General Care Discussion :: Turtle care question

[Shinigami]

how often can i pick up my turtle from the tank and rub its belly?
and also should i get a large container,put some water in it and a basking area so it can some UVB from the outside light?

[Ozzyy]

turtles dont like to be picked up often... if they struggle when you pic them up(wigglign or mving legs) then you are stressing them out. and the basin idea is defeinateley a good idea.. just cover the basssin with a straon messh so he cant get out.. and predators cant get in

[flutterby]

They are more or less solitary animals and don't need human interaction other than being fed.

[Boogerbutt02]

yes some don't like to be picked up but there are times when you need to pick them up, so you have to be comfortable with it... if your turtle is under 4 inches you can probably pick it up with one hand either side of shell and then put him/her in the palm of your hand... if him/her is over 4 inches you are going to have to use two hands one on either side of shell, mine don't like to be held, but I hold them only to move them to another spot to clean their tanks, to look at them for illness and to take them outside for sun...

[grey goose]

The ONLY time I handle my turtles is just before they are fed (like moving them to a seperate container or tank). They have become "conditioned" so that all I do is place my hand in the tank, just under the waterline, palm up, and they swim right over and hop in. Bozo gets so excited sometimes he overshoots the landing and has to turn around and swim back! And they will sit patiently in my hand while I examine their shell and skin, no struggling or trying to bite...

[marisa]

Why do you want to rub your turtle's belly?

[daredevilgirl013]

I rub my turtle's belly. It calms her down. So therefore she doesn't bite me.

[Ozzyy]

paco likes it when i gently rub the top if his shell though.. i keeps him fromscrambling off my hands when i pick him up.

[Boogerbutt02]

On Sunday I took my large female outside to walk around and get sun, she didn't have any problems with me take her out of her tank and putting her in the grass. My neighbor's friend came up to the fence and wanted to know about her. So I picked her up to show him. She didn't want to be held and started kicking. For the first time ever she broke skin on my finger with her back claw... Warning: be careful of the claws!!!