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Post Posted: Sat May 16, 2020 12:31 am   Adopted RES - Learning Turtle World - Habitat, Care

Hi! I am a new RES owner. Two adults RES (18 and 8 yo male and female mated pair) I adopted them with pretty inadequate habitat (55 gallon tank filled with water, small filter, Aquasun ultraviolet light, and a thermometer). I was told "they were always in the water." They also came with a small foam basking pad (that's stuck to the glass) but that's it. No heat lamp, no resting or dry basking area other than them being halfway submerged on this floating deck. I am getting a topper built (it's going to take weeks!) and so I take them out in a bin every other day into the daylight (half sun, half shade and when it's not super hot outside). I take them out every other day because I don't want to stress them too much with all this new change. A 55 gallon tank is not adequate but I got them a canister filter (which is going quite well - thank heaven for the canister filter) and I intend to build a pond when I can (THAT may take a while). So, I am noticing that being "outside" is stressful to them. They won't eat outside of the water (if I put their likable food in the bin, they ignore it but if the same food is in the water they gobble it up) and I wonder how long they have actually been living in total submersion. They look pretty good - don't have any visible issues from being in the water so much: their scales look healthy, their shells are hard and symmetrical, they have good energy, they do their mating dance, they are very strong and curious and now the female is really zooming around and being feisty (she's feeling strong - when she came she was weak in comparison). They are also by a window that gets sun every day.

My question is: should I continue to handle them in and out until the topper comes? They are getting sun in their aquarium from the window every day. What's worse - handling them or not drying out while I wait for the topper to arrive. They survived in that tank for 2 years (I was told), so how much worse is it to wait 4 more weeks? The male doesn't mind me picking him up (he's quite friendly) but the female hisses and tries to bite me. Then they just scramble all around that bin trying to get out, not relaxing and not eating. Even though they eventually tire out and rest for a bit.
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Post Posted: Sat May 16, 2020 10:44 am   Re: Adopted RES - Learning Turtle World - Habitat, Care

Hi, welcome to the forum! RES personalities vary, so it's normal for some of them to not like immediate changes. Some could care less. RES cannot easily eat out of water (they do not produce saliva) so they might take their food and drag it into the water or avoid it all together. I would caution about having a tank near a window as it can heat up pretty quickly or be exposed to drafts. They do not get any beneficial UVA/UVB because glass blocks those. Do you have a picture of the setup?
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Post Posted: Sat May 16, 2020 3:41 pm   Re: Adopted RES - Learning Turtle World - Habitat, Care

Thank you for your reply. The tank sits not in direct sun. They see the sky change, but the sun only comes through at the end of the day when it is far less heat providing. I am watching their temps all the time and it stays stable at 76 degrees (give or take one or two) even at the end of day sunlight. That above light is probably too old. I tried getting them a replacement bulb but the reptile store didn't have the size. It's like a regular florescent but its a GE Aqua? light. The fading on the bulb says "aqua" but can't read the other two letters. By now, it's probably lost all it's punch anyway.

Since my topper is coming (hopefully in 4 weeks - it's being custom made by a man in Kentucky) and it will take half the tank I need to get another UVA/UVB light set up. I'm also a little worried that he is taking so much time. She is very large and wide and cannot fit on a standard ramp for a turtle topper. She needs 8 - 9" width in order to get into an enclosure. The picture is attached. Thanks for your help!
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turtles.JPG
Here's the setup. 55 gal, aqua light, very small basking raft that worries me, Marina CF60 Canister filter that I am really happy with
turtles.JPG (22.58 KiB) Viewed 5369 times
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Post Posted: Sat May 16, 2020 11:44 pm   Re: Adopted RES - Learning Turtle World - Habitat, Care

It's a bit hard to see whats going on with the tank. Being outside can be very beneficial... if you have the time and space, you should consider taking them out a couple times a week for a few hours. As for the lighting, you might need to get a compact-florescent bulb for UVB but you will still need a heat-source.
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