The babies are about 4 months old and I keep them in a big tank of water with a rock they can climb on to get out of the water. In the last week or so I hear whistling noises coming from the tank. Has anyone heard this? I am guessing that it's a form of communication but can't find anything on line about it. Can anyone help me?
2006-12-16 13:04:15 · 4 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Reptiles
Whistling is a sign of a respiratory illness (RI), common in turtles unfortunately.
The problem is that turtles need space, warmth, sunlight, cleanliness, and a good diet for good health and happiness- and no one tells us that when we buy them. Also, no one tells us that baby turtles are a bit hard to care for and illegal to sell partly because of this.
Space: Aim for 10 gallons of swimming space per inch of turtle. If you have 2 2" turtles, they should share a pond of about 40 gallons. This gives them exercise space, security, room apart (otherwise they will end up fighting or biting), and is actually easier to care for well than a small space.
Warmth: Heat the water to 75-80F and the basking sites to about 90F. Cool temps lead to health problems quickly!
Sunlight: This one is tricky. Turtles love sunlight, but the stuff they need, UV-B rays, don't penetrate most glass or plastics so we need to provide good lighting. The easiest way is with a reptile light bulb that brags about UV-B. Most of us also use a heat bulb for the basking site.
Cleanliness: Turtles are really messy, so we need to use a filter about 2-3 times more powerful than a fish tank would use. Healthy turtle habitats have no odors.
Diet: Good diet gives them the nutrients and vitamins they need to be healthy, and few pellet foods are good all by themselves. Try 25-50% pellets and the rest live or frozen/thawed 'fish foods' like small fish, worms, bugs, shrimp, beef heart, etc. DO NOT use hamburger, hot dogs, head lettuce or other vegetables (baby water turtles don't eat veggies!) Babies especially love blood worms!
2006-12-17 10:52:51 · answer #1 · answered by Madkins007 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I have two babies too. I have never heard such a noise. Maybe it is the filter in your tank having a seizure.
2006-12-16 13:05:58 · answer #2 · answered by amanda308 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
this is a respiratory infection, please get your babies to the vet before it gets worse or one of them dies and while you are out get a book about turtles so that you can learn how to care for them
2006-12-17 18:45:18 · answer #3 · answered by Loollea 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it's ok there fine
2006-12-16 13:11:17 · answer #4 · answered by Sam 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋