How can you tell how old a red-ear slider is?

Question

I'm going to purchase a red-ear slider and before I did I wanted to know how to tell how old they are.

Answer 1

If you see a hatchling in the store (under 2"), it is likely hatched this year. If it is larger than 2", it was likely hatched last year.

Counting rings is only a myth and it is inaccurate. Turtles put on many rings a year and best way to determine age is buy looking at its overall size. The older they get, the harder, or more impossible it is to age the turtle. This is true with humans as well. You know babies are around 1 years old, but can you age a 60 year old?

Here is a caresheet for a RES:
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/caresheet-red_ear_slider.htm

Answer 2

almost exactly like a tree count how many squares on their shells and trust me i had one for almost 5 years