do I really need a basking light and a filter for my turtles?

Answer 1

Definatly a basking light. make sure you have the right bulb for your turtle. They need to bask for at least 4-5 hours a day for the digestive system. I have a red-ear slider and he never liked filters. Was always afraid of them. I make sure to clean the tank every 2-4 days depending on his food consumption. I've had him for 15 yrs.

Answer 2

No, they really don't need those requirements to live. Though I would highly suggest that you do get those. Keep in mind that all reptiles are cold blooded. I have a turtle myself and from experience they love it bathing in the sun. They ay not spend lots of time on it but when they do they like. Especially in the cold months. Turtles are also very wild animals so to make them feel as much as home as possible is a good thing. The filter on the other hand isn't as necessary as the basking light but it;s still important. They can be messy and in smaller tanks need cleaning every 3 to 7 days unless it's a big enough tank. If you don't mind cleaner 1 or twice a week then you don't need it. It only helps to maintain better hygiene. If the turtle has any symptoms or it seems to dirty I would get the filter. I hope I helped with your decision. Good luck. :)

Answer 3

Yes, because to reproduce the effects of the sun, suspend a reflector light approximately 12" over the basking rocks or log and make sure the bulbs output can increase the heat on the basking site to 85 to 90 degrees. Just lay a thermometer down on the rock under the heat lamp and check. No need to worry, your hard shelled friend will move away from the heat source if it is uncomfortably hot. Additional fluorescent lighting with UV-b, Vitalights™, Reptisun™ bulbs etc. are an option for those that believe the turtles will benefit from such exposure. My personal experience has been breeding and raising the young to adulthood without the use of these fluorescent lights, but the option is yours. If preferred to this lighting arrangement a Mercury vapor bulb may be used that fulfills all requirements.

Take care :)

Answer 4

YES YES YES YES YES!!!!! The filter is necessary unless you really feel like scrubbing down their tank every day. The filter either needs to be a turtle filter made for your size of tank or a fish filter that can do 3 times the size of your tank. Assuming that you are a responsible turtle owner, I'll figure you have a 50 gallon tank for starters. So to accomodate the 50 gallon tank with a fish filter you'll need a 150 gallon fish filter. Yes, it has to be this way as turtles are 3 times messier than fish.

The lighting is absolutely cruical for their health. If you don't care about them then no I guess you wouldn't but then again that's animal cruelty. A basking light is needed to heat the basking area. If turtles don't have a basking area that is heated between 85 and 90 degrees F then they can get shell rot, infections and funguses that are all leathal. Their water needs to be between 70 and 75 degrees F and no colder than 60 degrees F at night. More important than the basking/UVA light, however, is a UVB light. They need this to metabolize calcium and to create and metabolize vitamin D3 which prevents metabolic bone disease which is deadly to all turtles.

So, yes, you need a filter, a basking/UVA light, AND a UVB light.

Answer 5

You need a basking light to warm the turtles to the correct temperatures so they digest their food properly. Also, along with the basking light you need to provide a UVB light so they can absorb calcium properly. If you don't have a filter, you'll have to change the water much more frequently. Even with a filter, you still have to do a lot of water changes, because the filter does not remove the ammonia from the wastes that build up.

Answer 6

Your turtle definitely needs a basking light. Turtles are cold blooded which means that they rely on their surroundings to maintain their internal temperatures. Also a basking light will also help to kill bacteria on your turtles shell. As for the filter, I would recommend it but it's not needed. If you don't get a filter you will be spending a lot of time cleaning your tank.

Answer 7

yeah. if you dont want to get all the requirements for the turtles, you shouldnt get turtles. especially multiple turtles need a filter, unless you want to clean the water yourself very often.. and the basking light is needed otherwise the turtles can get sick or stressed from being too cold.

Answer 8

is that a joke? a turtle needs a basking light, NEEDS A BASKING LIGHT. if you want to clean your tank everyday then dont get a filter because turtles are messy.

Answer 9

whatever it takes to keep it healthy you need a care sheet for the kind of turtle you have meet those requirements you and it will be happy

Answer 10

yes you do because it imertates their natural habitats so they fell more like home
if you have the turtle than love him while you have it