Red Ear Slider- Turtles as a (Pet)

[swiftshift]

Hi guys,

My friend has given me 2 red ear slider turtles which they had as pets for over 3 year’s
One is female which is approx. 7.5-8 inches long and 2.5-3 inches wide
The other is male, which is probably 2.5-inches long and 2 inches wide
Long story short, I have bought a 20GAL tank yesterday from Pet Smart just to have the turtles In some sort of water as they didn’t give me a tank as well.

I am looking to go to Pet Smart today to return the 20GAL tank and purchase a 75GAL + with stand, however my question to some people are is just this

- Is there an alternative than PET SMART to purchase? *I HAVE SEARCHED ON CRAIGSLIST however no RECTANGULAR tanks are being sold at this moment as turtles I feel the tank needs more width than height.

- What to feed
- Should I take it out the tank to walk
- How often to feed it?

Hard to determine as there is so much more content on the internet!

Thanks

[fliptuner]

Originally Posted by swiftshift

- Should I take it out the tank to walk

Make sure you make a vid of this. Preferably at Aberdeen or near a lake.

[GLOW]

[Spoon]

Originally Posted by swiftshift

- Is there an alternative than PET SMART to purchase? *I HAVE SEARCHED ON CRAIGSLIST however no RECTANGULAR tanks are being sold at this moment as turtles I feel the tank needs more width than height.

Try King Ed Pets.

[fliptuner]

@GLOW - Caption should read, " Heading to Aberdeen fountain for a swim."

[Inaii]

Glow I'm pretty sure that's a tortoise

[HKS PWR]

A 75 Gallon tank isn't big enough for two full grown red eared sliders. In fact, it's marginally adequate for ONE at full grown size. You'll need a tank with a footprint of 24"x72" (approx 180 gallons) for them to be comfortable.

[kr4l]

Off topic but I swear to god one time on the turnoff at garden city onto sea island way, there was a fucking turtle in the middle of the road and cars were actually stopped watching it cross the road. Can't even make that shit up

[Marshall Placid]

Had 3 red-ear sliders for 17 years, one of which died on the 8th year (see below for more info)

Here are some tips and answers to your questions:

- What to feed
-Turtle pellets for regular food (but change the entire bottle once every six months if you don't finish feeding the pellets because the longer you keep the bottle, the more nutrients it loses until there is no nutritional value in them)
-leafy veggis like lettuce once a week


- Should I take it out the tank to walk
No.

Taking them out for a walk is only for your enjoyment (if you wanted to do it).

- How often to feed it?

A few times a week.

But, don't put too many pellets in the water at any single time.

Rather, feed them less pellets, but increase the feeding periods.

--------------------------------------
A male and a female?

The male might bite the female, sometimes causing the female to bleed profusely.

If this happens, it's time to separate the 2 sliders into 2 tanks.

My third female slider (who died) was bitten by a male and it basically made the female bleed profusely (made the tank red), and she died.

This was when we were not home, so we couldn't do anything.

The SAME male bit the second female, and we were at home and saw the tank water turning red.

We basically took the female out, staunched the bleeding, and she survived.

So, watch out for any aggression towards the female.

At 3 years, the male is ready to mate, but the female might not be, or might never be receptive towards that one single male.

----------------------------

Water level need not be too high, but make sure there is a large rock or space for them to bask (sp).

They are usually inside the water 80% of the time.

Get a heat lamp (a reptile heat lamp) to be used for the basking.

Make sure the temperature is right.

Change the filter system once every 1.5 weeks.

Good luck.

They should be able to live up to 25 years in captivity.

[GLOW]

Originally Posted by fliptuner

@GLOW - Caption should read, " Heading to Aberdeen fountain for a swim."

more like heading to aberdeen fountain to take a dump

Originally Posted by Inaii

Glow I'm pretty sure that's a tortoise

only one i could find with a leash. besides, your expertise ends about here

[threezero]

Exotic reptile owner here. Not the best verse in turtle care but do some googling and look for their care sheet. I'm part of couple local reptile owner groups on Facebook that have reptile care stuff for sale constantly. Pm me if you want the names.

In general reptile ownership is very different from dogs and cats. They don't seek human attention, the majority of keeping them is getting the husbandry right.

[swiftshift]

Tank is setup
75 GAL
Heater - keeping temperature at 76-84 Degree's
Have rocks and a UV Heat Lamp for them to rest sometimes

HOWEVER THEY DO NOT EAT!
I purchased Turtle Food ( GREEN PELLETS ) From Pet Smart however they have not eaten in 3 days..

What should I do?

[threezero]

Originally Posted by swiftshift

Tank is setup
75 GAL
Heater - keeping temperature at 76-84 Degree's
Have rocks and a UV Heat Lamp for them to rest sometimes

HOWEVER THEY DO NOT EAT!
I purchased Turtle Food ( GREEN PELLETS ) From Pet Smart however they have not eaten in 3 days..

What should I do?

I wouldn't be too worry yet. Their metabolism is not like mammals. Probabaly still stress out from being move to a new environment. Disturb them as little as possible. Start worry about a week or 2

[Marshall Placid]

The turtles can survive without eating for a few weeks minimum.

The good news is that BOTH turtles are not eating, so as threezero said, it might be stress from the need to adjust.

[swiftshift]

Originally Posted by Marshall Placid

The turtles can survive without eating for a few weeks minimum.

The good news is that BOTH turtles are not eating, so as threezero said, it might be stress from the need to adjust.

Yes, they have finally started to eat but they eat so much! I read the label on the pellet food and says feed them as much as they can consume per sitting. They generally stick their heads out the tank if they are hungry.

However the other issue is I notice the male * smaller one * keeps biting the big one female from behind and causes it to go crazy.. I am getting a bit concerned

Also I changed 80% of the water yesterday and it was still cloudy.. I changed it due to the fact it was cloudy and started to have a off smell, theres a lot of flakes in the water as well.

[hi-revs]

If one of them is showing signs of aggression, like yours is, its time to separate them before one of them sustains any sort of real damage.

The flakes in the water is likely due to the turtle shedding. Its normal.

I'd advise you to separate them asap before one of them loses a limb.

[threezero]

Well red ears are communal animal. The male is just being a male. You could provide more hiding spot for the female, go for even bigger tank so the female can ran away sometimes when she doesn't want to be bother.

Or you add a couple more females so the male take turns harassing everyone giving all the girls breaks in between. This ofc would need proper upgrade in environment.

I think 1:3 ratio should be good (1 male to 3 female)

What your male is experiencing right now is the last female on earth syndrome.

[swiftshift]

I have a 75 Gallon tank, how should I divide them?
I have rocks for a ramp for the UV light for them one half of the tank..
If I was to separate two halves into 1/4 it would be very very small.

[threezero]

You can't really without making both of them suffer with smaller tank. If it's just because it's mating season you could put a divider up and remove it when the male is less eager.

If you really don't want to add another female to the group. Try rearranging things and adding more decoration more hiding spaces only big enough for one turtle.

[Marshall Placid]

I don't think adding another turtle is a good idea.

A 75G tank for 2 turtles is already pushing it.

They will grow another 50% larger as they push 6 to 15 years of age.

The cloudiness could actually be caused by the need to change the filters in your filtration system, or, the worst case scenario is the cloudiness is actually a little bit of blood mixed with the water to cause the cloudiness.

I saw this cloudiness when my male bit the female causing her to bleed... profusely.

The colour of the water is dark brown (blood and water).

My point is that maybe it is time to separate them before the biting causes "wear and tear" and blood ensues.

When I say separate, I mean getting another tank (total of 2 tanks).

Also, check the female to make sure she doesn't have open wounds (however small).

[Ferra]

Originally Posted by Marshall Placid

Had 3 red-ear sliders for 17 years, one of which died on the 8th year (see below for more info)

Here are some tips and answers to your questions:

- What to feed
-Turtle pellets for regular food (but change the entire bottle once every six months if you don't finish feeding the pellets because the longer you keep the bottle, the more nutrients it loses until there is no nutritional value in them)
-leafy veggis like lettuce once a week

I tried feeding my turtle (red ear slider) lettuce and some other vegetables.
He took a bite, split it out, and then look at me with this face

true story.

[Rickardo]

I wouldn’t wonder .They are carnivorous when they are juveniles, they become more omnivorous as they reach adulthood. Their diet should be balanced and include a variety of meat-based protein sources and fresh plant material. They are messy eaters so it is better to move them into another separate feeding tank when they are eating, this helps in reducing the amount of turtle defecates in the water.

[NNT]

I had 2 female since they were babies. both are probably around 20 years old now. get the biggest possible tank you can since they will out growth any. 75 G will do you fine for a while but make sure you give them a basking area. (I custom made mine on top of the tank with PVC pipe and egg crate panel) also, get the most powerful canister filter you can buy in store. I am using a Fluval FX6 and still have to clean the filter like every 2 to 3 months.
I feed mine mostly on turtle pellet with dried shrimps. plus cricket/superworms/ small fish/cooked chicken occasionally for treats.

[swiftshift]

Is there a way to clean the turtles, they have skin flakes always swimming around on their necks/legs/feets, also can I clip its toenails?

The water gets dirty fairly fast (cloudly) yellow

[Marshall Placid]

Not sure about clipping toe nails, but I haven't done it before on my sliders.

same with the flakes.

If a large piece gets stuck to the filter's opening, I just use a glove to take it out.