General Care Discussion :: Having some issues with my RES turtle! Gravel & Sea Grass..

[throwbackent]

I've had him for four months now and he is approximately 2-years-old. His name is Wizzle. He just recovered from an RI, so I keep very close watch on him now. He's definitely a weirdo. Today I found him eating his gravel, he almost started choking, I had to take tweezers and remove it from his mouth. I feed him twice daily, so I don't know why he would eat it. Needless to say, I'm removing the gravel today. What should I replace it with? Large river rocks? And I know that if he tried to eat gravel today he probably has in the past and most likely will try to again. Please advise...

Also, I have this patch of "Sea Grass" that he absolutely loves. The only thing about it is that he goes underneath the grass and picks it up on his shell to the point where he carries it across the tank. He literally power-lifts it. Is that safe? is that okay for him or should I remover that as well?

Any advice is greatly appreciated!

Below are photos of my setup & him power-lifting the grass patch:

[steve]

Leave the tank bare so you can keep a look out for expelled pieces. You can leave it bare or add sand as long as he doesn't aggressively and constantly eat it. Anything in his tank is safe as long as it does not trap him -- decorations, filters, heaters, and basking areas.

[Jaysea]

That sea grass should be put on the very bottom of the tank, from that pic it looks like its on top of the gravel with a little bit of gravel on top of it. Could just be the picture tho.

Also I highly recommend sand, it looks amazing, is easy to take care of and turtles love it. You can also use that grass with it, just put it down first and then add the sand. Sand takes awhile to clean properly before adding it to the tank but it's well worth it in the end. Check out the sand FAQ sticky in the habitat forums for more info.