All Turtles Message Board

dd3916 · Guest Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 3

i found ~4" slider in my garden (plastic) pond. the pond is ~18" deep, 30" round. i have made him a sunning area and keep feeders, along with adding a few pellets, lettuce, etc for food. i am concerned about winter (s. tx) and hibernation. should i remove him to a natural habitat or will he survive here? we would like to see how long he sticks around but not if it will eventually endanger him. information would be appreciated.

dixieee · Posted: Sun Sep 11, 2005 12:39 pm Post subject:

welcome to the board Smile

many ppl don't suggest keeping a wild turtle but in this case i do encourage it. winter is coming and he might be too young to hibernate if he was kept outside. move him in for the winter and provide the heat he needs until spring comes and u make up ur mind about him.

good luck and keep us posted
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Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u

deesygirl · Moderator Joined: 12 Sep 2002 Posts: 1231

The temps in South Texas are fine for hibernating. If he has hung around this long I don't think he will leave by himself.

I wish I lived in an area that turtles could show up in my yard. How neat is that! Smile

STRAYKINGFISHER · Posted: Mon Sep 12, 2005 3:43 pm Post subject:

I have seen plenty of toads, but no turtles yet. Very Happy

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dd3916 · Guest Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 3

how do turtles hibernate? do they come out of the water and dig underground or do they stay in the water? seems like i read they stayed in the water and dug down???

dixieee · Posted: Wed Sep 14, 2005 5:51 pm Post subject:

dd3916 · Guest Joined: 11 Sep 2005 Posts: 3

so i understand the reply i had on hibernation. my real concern is i have a plastic pond in my garden that this turtle took up habitat. there is no mud (other than the few plants in pots i have, that he happily is enjoying). i would like for it to stick around, but i don't want it to die during the winter. should i move him to a natural body of water in the area? this is a wild turtle that found me. cool, but i don't want to keep it if it will die in my ~18 - 22" deep, ~36" round plastic pond. he is also too large to keep in any aquarium i have, or that i am willing to invest.

again, my kids & i think it is neat to have him around, but not at the expense of it's health.

we have been giving it feeders and other types of food, so he seems quite content for now and we would be willing to continue this. in fact, i intend next spring to re-do my pond area - this one was an experiment. it is just winter that i am concerned about at this point.

dixieee · Posted: Thu Sep 15, 2005 2:35 am Post subject:

hmm i'm not sure if he's ready to hibernate yet. that could be the first winter for it so even if u leave it in the wild it might not be able to do it. i read some articles that don't really encourage hibernating for new turtles cz of 2 things: 1- new owners don't have enough experience. 2- new turtles might not be ready for that (either physically or whatever)

if u can keep him inside for this winter then go for it and next year u might be able to put him outside so he hibernates. if not, try to find a pond where there are other turtles and put him there.

good luck and keep us posted
_________________
Wed 10/27/2004 is the worst day..i lost my best friend Leo

so now i have a female RES, Green, and a cute stupid male YBS, Mint

5/4/2006 RIP Lemon, u were my first rescue and i'm so proud of u. will never 4get u

STRAYKINGFISHER · Posted: Thu Sep 15, 2005 9:29 am Post subject:

They make pond heaters that you can use to keep the water heated I would also provide a heat source that can be kept on all night, I use a ceramic heater (looks like a mushroom with a flat top), it doesn't put out any light, just heat, so it won't bother any of your neighbors and it will provide your turtle with the heat that it would need to keep from freezing.
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