Habitat - Indoor :: Cosmo and Saucy's owner has Q's

[marisa]

Wardley's is OK, but doesn't provide as much nutrition as Reptomin. Reptomin, however, has a higher protein content (the regular one) than Wardleys. When my RES was small, I used to rotate between 3 brands--Reptomin, Nutra-fin, and Zoo-Meds to provide variety (and not let him get stuck on any one brand) and you might consider doing this as well.

[tY2i]

As of one week ago, I started to feed them once a day. They both recieve about 15 sticks and intake about the same amount. Is this okay?

[sonyj]

It's good that you've cut them back from the large amount you were giving them. You may eventually want to move them to every other day. And I've forgotten whether you've said you give them veggies, but be sure to if you don't already.

Jen would have some good advice for you since she's had to cut her turtles back per vet order for fast growth. Keep up the good work.

[tY2i]

Thanks, I'm doing all I can for them. And by the way, I had some thinking done a few days ago but didn't know how to say. It may sound a bit lame or ignorant but for the sake of the turts as well. See, they always think why their huge friend (me) puts them in some sort of temporary prison while I completely clean their home. This is where the question comes into play: why have a filter when you still have to wipe it out clean? This may not be debatable material, but what's the point in a filter? Thanks for the open arms.

[sonyj]

Well, I don't know about anyone else but I'd have to clean the tank daily if I didn't run a filter. At least with the filter I don't have to clean but every week or so. And I don't always break the tank completely down each week, more like every other. I only completely wipe it all down about every other time I change the water. I always use the cleaning to give Koopa a chance for some outside time in a rubbermaid container with some water, sun and a little shade. The filter will also help the overall quality of the water so your turtle will be less likely to get sick from an overbuild up of debris.

And as always, this is just my opinion.

[tY2i]

Something to mention: a PetLand rep had told me to change the filter every month. She has a 10 inch RES with a 120 gallon tank and changes the filter once a month. She had told me to do the same with my two res. What does this mean? My tank will go FILTHY if I were to let this happen!

[sonyj]

I've heard that the bigger the tank, the less often you have to clean it. I guess with more water and space the debris isn't as concentrated and as bad as in a smaller tank like I have. So from observation, the smaller the tank/less water the more often you will have to clean it. So with her turtle being in a 120 and it being the only turtle in there, she probably doesn't have to clean it but once a month.

Hope this makes sense...

[JessicaTS]

I clean my 200 gallons every three weeks. Sometimes it's once a month, sometimes twice a month. I change my filter right after cleaning it

[cam722]

Could it be that she means you have to change some of the filter media monthly. Like if you use activated charcoal ... that needs to be changed monthly.

[marisa]

If you have two turtles, one 2.5 inches and one 4 inches, in a 10-gallon tank (way too small, btw) the water is going to get filthy quickly (and if you feed them in the tank, even more so) even if you have the water level high. I'm not familiar with your filter, but if it's inadquate for the size of the tank, it will need frequent cleaning as well, with some of the media replaced. With two turtles, if the filter is small and you have carbon, it will likely need to be replaced more frequently than once a month as well. If you still have the turtles in a 10-gallon, I'd clean the tank and filter once a week (and look for a bigger tank/container).

A bigger tank with more water would give you more options for filters and would extend the time between cleanings and complete water changes.

[tY2i]

So with a combined 2.5 inches, should I be going for a 200 gallon tank? If so, what filter is best for it?

[cam722]

If you have a 2.5" and a 4" turtle, the combined size is 6.5" which means 65 gallons of space for their current size. Depending on the sex of the turtle.. the worst case scenerio being that you have 2 females which can grow to 12" each.. you'd need a 240 gallon tank to house them together. All that is based on as I said their sex .. and if they are able to stay together.

With that size tank, I believe you'd end up using either multiple filters or a pond filter, as you'd need one rated for 2-3x's the size of the tank or 400-600 gallons.

[tY2i]

Thanks for the correction cam. And I'm glad to say that I just bought a 65 gallon tank today! I've been thinking about doing it for a few days. So I did it! They seem so happy in there, it's kind of like they have been taken out of a long jail sentence, lol. They were happy before, but if you judge how much they swim by how happy they are... then they are in heaven.

Okay now on their feeding:
I'm giving them "head size" portions each once a day. Is this still a bit much or am I right on target? I've heard something on feeding them every 3 days. What's that about?

[sonyj]

Turtles at or around a year old should be fed every other day with the pellets. Veggies can be offered on the day you don't feed pellets etc.

So glad your guys are happy in their new home. Let us see some pics when you get a chance.

[tY2i]

As a matter of fact, I already do have pics of them. Oh and I have a scanner as well, but they were babies. I'll still post them though. So once every other day does sound reasonable, by why so sparingly? Do they have slow digesting systems or... ?