Question for turtle and tortoise owners.?

Question

Ok, so I know some turtles have salmonella. Which types tend to have that? Also, what is the difference between the care of a turtle vs. a tortoise? How expensive are they to keep? How often do you clean their living area? What do they eat? I am doing research to see if they would be a good pet for me. Thanks.

Answer 1

Turtles are water critters, whereas tortoises spend their lives on land. I am not familiar with the care of turtles, but I have a yard full of tortoises. They do carry salmonella, wash your hands after touching them. They love produce such as lettuce, apples, melons, etc.. and we feed them either soft or semi-moist cat or dog food. They also find their own food, such as bugs, etc. They are somewhat interesting to watch (they come to the porch for food at the same time everyday) and the babies are definitely cute, about the size of a quarter.
While I originally got some from a pet store, most of mine came from the surrounding area (desert) and some have actually found me by coming up to my gate. Almost like they know other tortoises are there? Who knows? Good luck!

Answer 2

Turtles can make great pets for some people, but not all. I own 2 Red-Eared Slider Turtles and have been researching turtles and tortoises for about 2 years now so i think i can successfully answer your question.

First off, turtles and tortoises are NOT the same. In fact they are COMPLETELY different in every way. Turtles can live between 20 and 80 years, depending on the species, and your average healthy tortoise will live an astonishing 150 years!

Secondly, ALL TURTLES CAN CARRY SALMONELLA. There is no known way to tell if a turtle has salmonella yet so your best bet is to wash your hands after handling the turtle, its water, or anything else that the turtle has touched.

Thirdly, most species of tortoises can get about 4 times bigger than turtles so most tortoises are housed in a pen outside (in a large, fenced off, backyard). Turtles, like the red-eared slider, will need a larger tank. Sometimes, 100 gallons!!

Forthly, just the tortoise itself will cost you around $200-$1500, depending on how exotic the species is. On top of that you will need a big backyard that is fenced off, a shelter, a water dish, a food dish, food, etc... Turtles will cost you between 20$ and 500$ again depending on how rare the species is, PLUS, a floating dock (for aquatic turtles), vines/plants/rocks for scenery, a UVA/heat bulb + lamp, a UVB bulb + lamp, 1-2 filters (for aquatic turtles), a large aquarium + stand (if needed), etc... Also, something that most people don't know is that turtles and tortoises need to go to a vet just as much as a dog or cat does.

Fifthly, i clean my turtles' 70 gallon tank about once every month but when i used to keep them in a 29 gallon tank, i had to clean it every week. Even though i only have to empty out the whole tank every month, i have to clean both of the filters, suck up the gunk at the bottom of the tank, and put a little more water in. In general, it's very teadious and kinda gross but i do it knowing that my turtles are getting the right care. im not sure, but im thinking that you could just pick up a tortoises poop with a baggie (like you would with a dog) if they are outside on grass.

Sixthly, most turtles eat most veggies, commercial turtle pellets, live feeder fish, live ghost shrimp, dried shrimp, and some other things. Tortoises eat fruits and veggies, tortoise pellets, and some other things.

In conclusion, a turtle or tortoise is only the right pet for you if:
- you have lots of spare time,
- are willing to dedicate most of your spare time to your tort or turt,
- have space for an enormous aquarium for a turtle or have a big, fenced-off, backyard for a tortoise,
- are ready to love, care for, and socialize your turtle/tortoise :)

Answer 3

Turtles and tortoises and ALL reptiles can carry salmonella. Turtles have no more or a chance of giving it to you than an iguana or a Gecko. turtles recieved a bad rap because once upon a time fairs and the like used to have booths wihere you threw your dime and if it landed in a little bowl you won the bowl and its contents.... usually a goldfish or a little water turtle. The problem then spawned from people playing with their new "prize" and then turning right around and eating their cotton candy, hot dogs what have you's.
Had these fairs been giving out lizards instead of turtles then we would all fear the lizards as the samonella risk of the world.
To me... Turtles are harder to take care of just because you are talking about water changes, basking spots and etc. Things you don't have to worry about with Tortoises.
Turtles however are easier as far as diet goes as there are many commercial foods available on the market while Tortoises need a limitless supply of fresh produce daily. They both need full spectrum UVB.
I will look for some great links for you but this is a good bit to start with.
~Tyed~
Links added!

Answer 4

Salmonella- all reptiles, including turtles and tortoises, CAN carry Salmonella, but water turtles are more likely since they live in soiled water.

Turtle vs. tortoise- tortoises live on land, turtles live in water. If you want to maintain an aquaria-like habitat, go turtles. If you want to maintain a large dry habitat, go tortoise.

Cleaning- turtles- good filter. Tortoise- pick up wastes.

Diet- Depends on species. Young pond turtles- 1/2 pellets, 1/2 live or frozen/thawed fish foods like small fish, worms, etc. Grassland tortoises- hays, grasses, greens, and some vegetables. Forest tortoises- greens, fruits, and some meats.

Costs- a good habitat will cost you. Water turtles take $150-200 for a good home, while a tortoise habitat can run $50 or much, much higher depening on the size and where you house it.

You can research them more at these sites:
Water turtles- http://www.austinsturtlepage.com
Tortoises- http://www.tortoisetrust.org

Before you buy a turtle, try this article:
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Articles/firstturtle.htm

Answer 5

1. i believe water turtles from pet shops that are kept in crowed tanks are at the highest risk for salmonella. 2. i would say the tortoise will eat more food and possibly need a bigger area. 3. not much, they eat fruit, vegetables, earthworms, and raw ground meat. 4. with land turtles i would say once a week or as needed. water turtles are a mess, you would have to clean the tank more. baby box turtles are cool pets.

Answer 6

Yes some turtles do. and im not shure whitch types tend to have it, but i do know if you wash your hands after every time you touch one, it can lower your chances of getting it. They arnt very expensive, just a little love and care and food. You should clean there area like every, 3, or 2 days. If you dont it will tend to stink. They eat Turtle food at the store, well atleast thats what i feed mine. They also eat Grass, and bugs.

Answer 7

I have turtles they were in a tank when I first bought them from the pet shop size of a 20 cent coin. I do not recommend them for children as they are expensive. They will outgrow their tank and eventually end up in an enclosure outside $2000.00 later. Also they live forever so you may have to update your will. They do require a proper diet to avoid any vitamin deficiencies etc etc. By the way they are great climbers so you need to keep all this in mind when building an enclosure. My pump and filter cost around $600.00 for the size pond they are in which runs 24hrs to maintain ideal water conditions. Reptiles (turtles) are slow healers should they injure themselves. So unless your prepared for all of the above please consider carefully. Cheers

Answer 8

OK turtles and tortoises are like the same thing and they need like the same things.Their cages need to be cleaned about once a week.And almost all species of turtles have salmonella,to keep you from getting it wash your hands thoroughly after playing of messing with them.Also they are actually pretty inexpensive to take care of.Their food is very cheap.The most expensive thing for them is their cage but it just depends don what size you get.And also make sure you buy rocks to put the cage so the turtle can prop themselves up out of the water so the don't drown.And also if your turtle accidentally flips itself over on its back MAKE SURE YOU FLIP IT BACK OVER SO IT DON'T DROWN.

Answer 9

http://animal-world.com/encyclo/reptiles/information/SelectingYourTurtle.php