They are in a 75 gallon tank, and they have plenty of room. Sometimes one snaps at the other, and it totally freaks me out. Are they playing? I really don't know what to do.
2007-05-01 14:46:25 · 7 answers · asked by hopey 1 in Pets ➔ Reptiles
I have had them for 18 years, and I've never observed this behavior before. But that doesn't mean that it wasn't going on. They are both males(Michaelangelo and Leonardo). Totally the coolest turtles ever!! Thanks everyone!!
2007-05-01 15:04:10 · update #1
At 18 years, they should be in the 8" range. Using the '10 gallons per inch of turtle' rule, they should be in 160 gallons of water in order to have the room they need to avoid each other.
Small tanks increase contact, aggression, hostility, and stress. I know that 75 gallons seems like a lot, but a big turtle in the wild would have a whole pond to use to avoid other big males.
FYI- turtles are only semi-social- they really don't like sharing space and resources other than basking or nesting sites. Adults don't play- the snapping is a threat, and they can hurt each other if it gets to that point.
Try http://www.austinsturtlepage.com for other ideas.
2007-05-02 06:46:49 · answer #1 · answered by Madkins007 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the turtles will be fine.....imagine them as if they were two toddlers, they get along most of the time but every once in a while they get annoyed at each other. i suggest buyin a second, smaller, tank incase they do get aggressive towards each other, other than that they shjould be perfectly fine
2007-05-01 14:55:11 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
i would think they'd be fine, turtles are good at befriending others but if they get annoyed they'll probably snap at eachother. if it was going to hurt the other turtle it would go into its shell. dont worry about it.
2007-05-01 14:50:43 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
are they still young? if you have two males they will fight for territory. im not shure if two females fight but my two males were vicous towards each other, and expecially if they were waiting in the morning for their food, they kept getting larger and really looking like they could hurt one another. males will have a longer tail, females have short tails and long nails on their feet. if you have a male and a female he may be trying to get her to accept him as a breeding partner
2007-05-01 14:58:07 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
animals are always trying to declare who is in charge. they are fine
2007-05-01 19:18:06 · answer #5 · answered by mrpkram 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They're playing.
2007-05-01 14:49:30 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
hmm they probably are good friends ,so don't worry
2007-05-01 14:49:29 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋