but offer
the fruits and veggies too.
Visit our Turtle
Setup and Supplies Section
for all of your turtle care needs.
