All Turtles Message Board

killerndini · Guest Joined: 29 Sep 2003 Posts: 3

oh yeah, they are both about 5-6 inches big and killa is actually probably about half an inch bigger than Dini.
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~*~KaT~*~

mariza · Level 4 Joined: 10 Jul 2003 Posts: 1339

A male has a thick, broad tail with the anal vent closer to the tip than shell. His front claws will be long and spiky. A female will have a smaller tail with the anal vent closer to the shell/body than tip. Her front nails won`t be noticeably longer. She will grow larger than the male. Judging from this info, which of your turtles is which? If they`re both the same sex and doing the fluttering, it`s likely a show of dominance, not mating.

How big is your tank? From the size of your turtles, they should ideally be in at least a 100-gallon tank (general guide is 10 gallons of tank per inch of shell). Smaller spaces will bring out agression and make life miserable for an unreceptive female. Rubbermaid storage containers and stock tanks make good, cheap alternatives to aquariums.
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""You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed."" -Antoine de Saint Exupery-

killerndini · Guest Joined: 29 Sep 2003 Posts: 3

i don\'t know which one is which. i can\'t tell a difference. the one that i presume is the male is actually bigger than the other one, and i am only assuming he is male because he is the one doing most of the chasing while the other turtle keeps biting at him to push him off. they are both males according to your descriptions, but i wish someone would look at them and tell me.
they are in a 35 gallon tank because i am living in a dorm room and there is no way i can afford to bring a bigger tank mostly because of the space restrictions and the fact that my school is about 2 hrs away from home and dragging the tank is impossible as it is. i know that it should be bigger but for the next couple of years that won\'t happen.
do you think that i can put them back together in the tank and just let them fight it out ? maybe after one gets the point that the other is dominant they will leave each other alone?????
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~*~KaT~*~

mariza · Level 4 Joined: 10 Jul 2003 Posts: 1339

No, I don`t think you can put them back in the tank and let them \"fight it out\"! One of them is going to get hurt or worse if the agression continues/escalates. At the very least, constant aggression is going to make life miserable for the less dominant one, and the stress of living in that type of environment will affect his health. (Would you like to live in a situation where you were picked on all the time?)

If they can`t get along, they will need to be separated. If you can`t care for both of them, maybe you should bring one home the next time you go, create a set-up for it there, and have someone care for it until you finish the term.

For a bigger space, consider getting something like a Rubbermaid storage container instead of a regular tank. They are cheap, durable and easy to clean. I don`t know if it`s possible to find one in a size that would adequately fit both of them, though.
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""You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed."" -Antoine de Saint Exupery-

sbturtlegrlz6 · Level 4 Joined: 27 Jul 2003 Posts: 553

they are prob. females fighting this is normal separate them!
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i LOVVVVVVVVVVVE TURTLES AND I HAVE TEN RES AND ONE PAINTER,I LOVE THEM THEIR NAMES ARE SPREE,MAC,REESE,CHUBBLES,BUBBLES,CLICK, FLOAT,REESIE,CABOODLES,SHESHE, Big eyed BABY JAWS!!! I LLLLLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEEEEE TURTLES!!!!!!!!

killerndini · Guest Joined: 29 Sep 2003 Posts: 3

alrite. so not only does one of them bite the other one, now he/she is biting her own hand!!!!!!!!!!!!! i dont know wat to do Sad

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~*~KaT~*~

mariza · Level 4 Joined: 10 Jul 2003 Posts: 1339

They really should be separated.
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""You become responsible, forever, for what you have tamed."" -Antoine de Saint Exupery-