The temp in his basking area is 81-85 F and his water is 72-75 F. He is eating and a very active swimmer. He is about 3" long and resides in a 40 gallon enclosure. He mostly hides underneath this floating platform on the opposite side of the beach/ basking lamp, but he never gets on top of that either. The only time I have seen him out of the water in the two weeks I have had him is when I lead a trail of food from the water to the basking area, but he just takes the food back into the water. Anything I can do? Am I doing anything wrong. Plus I have two guppies in the tank with him, I want him to learn to hunt and get food on his own (guppies). Should I withhold some food from him until he hunts the fish out of nessecity or will he eventually switch to fish anyways?
2006-09-25 06:28:08 · 7 answers · asked by Robbie 1 in Pets ➔ Reptiles
1. Boost temps to about 90 for the basking and 75-80 for the water.
2. You don't mention lighting. Make sure some UV light is provided, and regulate the light to simulate summer day periods- about 10-12 hours of daytime. Shorter days trigger the hibernation reflex.
3. Offer a variety of sizes of guppies. Turtles (and many other predators) hunt by size. If the food is too big or too small it will be ignored.
4. Offer other live foods- pretty much anything you can get to feed fish with in a good fish store- fish, worms, insects, etc. Turtles can get finicky and just plain refuse a certain food for a while. Frustrating, but not much you can do other than to offer a selection.
2006-09-26 04:56:23 · answer #1 · answered by Madkins007 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have 3, all rescued when tiny and now range from 7 to 12" long...I have found that it takes them awhile to adjust to a new environment and that they don't need to bask if the water temp is satisfactory and won't until they choose. My 3 were in a small "environment" and 1 day I moved them to a big bathtub so they could swim, soon they were too big to return to the small habitat and they have lived in tubs ever since. My 3 tend to bask in the summer, when the water gets warm, they live on the patio now in a 50 gal aquarium which I run water thru every day since the largest 1 takes personal offense at filtration devices. Mine all "sleep" at the bottom in the water and all eventually stopped hiding under things once they got used to whatever change I have made over the years. I don't put fish in my tank but I wouldn't bank on him eating them if he has never been anything but an indoor turtle...1 of mine eats all year long and the other two who have spent time "outside" stop eating in the winter - which freaks me out every year beause I am sure they are sick...when they occupied an extra bathroom (tub), they enjoyed snapping up those big flying mosquito looking bugs one gets in the bathroom. if your turtle is new, give him some more time to get used to his new world.
2006-09-25 13:56:06 · answer #2 · answered by ... 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
This sounds gross but it's worth a try. Place a frozen and thawed rat or mouse pinky on his basking platform. The smell should lure him out of the water. Plus, he may feel more confident hunting something that is not moving, so this may help solve both problems. I've used a similar technique with baby kingsnakes that were shy or stubborn feeders. If this works for you, stick with it for a few weeks, then try to work the guppies back into his diet. Good luck with your turtle.
2006-09-25 14:22:08 · answer #3 · answered by precioussnakes 1 · 0⤊ 1⤋
He may not need to bask right now. As long as he is still active, his body temperature is probably high enough (they only bask to raise their temp). As for getting him to hunt, I wouldn't withhold food. Are you sure the guppies aren't too large for him to eat?
2006-09-25 13:44:36 · answer #4 · answered by Stephanie H 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i have 3 red ear sliders it just takes time for them to get used to the enviroment, in the meantime take the guppies out wait for about three weeks and put them back in
2006-09-25 13:35:36 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Maybe he can't get up there...If he can, and he isn't, I think he'll be fine.
Please don't forget to use UVB light. So many people with turtles don't understand how important it is for their bones and shell. Thanks!
2006-09-27 00:39:56 · answer #6 · answered by Amanda 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
wants to be free, so let it go in the jungle where it belongs.
2006-09-26 03:48:04 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋