redearslider.com

Hi all...

I recently became the pround owner of 2 RES hatchlings. Like most, I do not know their sex... so I've named them Gin & Juice
I'm confident with the care I give them... they are growing up so fast *tear*. I feed them guppies, pellets, floating sticks, lettuce. Does anyone have other suggestions of food that is good for them?
Any Ideas of any toy type things that they can chase around the tank?

Their personalities are SO diferent. Gin (the smaller one) is very
outgoing...wants to know whats going on all the time. He loves hunting fishies Juice is a big baby.... As soon as someone comes in the room he runs and hides in the cave. He'll hunt fishies, but won't go out of his way to get one. Another weird thing about J, is that he makes noises. It sounds like a dog wimpering. It sounds crazy, I know, but I know its him. I thought I was loosing my mind, so I picked him up... and he made the same noise when he was in my hand. He doesnt "talk" often. When he does, it's mostly at night or late in the afternoon. Does anyone know if this is something I should be concerned about?

Thanks for your help-
Joanne

Welcome. Read the posts on the Feeding and Nutrtion Forum for ideas on other foods you could give.

Some people have put a ping-pong ball in the tank for a turtle to push around. I use to have a small plastic floating turtle that I used with my RES. Some smooth river rocks on the bottom would give them something to push around. You could also put a bubble wand in the tank so they could go after the bubbles.

About the noise--it's not a hissing sound that they make if they retract their heads into their shells quickly? If not, are there any other symptoms--open mouth breathing, bubbbles, mucus, frequent yawning? Is your turtle active and eating well?

What is your set-up like (tank size, filter, lighting, etc.)?

Welcome to the forum JoanneM

Turtles do vocalize, but I would still watch for the symptoms

Thanks for the quick response...

2 babies... 30gal tank w. rocks on the bottom.... 3/4 tank is a basking area. UV bulb for basking and I have them near a window so they get natural light too. subm. heater with the water temp around 80... whisper "waterfall" filter thats good for 50 gal tank.

I will try the ping pong ball... that sounds like fun!

J- looks great... Great color, shell is nice, no runny nose or infected eyes.
He eats VERY well and swims alot. He is shedding a good amout, but he is growing very well too, so I attribute the shedding to that. Could he be talking because he's growing?
I've seen him yawn twice since I got them... I have not noticed a pattern though. He does blow bubbles evey now and again... what does that mean?

Putting your turtle next to a window is fine for a while as long as there is no glass or screen blocking the direct sunlight (notice the word "direct"), glass and screen will filter out the UV that sunlight provides for the turtle, also if you leave the tank in the sunlight, it will allow algae to reproduce and make your tank green.

BTW, I found the link for turtle vocalizations:
http://www.tortoise.org/audio/klein.wav

The rest of them are here:
http://www.tortoise.org/tortcall.html#chaco

Enjoy

If you start to get algae, it would be good to take the tank out of the window. The glass blocks the sun's UVB rays, so if the light you're using doesn't give off UVB rays, your turtles will need a UVB light.