redearslider.com

I got a turtle a few months ago (in march) but I haven't had a uvb yet
My turtle is still small and lives in a 10 gal tank with a heating light, filter, basking dock and heater.
I'm very worried because my turtle has no uvb and I want her to be happy but my mom buys all her stuff. On christmas (one month away) my mom will be getting a: 50 gal tank, medium basking dock, stronger filter and uvb light. My turtles shell is very hard (not soft) and she swims around happily. I feed her two leafs of green leaf lettuce a day and reptomin weekly. ( I heard reptomin has calcium which is good. Right?) Will she be okay till Christmas?
I'm very sorry if this doesn't make sense my writing probably sucks

Should be OK, Reptomin does have Vitamin D3, I think but work on getting that equipment.

steve wrote:Should be OK, Reptomin does have Vitamin D3, I think but work on getting that equipment.

Okay. That makes me feel better . Thanks. I'll have the stuff by Christmas then my Turtle will be happy

You can always ask for an early present if you and they know where the money is going to be used

I got to say you guys are so much nicer than the other forums i've been on!
I asked the same thing on a different forum but they said she was gonna die from a 10 gal tank (That was the main reason I was so worried)

Keep in mind that you don't need to use an aquarium, plastic storage containers work well too (but they can only be filled about half-way).

Yay! I got the tank!
But I have a question about the kind of basking area I want to set up. We were gonna set up an acrylic divider wall separating the tank into two parts, one small(compared to the other part), and one big. We are gonna fill the smaller part with dirt so it can double as a nesting box(i'm 70% sure it's a girl)
Would this work? I saw pictures online of people doing this and it looked neat!

Congrats on the new tank!

Split tanks don't usually work for RES and it just takes away swimming space. How big is your turtle now? You do need a basking spot, but I wouldn't use one that blocks off the water. The more water you have, the better it is.

steve wrote:Congrats on the new tank!

Split tanks don't usually work for RES and it just takes away swimming space. How big is your turtle now? You do need a basking spot, but I wouldn't use one that blocks off the water. The more water you have, the better it is.

She is 3 inches at the biggest (I haven't measured her) I didn't want to put it in the tank, my parents just think it'd make the most sense.
And she has a basking spot(actually two) in her tank right now. It's a tower shape in the middle of her tank(I think it's mean't for lizards) with her old small basking dock beside it.

You need to wait a little longer before you can tell the gender. When it's close to 4", males should be showing some of their physical characteristics. Besides, a 50 gallon is too small for a full grown female, so taking away some space now doesn't help. Do you have a picture of the setup? If your parents are handy, maybe have them look at the ATBAs that have been built... viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15260&start=1155

steve wrote:You need to wait a little longer before you can tell the gender. When it's close to 4", males should be showing some of their physical characteristics. Besides, a 50 gallon is too small for a full grown female, so taking away some space now doesn't help. Do you have a picture of the setup? If your parents are handy, maybe have them look at the ATBAs that have been built... viewtopic.php?f=6&t=15260&start=1155

We were gonna get a bigger tank when she's at full size. When they get off work i'll show them those ATBAs. I told my parents that a split tank isn't good and they know now. I'll get some pics today
I'm only 70% sure it's a girl because she has 3 female characteristics and one male. The belly of her shell isn't concave, her claws are pretty short but her cloaca is near the tip of her tail.

Yes, wait until you confirm gender before looking into a new tank. Do one final upgrade that will be a forever home. Awesome that your parents are letting you decide what to do, that is not usually the case.

steve wrote:Yes, wait until you confirm gender before looking into a new tank. Do one final upgrade that will be a forever home. Awesome that your parents are letting you decide what to do, that is not usually the case.

My dad was kinda upset(I think because buying a separate tank for nesting is expensive) but they say I know more about turtles than them so they don't really question me when I say shelby needs something

A large plastic storage container will be fine to try as a nesting area, but if you're in a warm climate, having access to a yard or something will be much better,

steve wrote:A large plastic storage container will be fine to try as a nesting area, but if you're in a warm climate, having access to a yard or something will be much better,

Well canada isn't very warm so when/if she needs to lay eggs we'll be buying a storage container