What can you feed a midlife snapping turtle...?

Question

My Turtle is about the size of my hand. Wich is about the size of a school calculater that the students work with. And i've tried giving it fruit, lettuce, and hot dogs, but the turtle will not eat it.
I have an aquarium that it lives in with half of it land and the other half water. I set the food in the water and on the land, but the turtle seems to not see it.

ANY IDEAS ON WHAT TO FEED THIS TURTLE! BESIDES THINGS THAT YOU BUY AT A PET STORE. LIKE THINGS INSIDE YOUR HOUSE??

OR ANY IDEAS ON HOW TO TAKE CARE OF A SNAPPING TURTLE??

Answer 1

Snapping turtles are meat eaters. They eat frogs, fish, and any other moving thing they can catch. The size of your hand is a baby snapping turtle, by the way. They can get the size of a dining table.

Hot dogs are bad for turtles. If you have any frozen fish, you can try that, but really, you may end up just having to break down and buy some rosies for it. Rosies or comets make great snapping turtle food. (both feeder fish, by the way)

Best of luck.

Answer 2

They are predators. They will need live food. I would personally suggest that you not keep this turtle if it really is a snapping turtle as someone already said, they can get quite large. Something this person didn't mention, however, is that once fully grown they can easily remove your fingers so keeping one as a pet is a very, very bad idea. Are you absolutely sure it is a snapping turtle? You seem to not know much about what's going on with this animal and even if it were a good choice for a pet I don't think you're quite qualified to look after it. Do some research (REAL research, not just asking Yahoo! answers) and then make a decision.

Answer 3

1. Are you SURE it is a Snapping Turtle? A lot of times we find that turtles are mis-identified, and that complicates things.

2. Young snappers eat meat- low-fat, no chemicals added meat. The best stuff around the house would be: cooked skinless chicken, organ meats (like beef heart), whole small oily fish like mackeral (but it is REALLY messy in the water). You can also go with insects, worms, etc. from the back yard.

3. From the pet store, try things like good turtle pellets (price equals quality with this!), or live or frozen/thawed things like worms, small fish, pinkie mice, crickets, krill, shrimp, etc. As your turtle gets bigger, so will his appetite- buy in bulk!

4. Your tank design needs changing- change it to all water with a good basking log, trutle ramp, turtle dock, etc. Heat the water to 75-80F and filter it REALLY well- turtles are messy, adn snappers are REALLY messy. Aim for an external filter about 3 times bigger than the tank is. (This is expensive, I know, but it will save you lots of time and headaches!)

5. Put the food in the water. Turtles do not hunt on land.

6. Snappers do not eat fruit, and only a little dark leafy greens (not plain head lettuce). Hot dogs, hamburger, lunch meat, etc. is not good for them. (Heck, hot dogs and lunch meat are not even that good for you!)

7. For info on cares, try http://www.chelydra.org and http://www.austinsturtlepage.com

Answer 4

Are you particular that's a snapper? Snappers have long tails with little fins on desirable suited and factors like observed enamel on the decrease back side of their shells. Their ft are webbed somewhat. Snappers are water turtles that not often leave the water. they do no longer swim lots, they flow slowly on the backside of the lake or river. whether that's a snapper it desires to be in water and it does not want a basking spot. they are in maximum cases carnivorous so i might feed a infant small total fish, worms, and bugs. on no account FEED A TURTLE floor crimson meat, it has indigestible fat. they are chilly blooded and their bodies don't get heat sufficient to digest stable fat. I somewhat have one which I watched hatch 7 years in the past.

Answer 5

well you can try earthworms, but you do need to but some rep-cal a calcium supplement, and a multivitamin with vitamin d3 like herpevite. mix the powders after following package directions for how much to use, then drop the worms in it and drop them on the land side of the tank. feeder goldfish sometimes is good, and the comets.