Habitat - Outdoor :: How did you prepare your RES for outdoor living?

[Frances]

How did you prepare your RES for outdoor living?

I have 2 and they will soon have a 55 gallon tank setup for their enjoyment until they get too big for that. I plan to feed them live fish in preparation of outdoor living. I do not plan to release them into the wild (but if I change my mind we have a great wild life rehab. org. that will take them) however, I am planning to create a 200 (appro.) gallon water garden/pond.

What other things can I do to prepare them to live outdoors. They are about 1.5" now living in a 5 gallon tank.

[marisa]

Don't know when you're planning on putting them outside, but if they've been used to living with a water heater, you could slowly get them used to a cooler water temp. (it will fluctuate outside, I think).

[Oldturtle72]

I'm gonna wade in here with some advice for you. There is no need for you to do anything to get your turts ready to go outside, if, they are in cool water right now in the habitat they're in. I transfered a 1 and 1/2 inch RES outside into a 265 gallon preformed pond two weeks ago and it's out there 24/7 and will probably be P.Oed when my Granddaughter puts it in her 20 gallon long tank. There's no need to load yours up with fish. Just make sure that they take readily to Reptomin Floating Sticks. You can feed them crickets and worms and a steady supply of Romain or Red Leaf Lettuce. My pond is a third full of Helvola Lillies and Floating Water Lettuce and Water Hyacinth and there are underwater plantings of Anachris. There are 25 to 30 Japanese Black Trapdoor Snails for algae control. There is max shadow supplied by the plants and there is a 10 inch log suspended in the middle for a basking spot. There are 7 fish of varying sizes and types in the pond and they interact with the turt like it is one of their own. As of yet, I haven't seen the turt eat the fish food but the fish love the crickets and worms and sticks so I have to watch every time to make sure that the turt gets something. Yours will take to the pond and the sooner you can get them out of the little 5 gal tank, the happier they'll be. George