All Turtles Message Board

mn2az87 · Level 1 Joined: 04 Mar 2006 Posts: 7

About a week ago my daughter came over and said that she wanted a turtle, I told her we'll see. She replied with the neighbor is selling one with tank for $20 so I said yes. The only thing I knew about turtles is that they can get huge and live forever. After doing a search on google, I quickly started to think "what did you get me into?" Then I found you guys so things should get easier. Ok I've figured out the turtle is a RES. I think it is a male by some info I've read. She named him Squirt from Finding Nemo. He is about 4" long (shell) -- any idea of about how old he may be? The neighbors had no idea of how to care for him, they had him in like a 5g tank with no dry/basking area. I had just got my hands on a 125g tank but has a crack in the back panel which didn't matter because I have been wanting to get another Iguana. I had one years ago that was just under 6' long with a broken tail. Izzy would climb up on the couch and lay in front of me and watch tv, made the girlfriend mad all the time. She had free roam of the house since she was house trained. Bathroom was always destroyed because had to have about 2" of water in the tub for her to do her duties and of course she couldn't leave the towels in place to dry her off. Well back to Squirt, the crack can be repaired, hopefully this weekend but anybody have any ideas of how to create the wet/dry invironment that he needs. At 4" he doesn't need 125g of water. What I would like to do is about 1/2-2/3 water and the rest dry. How big should he get and how much water space does he need as a full grown turtle, creating the max space for him while reducing my maintnance time? How do you keep the dry part dry? My best friend has a 10g tank that he isn't using right now that i've snagged and have a huge rock inside of it for Squirt to dry/bask on for now. Also at his size, how much should I be feeding him? They had Wardley's Reptile premium sticks (about 1/4" long) and said to give him only 5 pieces once a day. I'm beginning to think that is not enough. Any other suggestions or tips of things I should know or be aware of would be awesome since I'm now new to "THE TURTLE WORLD" Thanx in advance TJ

dixieee · Posted: Sun Mar 05, 2006 2:32 pm Post subject:

welcome to the board Smile

it's nice of u deciding to take care of the turtle and searching for info about it. a 125g will be the coolest thing u could ever give a turtle especially since he's a guy. ok one thing u can do is get a floating dock for him. something a little bit more complicated is stacking blocks over each other until they get over the water level. hmm doesn't look so fancy but well u can get a piece of glass and divide the container then fill the dry part with large river rocks (bigger than the turtle's head so he doesn't eat them). many things to do but i'll try to post some pix of different setups so u have more ideas.

for feeding, i guess this should be ok but add something to it like veggies. they love carrots and lettuce and by now ur guy should be eating them. they also love meats (cooked chicken and turkey, meat, tuna, shrimps, fish, worms,...) but those should be given only as treats. no more than one or twice a week

good luck with ur new guy and keep us posted Smile

P.S: i suppose u know about the lights and temps rights??
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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

mn2az87 · Level 1 Joined: 04 Mar 2006 Posts: 7

Got the light and temp understood but may have a problem with the tank, the top cross supports have broken or cut out so fear if I put water or too much water in it that it will just bow out the sides especially the side that is already cracked. Quick question, Squirt has been sitting on top of his rock and not moving much for like 4-5 hours. Seems to be ok since he stretches out his legs & neck. Don't laugh but it is almost like he is sitting there watching TV since that is the way he faces. Not worring to much since after doing some reading that they need a dry deck and they only gave me a small tank with only water so kind of figured he has some drying out to do. Thanx for the info TJ

dixieee · Posted: Mon Mar 06, 2006 2:23 pm Post subject:

remember that they're semi-aquatics and need dry land as much as they need water especially RES's, they're agressive baskers. ur guy seems to be enjoying the heat and UV up there that's why he's stretching. i would worry if he over-does it though and never went to swim.

ok for the water, u don't need it that deep for now anyways cz if he's not used to swimming he might drown so increase the water level gradually till he masters it. and btw, they learn quickly especially at a young age. a small not here, water should be at least twice his lengths so if he falls on his back he could swim and flip again by himself
_________________
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

trtlduv · Posted: Mon Mar 06, 2006 3:09 pm Post subject:

Welcome to the board! Sounds like you're doing your research! Laughing

My son was the one who wanted a turtle for his b-day last year and wouldn't you know it, I'm more attached than he is!! Wink

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shade & sweetwater!

mn2az87 · Level 1 Joined: 04 Mar 2006 Posts: 7

I swear to god that he sits there and watches tv. It cools though.

dixieee · Posted: Wed Mar 08, 2006 4:00 pm Post subject:

yeah keep the discovery channel on for him Smile

_________________
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

turtleman941 · Level 3 Joined: 13 Apr 2006 Posts: 165 Location: Oregon

lol

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I LOVE TURTLES!!!!!!!!

Nevfalath · Posted: Thu Apr 20, 2006 8:43 pm Post subject:

I know this reply is late, but I just wanted to say that it sounds like you are doing an excellent job. A full grown male RES needs a 70 gallon tank, and a full grown female needs a 120 gallon, so your tank is definitely a good size.

Also, your turtle is just basking. He probably isn't (well, wasn't) used to all the warm light and dry basking area where he lived before. In the wild, I see turtles on logs, their limbs all stretched out and enjoying the sunlight.
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-= Shannon =-

Robin_Luver13 · Posted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 5:17 pm Post subject:

if hes up for a few hours, just remember its like hes sunbathing on the beach (minus skin cancer risks) and its not uncommon for them to take naps while basking, mine does it all the time! just make sure that they do swim and go in the water, other wise he could be sick!

good luck and welcome to the board! this board is one of the best things and i dont know what id do without it!
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I'm back! Hope I can help...

I love my baby, Robin, an Eastern Painted Turtle