Other Turtle Discussion :: Can someone please tell me what my turtles are doin?

[sneakyburrito]

i finally took a video of my turtles doing that weird thing with their front feet. i was wonderin what this "dance" is supposed to mean....i know its not a mating dance being that they are still baby turtles..but yeh, im not really worried about it..or should i be?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UvEjNkWo9Ms

[xsavingsaturdayx]

aw, thats cute.
haha

[flutterby]

Its not just a mating dance, it is a sign of aggression.

[sneakyburrito]

is it really? the 2 of them do this "dance" often but they show no signs of agression. they have never bit each other or scratch eachother. they just do this dance and call it a day. do you have like a source that can confirm this "dance" of agression?

[CountryGirl68]

The video looks like they are trying to bite each other during their "dance". The "poking" of their beaks together isn't a love kiss . Like Flutterby said, it is usually a sign of aggression, like they are telling each other "get outta my space". Aggression between turtles isn't something that they will do constantly but it can cause injuries so you should keep an eye on them. Since you have two turtles, you should have a large enough tank for them - it is recommended you have at least about 1 1/2 to 2 times what you would need if you had only one turtle. This will give them enough room to avoid each other.

There are many studies which you can find on the internet about aggression between turtles in captivity and in the wild. Our sources come mainly from other turtle owners that have had to take their turtle to the vet after one has been attacked by another.

[flutterby]

What size tank do you have them in, maybe they need more space. I would keep an eye on them.

[Ozzyy]

so thats what paco does to the computer... i dont think he likes it very much

[sneakyburrito]

i have the 2 of them in a 29 gallon tank. cuz thats the largest tank i could afford.

[the_orphaned]

I believe thats a territorial dispute. Either that or you have two males trying to "play fight" with each other which would be the usual case in the wild.

[fric]

Sneaky ... See my post to "is it better to have more than one RES." My two males are both over two years old at this time and are not fighting when they're doing this. Maybe a little frisky because turtles are very sexual creatures. As my post says, they do this for awhile and then go on.
Even the babies such as yours and some I've had in the past do this before you can even tell what their sex is.
It might be aggression if the two were just introduced to each other, but in the case of my two boys, they have been together since very young with PePe being just a hatchling when introduced to Scoota, the one six months older. He has always been the instigator to this dance too.

[CountryGirl68]

I've read many posts of turtle owners that have two or more turtles together for years with no problems, like Fric, while others just can't keep two together without problems. A friend of mine has had a male and female together for over 5 years and only recently (during a mating attempt), the male took a bite out of the female's eye, which needed medical attention. It's hard to say whether or not turtles put together in a tank will get along. I've wondered why that is?

[JNZBCBnLIL]

That's probly the cutest thing I've ever seen!! I don't have any advice because I'm completely new to this but your turtles are adorable!!

[sneakyburrito]

everytime i see my 2 little guys do the dance, i knock on the glass to tell them to stop. so far it works wonders. and like Fric, they do this "play fight" and nothing much happens after it. i estimate that my 2 turtles have been together for a long time being that the previous owner who gave them to me gave me both of them, their tank and various other supplies. as you could see in my video, there were fake plants all over the place, and so that prolly played a role in the territorial intrusion. i removed some o the plants, and so far, it looks like its goin pretty well.