What are the best turtles?

Question

I want a small one, like anywhere from 1 to 4 inches. or possibly a little bigger. What kind would you suggest?

Answer 1

None. No turtle stay this small for their whole lives.

Answer 2

The smallest commonly available turtles are the Mud and Musk Turtles, whcih average 4-6" as adults. Many are considered good pet turtles and easy for beginners. While some people dearly love them, they are not generally considered real interesting.

Even a little Mud Turtle will want at least a 20 gallon (wide) tank to be happy in.

here is a starter care sheet for a Mississippi Mud Turtle: http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/cs-mismud.htm

Answer 3

Truthfully? I suggest NO turtle. I own two of them and though I love them to death, in the first year, my two free turtles(1 a rescued RES, one western painted for a b-day pres from a friend) have costed me over $300 in filters, equipment, and housing. I have lost the RES to escaping 4 times(he's athletic and strong!) and my western painted likes to bite. The RES is a darling, and though they are large(12"+) and they are common, they are awesome.

Regardless of the type of turtle, they will all be over that size unless you want to pay hundreds of dollars on a small turtle. If you get a turtle, I suggest getting a kiddie pool instead of a tank. It will give him a larger area, you can place sand in the bottom(for a natural feeling) and you can still filter it out with a large filter or empty it once a month/week/whenever. Also, they can be outisde where its better for them(they need UV from the sun or flouresant bulbs). If you keep them outside, make SURE you put wire over the pool or cage it in so they cant escape and things cant eat them. An awesome idea is to put the pool in the ground(dig a hole for it) and cage in a secure area for them. Of course, in winter you would have to bring them inside, but during summer they would love it.

Turtle breeds that stay small are musk turtles, terrapins, and western painteds. Most turtles exceed 7", so good luck finding one that stays small for anything less than $100. Try looking on kingsnake.com for turtles. Good luck, once again.

Answer 4

i have a yellowbellied slider turtle. i got it down south. it hardly smells and i only have to clean its cage about once every 2 weeks. That is what i would recomend. It was small also. probably only about 2-3 inches wide.

Answer 5

Try a map turtle (its hard finding a turtle that doesn't get very big
Research map turtles and see if thats what you want good luck

Answer 6

Go to http://www.turtlesale.com/turtles1.html
Maybe a chicken turtle but lookat what they have you can buy them online and they will mail it to you i bought two and they both came safe and healthy and i ordered in the winter and i am in utah.
So check it out.
One of the ones that i got was a BABY
RED BELLY TURTLE
They also have care sheets and everyting that you need for it sold seperately.

Here is the things.
FOOD: YOU WILL WANT TO FEED YOUR TURTLE A LOW FAT, HIGH PROTEIN FOOD. ONE OR TWO TIMES EVERY DAY, SUCH AS THE HIGH PROTEIN LOW FAT FOOD WE SELL AND FEED OUR OWN TURTLES. IF YOU HAVE PURCHASED OUR FOOD TODAY SIMPLY FEED 6 TO 8 PELLETS IN THE WATER ONCE OR TWICE A DAY. AFTER FIVE TO TEN MINUTES WHATEVER YOUR TURTLE HAS NOT EATEN YOU SHOULD REMOVE AT THIS TIME. YOU WILL FIND THAT IT IS MUCH CLEANER TO FEED YOUR TURTLE IN A SEPARATE BOWL THEN WHAT HE OR SHE LIVES IN .



NOT EATING: IF YOUR TURTLE IS NOT EATING? DO NOT WORRY ABOUT HIM/HER. TURTLES WILL GO THROUGH PERIODS WERE THEY WILL NOT EAT, IT IS NORMAL . IF YOU NOTICE HE/SHE HAS STOPPED EATING , CUT BACK ON THE AMOUNT OF FOOD THAT YOU FEED HIM FROM 6 OR 8 PELLETS A DAY TO 1 OR 2 PELLETS A DAY , AND THEN WHEN YOU SEE THAT HE IS EATING AGAIN YOU MAY GO BACK TO FEEDING HIM/HER AS NORMAL.





TREATS: WANT TO MAKE YOUR TURTLE GO NUTS? FEED HIM SOME OF THE SPECIAL TURTLE TREATS THAT WE CARRY , LIKE CAN-O-CRICKETS,CAN-O-SNAILS OR ZOO MEDS FREEZE DRIED TURTLE TREATS. TWO OR THREE TIMES A WEEK WILL BE SURE TO LET YOUR TURTLE KNOW JUST HOW SPECIAL HE IS TO YOU.





WATER: TURTLES LOVE TO SWIM AND ARE GREAT AT IT, DO NOT BE AFRAID TO FILL YOUR TANK TO A NICE DEEP LEVEL. YOUR TURTLES WATER SHOULD BE CHANGED AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK , TWICE A WEEK WHEN POSSIBLE.





WATER CONDITIONER:WATER TYPES CHANGE ALL OVER THE STATE , SOME PEOPLE HAVE TAP WATER, SOME HAVE WELL WATER, SOME HAVE SPRING WATER ECT. ECT. ECT. BECAUSE OF ALL THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF WATER OUT THERE WE HIGHLY RECOMMEND THAT YOU BUY AND USE A WATER CONDITIONER ON A REGULAR BASIS TO KEEP YOUR TURTLE FROM GOING INTO SHOCK WHEN CHANGING THE WATER. YOUR SALES PERSON WILL BE HAPPY TO SHOW YOU THE CONDITIONER THAT WE USE AND SELL TO OUR CUSTOMERS.





DON'T FORGET WE HAVE A FULL SELECTION OF TURTLES AND
TURTLE PRODUCTS AVAILABLE FOR PURCHASE ON THE WEB AT:
WWW.TURTLESALE.COM





LAND: YOUR TURTLE NEEDS TO BE ABLE TO GET ALL OF THE WAY OUT OF THE WATER TO DRY HIMSELF OFF AND PREVENT HIM FROM GETTING SHELL ROT A SOFTENING OF THE SHELL THAT IS CAUSED FROM BEING SUBMERGED IN THE WATER FOR TO LONG OF A PERIOD OF TIME. WE CARRY A FULL LINE OF FLOATS,LOGS AND CORK THAT YOUR TURTLE WILL LOVE TO CLIMB ON AND DRY OFF THROUGHOUT THE DAY ON. IF YOU SHOULD NOTICE THAT YOUR TURTLES SHELL IS GETTING SOFT? YOU WILL WANT TO TAKE HIM COMPLETELY OUT OF THE WATER AND KEEP HIM DRY FOR THE WHOLE DAY AND NIGHT . THIS WILL GIVE HIS SHELL A LITTLE EXTRA TIME TO DRY AND HARDEN THE WAY IT SHOULD BE. DO THIS 1 OR 2 TIMES A WEEK EVERY TIME YOU NOTICE HIS SHELL IS GETTING SOFT. ( ALSO SEE LIGHTING )..






HIDING SPOTS: WE OFFER A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT ITEMS THAT MAY BE PUT INTO YOUR TURTLES HOME FOR THEM TO HIDE IN AND EXPLORE,SUCH AS CAVES AND DIFFERENT SIZE PLANTS.

FILTERS: DEPENDING ON YOUR TANKS DESIGN, WE OFFER A FEW DIFFERENT TYPES OF FILTERS THAT YOU CAN USE IN YOUR TURTLES TANK. FILTERING YOUR TANKS WATER WILL NOT KEEP YOU FROM HAVING TO DO WATER CHANGES, HOWEVER IT WILL REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF TIMES YOU WILL HAVE TO DO THEM. FILTERING THE WATER IN YOUR TANK WILL ALSO GENERALLY HELP YOU MAINTAIN A HIGHER WATER QUALITY. ALSO WE HAVE FOUND THAT EXO-TERRA'S BIOTIZE IS A GREAT WAY TO ELIMINATE ORGANIC WASTE BUILD-UP IN YOUR TANKS GRAVEL , FILTER AND ON SUBMERSED SURFACES. WE USE IT IN OUR OWN TURTLE TANKS AND WE ARE VERY PLEASED WITH HOW GOOD IT WORKS FOR US. BIOTIZE CAN BE FOUND ON OUR WEB SITE UNDER WATER TREATMENTS. ALSO FEEDING YOUR TURTLES A PELLET FOOD THAT CAN BE SWALLOWED WHOLE SUCH AS THE LOW FAT , HIGH PROTEIN FOOD WE OFFER CAN PLAY A SIGNIFICANT ROLE IN MAINTAINING WATER QUALITY AND REDUCING THE NEED FOR FREQUENT WATER CHANGES. CHECK OUT OUR FOOD THAT WE SELL AND USE WITH OUR OWN TURTLES UNDER THE FOOD HEADING ON THE WEB SITE.

LIGHTING AND HEATING: LIKE OTHER REPTILES, TURTLES ARE ECTOTHERMIC ANIMALS. THIS MEANS THEY DEPEND ON ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS TO ACHIEVE DESIRABLE BODY TEMPERATURES AND THAT, TO VARYING DEGREES, THEY CAN REGULATE THEIR BODY TEMPERATURE THROUGH THEIR BEHAVIORAL RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEIR ENVIRONMENT. THE POPULAR IDEAS, OF REPTILES BEING COLD BLOODED AND THEIR BODY TEMPERATURE ALWAYS BEING THE SAME AS AIR TEMPERATURE, ARE WRONG. BY BASKING UNDER A REPTILE SPOT LIGHT SUCH AS THE ONES WE CARRY , WATER TURTLES CAN ACHIEVE TEMPERATURES TEN OR MORE DEGREES HIGHER THAN AIR TEMPERATURE. BECAUSE NO ONE OTHER THAN A TURTLE HIM SELF KNOWS WHAT FOR THEM "FEELS LIKE THE RIGHT BODY TEMPERATURE," THE STANDARD PROCEDURE IN HERPETOCULTURE IS TO PROVIDE A BASKING SITE OR A WARM ZONE IN THE ENCLOSURE THAT ALLOWS A REPTILE TO SELF-REGULATE ITS BODY TEMPERATURE.

WATER TEMPERATURES FOR A TURTLE SHOULD BE KEPT AT ABOUT 75 DEGREES F DURING THE WARM MONTHS OF THE YEAR. DURING THE WINTER , THE WATER TEMPERATURES CAN SAFELY DROP IN THE SIXTIES AND EVEN UPPER FIFTIES FOR MOST SPECIES.

HOW TO HEAT TURTLE TANKS:FOR MOST AQUATIC TURTLES SOLD IN THE PET TRADE, THE MOST WIDELY USED METHOD OF KEEPING THEM CONSISTS OF HAVING A WATER AREA AT COMFORTABLE ROOM TEMPERATURE, AND AT LEAST ONE BASKING SITE WHERE THE TEMPERATURE REACHES 85-90 DEGREES.

THE BEST METHOD FOR CONTROLLING THE WATER TEMPERATURE IN TURTLE TANKS IS TO HEAT THEM WITH A SUBMERSIBLE HEATER, LIKE THE ONES WE OFFER ON OUR WEB SITE.

ADDITIONAL LIGHTING: WATER TURTLES WHEN KEPT INDOORS WILL REQUIRE BULBS THAT GENERATE SOME SORT OF U.V.A AND U.V.B RAYS. U.V.B RAYS ALLOW TURTLES TO SYNTHESIZE VITAMIN D3 NECESSARY FOR CALCIUM ABSORPTION. THIS HELPS TO PREVENT "SOFT SHELL" PROBLEMS IN WATER TURTLES. ZOO MED OFFERS A VERY GOOD FLUORESCENT LAMP , WHICH IS CALLED A REPTISUN 5.0 UVB LAMP.

YOUR TURTLE WILL REQUIRE 10 TO 12 HOURS OF LIGHT A DAY . YOU CAN EASILY CONTROL THE AMOUNT OF LIGHT YOUR TURTLE WILL GET WITH A TIMER.

BOOKS: WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT TURTLES? ASK YOUR SALES PERSON ABOUT THE FULL LINE OF TURTLE BOOKS THAT WE STOCK.

P.S AS WITH ANY ANIMAL YOU WILL WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU WASH YOUR HANDS AFTER HANDLING YOUR TURTLE OR CLEANING HIS HOME, WE RECOMMEND THAT YOUR USE ZOO MEDS HAND CLEANER YOUR SALES PERSON WILL BE HAPPY TO SHOW YOU THE PRODUCE WE CARRY. ALSO YOU WILL WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU DON'T KISS OR PUT YOU TURTLE IN YOUR MOUTH AS THAT HE SWIMS AND LIVES IN THE SAME WATER THAT HE USES TO GO TO THE BATHROOM IN.