General Care Discussion :: Turtle Entertainment

[Kayah]

I've got a .. close to 2 year old RES, Tempest, who I suspect is male (and also hope), approx 5 inches long in a 65 gal tank.
He currently has a single dock, some floating plantage (I forgot the name) he can nibble on and a bunch of goldfish (junk food I know, but he's stopped trying to catch them and they've grown bigger than he can eat now, mostly.. I get him minnows now and then but I don't care to acclimatize them and they tend to die fast and he just gobbles them up) that swim around.
He gets leafy greens (loose leaf lettuce, carrots and anything else that he may like that isn't on the "do not feed your RES" list) and cuttlefish to chew on and basks in the sun regularly.

But I get the impression he is bored.
I've been trying to find something that I could get him that would "entertain" or engage him.. something either that doesn't get destroyed too fast, non toxic so he can try to bite it if he really wants.. maybe something floating in mid water that he could nudge along or something he can push around on the bottom. I really have no clue as to what a turtle gets his kicks out of.

In a smaller set up I had some larger rocks and fake plants he liked to shift and move around quite a lot, but since moving to the larger setup about a year ago now I haven't put anything in (partly cause he's bigger and I'm afraid that he might actually get enough force on a rock to crack the glass aquarium wall if he gives it a good push.. maybe not the first time but if done repeatedly?) on the bottom except for a couple of suction cups that used to hold hoses in the old set up - he likes to vibrate his claws off those, doesn't try to chew.

Any ideas? I love him to pieces but I don't have time to play "hey follow my finger around on the other side of the aquarium"
I haven't found anything on "things to entertain your turtle" on the net other than "red ear sliders can be very entertaining" or "red ear sliders are NOT toys" ... maybe informative to some but not very helpful to me.

Input greatly appreciated.

Kayah

[missibsu]

Welcome! I have a glass aquarium and I still have my rocks. I don't notice my turts pushing the rock at the same spot over and over. I have some smaller rocks that I pile up when I clean, and they love to dig through those. They are about the size of a small egg, so there is no danger of them eating the rocks and they aren't big enough to do any real damage.

In terms of toys, the only thing I remember reading about is ping pong balls. They float on top of the water and the turtle can push it along. I personally would get tired of that game, but who knows. They make them in many different colors and designs these days, so you change it up a bit.

[DanielRES1180]

I've noticed turts are livelier when they have another buddy around. Some might agree, some might disagree, but I'll leave that debate to someone else.

Try to get some rocks in the tank, my turts love to move the rocks in my tank and search under them when there's nothing else to do. Make sure they won't get eaten or aren't too big to inflict some damage.

[jridge]

It sounds to me like you have provided Tempest with a very nice set-up....The best entertainment for him that I can think of would be to get him a nice plasma TV and maybe a sound system.....

Just kidding.....What makes you think that he is "bored" ?......Has his behavior changed recently?......I would think that the goldfish would provide enough entertainment for him, but you could always put in some good sized marbles for him to roll around the bottom......

[DanielRES1180]

I agree with jridge, it's hard to tell if a turtle is bored or not, since they don't have facial expresions. My definition of bored would be staying in one spot for an extended piece of time, swimming sluggishly, and not eating as eagerly as a lively turtle.

[industrial_girl_2000]

I take my Sheba for walks outside & she really enjoys that. Plus, it gets her out of the tank.

Sometimes I let Sheba roam around the main floor of the house too (when I am home & can keep an eye on her). She really likes to explore & climb on objects on the floor. Just make sure you close the doors to any rooms you don't want him/her to go in or lock up any other pets (dogs/cats) when your turtle is roaming around the house. A lot of the times, they like to dig under things, like the couch or maybe a bean bag & hide.

I don't have anything inside Sheba's tank. She is so big (adult) that she tends to mess things up pretty quickly. I just entertain her outside of the tank.

[missibsu]

Marbles aren't the best idea because they are glass...and not a glass that is as durable as your tank. The risk of the marbles getting broken is pretty good, and then the turtle could be eating pieces of glass. It's along the same lines as recommending that people take the glass rocks out of aquariums.

[gammeragirl]

My turt likes to push things around in her aquarium, she "redecorates" by moving some artificial plant, and she pushes her fluval underwater filter (those suction cups don't hold it down well enough). She also "flutters" her front legs at the end of the fluval filter. It has become a first thing in the morning ritual for her.

[Kayah]

He didn't swim around as much as before, mostly floated in the same spot for long periods of time, not as interested in the fish or when it came to feeding time - just gave me the impression he was lacking "something"

So I put a couple smaller (definately not something he can swallow though) rocks in his tank and oh my what a difference! He's been at it for at least half an hour now, shoving them around.

I think I will also make it a point to let him out of the tank some, although it is a bit of a bummer for him because I have hardwood floors and he can't stay up very well.. every now and then his feet slip and his shell connects with the floor.
My cats have a very healthy respect (read: they're afraid) for him - I would never leave him with them with anything less than full supervision though, but they *know* better than to swipe at him, and now they also know better than to stick their noses where the turtle head used to be.. until it snaps out and bites them.
Since I don't have a lot of time to supervise, he doesn't get out too much.

Thank you for all the suggestions though..
right now getting a second turtle is not an option, I would not be able to give him/her the kind of space that a second RES requires - in the future I am planning to set up one of those hard plastic garden ponds, except inside. Perhaps then I will consider another turtle. By that time, though, I have a feeling that Tempest will just have been so used to being the king of his domain that any newcomers would not be met with any sort of welcome.

K.

[marisa]

Thank you for knowing your limits! Your turtle will be better off for it.