General Care Discussion :: turtle growth questionable

[racquelle]

I own three turtles, and they are provided with adequate care. All of them seem to be doing really well. One, however, has remained it's original size of two inches. He/she eats well, basks frequently, and socializes with the others. I just find it strange that within the year I've had them the other two have surpassed three inches, while he remains "baby-sized." Any ideas?

[missibsu]

With three turtles that love to beg for food, are you absolutely sure that the little one is getting his share of food? I have two RES and if I didn't keep a close eye on them, one would eat all of the food before the other.

Are they all on the same set up? I was just thinking if they were in different set ups, that maybe his environment was lacking something that the others have....assuming that they are all together though. Do you have pics that you can share? We like pics.

[marisa]

Although it is possible that the one turtle is just smaller than the rest, from what I've experienced, when multiple turtles are in a tank, one has tended to be smaller and lighter. More often than not, this is the turtle that is the lowest on the pecking order and was somehow being stressed out by the others and often not getting an equal share of the food.

I've found it difficult to monitor exactly how much each turtle is getting when all are fed together in a tank (especially if there are more than two turtles).

How big a tank are the three turtles in? If two are 3 inches and one is 2 inches (shell lengths without the curves), ideally something around 80 gallons would be appropriate...

I would feed the one turtle in separately, at least for a while, to make sure he's getting enough food.