okay so i just got a turtle and i'm not to sure what it is yet but i think it's a red eared slider..i dont know really anything about turtles and i dont know if all red eared sliders are aquatic but yeaa i know mine is aquatic.its really small as well cuz its a baby..and yeaa. but my question is what things to put in or outside the tank(temp. controller?,uvb lamp?,filter? ect.) and i just recently bought it food called reptomin is that good food, or what..but problem is its not eating it..and if it doesnt eat it, it wont get much calcium besides from the sun which it isnt getting alot of ..its shell is soft and i dont know what i can do to help it.
2007-06-10 16:46:36 · 7 answers · asked by banana 3 in Pets ➔ Reptiles
It's normal for the hatchling RES not to take in pellets. Give it a couple of days to acclimatize to its new surrondings and it will eat. Put in one pellet a day and remove it, if it does not eat. I gaurantee in one week, it will eat the pellet.
Hatchling turtles have a soft shell and as they reach around 3", their shell will harden.
Make sure you have a basking area with a 60-75 watt heat bulb. UV tubes are great, but noabsolutely necessary.
Check out these rsources and turtle forum :
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/caresheet-red_ear_slider.htm
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/care.htm
http://www.turtleforum.com
2007-06-10 16:51:51 · answer #1 · answered by wu_gwei21 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
1. All Red-ear Sliders are mostly aquatic. They need a big water space to swim, hunt, and hide in (figure about 10 gallons per inch of turtle length), but they also need a basking surface, log, ramp, or dock so they can get out and get dry when they want.
2. The water should be about 75-80F, and the basking site about 85-90F. A good aquarium heater (with a guard) can do the water (but understand that cheap ones cause more problems), and a 'basking light' can heat the basking site and light the tank for you.
3. Filtering is a big issue. You don't HAVE to filter the water, but it makes your life and happiness a lot better. The problem is that you need a BIG filter to do a good job, and you'll still need to suction off the bottom about weekly.
4. Reptomin is OK, but give about 1/2 of the diet as live or frozen/thawed 'fish foods' like worms, shrimp, krill, etc.
5. Soft shell is diet related in most cases. Get it eating good food and it will usually go away... but small turtles naturally have 'springy' shells. A healthy baby shell feels like stiffish plastic- flexes with some resistance and flexes right back. Softshell feels more like used leather- more flexible and does not spring right back instantly.
Great sites to study:
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com
http://www.redearslider.com
2007-06-10 19:24:32 · answer #2 · answered by Madkins007 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In your tank you should have on side in the water, the other side pepples where he can get on land. If he doesn't eat the food try swatting flys and whiping them off into the tank. He probbly won't want a lamp, but if you put one in make sure to leave half of both sides shady. He shell is soft because it's still a baby. Feed him around 3-4 tablets (or 4-6 flys) twice a day. hope this helps. and make sure he can't escape, my turtle is the next hudini. good luck
2007-06-10 16:57:39 · answer #3 · answered by saintdrew333 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
If it really IS a red ear slider, the water needs to be 75-78 degrees F.
Also, it needs to eat IN the water, and the food needs to be smelly, or they won't eat! Try Feeder fish, Guppies, Rosy red minnows, mealworms, or baby earthworms. If that doesn't work, try opening a can of tuna in spring water, dipping the food in the tuna water, and then dropping it into the water. They also like the tuna, but you have to make sure to shred it before dropping it in water. They also need pellets, in fact most of their meal should be this. If they do not eat those, dip them in the canned tuna also. See the site I found for you below!!!
2007-06-10 16:59:54 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
i think of it ought to be a purple eared slider turtle im not sure nevertheless google it see if its authentic google the thank you to shelter them loads of large attractions if im authentic appropriate to the form of turtle I actual have the same one i took it out of the water for a on the same time as and all of it started like gasping for air and going into the shell many times so i placed it returned interior the water faucet water is undesirable for them btw reason it has chlorine in it if its little and you got here across it interior the wild placed it returned it probable has salmonella
2016-11-28 03:12:07 · answer #5 · answered by vivia 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm not sure about the rest of your questions, but I know that reptomin is very good food. I have fed it to my frogs for years. When my frogs are very little I have to break it up into little crumbs for them. Maybe that would help for your turtle too, or maybe get it a little wet and mushy so its easier for him to eat.
2007-06-10 16:50:56 · answer #6 · answered by LiLiJo 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I had a turtle who's shell got soft too. It died not too long after that. I think the reason is that he needed a bigger tank. Try giving it crickets..they love crickets. Try to get him outside sometimes too!
2007-06-10 17:08:32 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋