General Care Discussion :: found 2 -half dollar size turtles in yard, help

[Giddy]

ok...thanks for the info. I really do not plan on keeping them long term unless we move into a MUCH larger house with plenty of wall room for all the tanks we already have..plus the room they will need...sigh lol I do have a small tank to set up until finding them a good home.

How big are they when they hatch? SO how old are these little guys...apx??

They are tiny..maybe 1.5" in length of shell size.


I have a cycled tank, plenty of plants..and deep water is NOT a concern as long as there are places for them to go right??

Just want to make sure I don't drown them...I knew someone who did when I was young and it has stuck with me..

thanks:)

[cam722]

There's no way to determine age by size as size is affected by many factors, such as food, environment etc. If they still have what's called an eggtooth, they would be newly hatched but considering the time of year, I seriously doubt any turtles have recently hatched.

You can have the water as deep as possible as long as it doesn't allow them to escape. Having plants for them to rest on is a good idea, as you don't want them to get tired out and they also need a place to hide until they get used to their environment.

[Giddy]

What would the egg tooth look like?


Ok, here is the temp tank until the hail stops so I can go out and clean up a larger home. Ignore the bubbles and other supplies...tearing everything apart to find what I could use.

Temp is about 78, this was already a cycled tank with plenty of biomedia, etc..I just did a fresh water change.

Here is my concern: When I first put them in, they started swimming like crazy and heading to different areas. But a couple of times it looked like the baby wasn't strong enough to climb or get out of the plant foilage..am I worrying too much?

You can see the plants I have stationed here and there is plenty up top for them to rest on. They are fastoned with suction cups at the top and bottom...the tank gets plenty of side sun during the day as well. ANything I did wrong>?

How long is considered the normal range for them staying under water?

[sonyj]

Here's a link to a previous post that has a pic of an eggtooth: http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1209

I wouldn't worry about them too much. When we first got Koopa, everything he did panicked me, and all it was was him getting used to his environment (swimming frantically, diving to the bottom, running into the glass to get away from the big "predators" etc). They will just need some time to calm down and feel that they are safe before they bask or eat well.

By "side sun", what do you mean? You definitely don't want the tank in any direct sunlight if that is what you meant. The sun through the tank glass could cause it to warm up too much and hurt the turtles.

[Giddy]

Thanks for the link.


No, not direct sun, but enough where it will produce some nice, green algae. I have had this tank in this spot for about 6 months and it has never gotten above high 70s.

Now I just have to find a way of making a small basking station. ....

[marisa]

I've got a stock tank that gets the sun in the afternoon for a while and one side of it is covered in green velvet (algae).

If they're active they can stay submerged for around 15 minutes. Less active, longer. My RES sleeps underwater. My (smaller) eastern painteds tend to sleep closer to the surface in their plants.