General Care Discussion :: Very New Turtle Owner...This is long.

[mccuen]

Until getting RES turtles myself, I had only seen one, my mother-in-law had one male RES turtle. He was being kept in what I think is a 10 gallon fish tank, he is about 5 years old, the tank has always had blue fish gravel in the bottom, no basking area, never out of the water except to take a breath, fed twice daily with turtle pellets and on occasion guppies. Now with that said, I thought this was an easy task. So when I saw that two RES turtles needed a home, I thought, my daughter would love them. We now have 2 female RES turtles, said to be about 4 years old. Previous owner said they have always kept them in a tupperware container that they were in when we picked them up, estimated to be about 4 gallons. My mother-in-law was getting a new tank and decided to give us the old 10 gallon tank. The 2 turtles love it. It is a regular fish tank setup. Light in the lid, heater, filtration system that came with the tank, and of course gravel.

I now know that the gravel needs to be removed because of this website and we are in the process of doing that. There is still no basking area, didn't know they needed one until this website. I do feed them vegetables though and turtle pellets. I do know this tank isn't big enough its a temporary solution until we can get a bigger tank (its much better than a 4 gallon plastic container though). While changing them from plastic container to the tank they were put into a wash tub sink to be out of the water for awhile. They did not like it whatsoever!

How important is it for them to be out of the water? How often do they need to be out of the water? And for how long do they need to be out of water before they are put back into the water?

How do I know if the filtration system that came with this tank or any tank for that matter is good enough? When we first put them in this tank the filtration system cleared the water up great, but this morning it was merky looking and still is. The water temp stays at 78 degrees.

I am including pictures of the setup also and more pictures of the turtles to help, I know the gravel has to be removed, I wanted to post a pic of what the exact setup was. Any helpful advice is greatly appreciated, we want to take care of these 2 new family members as much as possible.


The Darker Turtle


The Lighter Turtle


Front View of the Tank setup


Another Front View of the Tank Setup


Overhead view of Inside the Tank

[jenaero]

They look pretty good considering how they were 'cared' for.

I think you should have two priorities now. Firstly, getting a larger tank/rubbermaid, whatever you decide to use. Second, they'll need appropriate lighting (heat and uvb), along with a dry area to bask on.

Looks like you did them a great favour! It's always good to see new members hungry for info.

Any filter should be one rated for at least twice the actual size of your tank. *ie for a 40gal tank, buy a filter rated for at least 80gal.

Do as much reading as you can regarding care/habitat on the main site. We're always here if you have questions.

[Daniel3507]

they need to always have a place to get out of the water and warm up available so they can regulate their temp. really there is no way to know exactly how long they need to be out. thats why they should have a basking area so they can get out and bask whenever they need it. the basking area needs to be at least 10 degrees warmer than the water and should have a uvb along with a heat bulb.

a filter for a turtle should be rated for 5x the amount of water you have in the tank.

be sure and read the main site. it will tell you everything you need to know.

[zoologist]

wow. poor turtles

i'd suggest going out and buying the largest rubbermaid container your wallet can afford. unlike a glass tank, it will not cost you $300. only about $30-40.

the easiest basking area for you to get would be the largest zoo-med turtle dock availiable. if you have $50 to spend get this lamp. it is a heat lamp and a UVB in one! http://www.reptileuv.com/megaray-sb-100 ... b-lamp.php

[TheComputerGremlin]

So, look on Craigslist and your local newspaper for cheaper used aquariums. You want a fish-based aquarium, not anything "made for a turtle". For two females, you may be needing quite a large tank eventually, for now, try to find one that is 10 gallons times the inches of shell for both of them. So if they are both 6 inches, you want about a 120 gallon tank. You can skimp a little or go bigger if you can.

You want a filter rated to turn over about 3-5 times the gallons each hour. At the size your girls are, you'll probably want to look into a canister filter, like a Rena XP4 or a Fluval FX5. Check out ebay, you can get some awesome deals on those filters on there. I think people often find the Fluval FX5 for around $200 which is a steal.

The UVB/basking bulb combo that Jessy suggested, you can only use if your tank is 50 gallons or larger. It's a great bulb, just make sure you have a tank to go along with it, otherwise it can't be used until you get that bigger tank.

It's a lot to take in, just take one step at a time. As others have said, first priority is a larger tank or rubbermaid container and the lighting and basking. Next would probably be the filter, and then just decorations! The sticker-shock of the initial stuff you need to buy is rough, I'll warn you, many of the people on here have spent $400-$1200 on the initial setup. But after that, all you pay for is food, which doesn't cost much. Most other pets are far more expensive in the long run.

Keep your questions coming, we're happy to answer!

[robind]

Craigslist often has great deals on cheap tanks/filters. Keep in mind you should shoot for 10 gallons of water per inch of turtle.

[mccuen]

Thanks for everyone's help. I just wanted to let everyone know that I did find a 55 gallon tank on Craigslist!! The tank came with everything I need and the wood oak cabinet to sit it on all for $50. I can't wait to get them in it and see their reaction.

[robind]

Awesome! Post some pictures of the little guys when you get a chance

[mccuen]

Here are some pictures of the new set up. Still a work in progress, still have to get the lighting and basking area. I did remove the gravel and put in river rock.


This is the setup before we added the water to it.


This is after we set it up and put them in it. They still stayed right with each other.

[bradmeisel]

Wow, look how happy they look. They might be the luckiest two turtles around. They look so much smaller in that huge tank. You did them a service. Good luck with them and i am interested in seeeing what you get for them to bask on. I've put some pavers in my tank and mt turtle loves it.

They love a rock or something to sit on below the water but close enough so they can just stick their heads out of the water for a breath. They look pretty good for the way you mentioned they were taken care of.

And they love to have a cave or just paper or something to block the tank when they sleep at night.

[TheComputerGremlin]

mccuen - Since the tank is technically still too small for them, consider an above tank basking area. Basically, you build a box that has a ramp into the water that will sit on top of the tank. This will allow for you to keep all of that wonderful swimming space and utilize other areas instead. There are many ways to build one, including using cheap things from around the house, like clothes baskets, egg crate, plexiglass, PVC pipes, etc. This will give you a lot more time with your current tank.

What an upgrade! I bet the turtles can't believe their luck!

[mccuen]

Yeah, unfortunately we knew they would outgrow this tank. But it so much better than a 4 gallon tupperware box. They went from a 4 gallon box to a 55 gallon tank in less than a week. They enjoy it so much and seem to be happier. I have noticed the larger tank stays cleaner than the smaller tank also. We are thinking of the above tank basking area, my husband got excited when he found out he was going to get to "build" something for them. He is just as excited as the turtles are!!

[bradmeisel]

I would love to see pictures of what an above the tank basking platform looks like. It sounds like a great idea.

[SpotsMama]

They'll need a place to climb up out of the water to get dry, rest and bask. When you put the basking platform in, you'll need to lower the water level in the tank considerably. Turtles climb up on the basking platform then climb on out of the tank. Do not underestimate the athletic ability of a RES - they are excellent climbers. If they can get their front feet on the edge of the tank, they can get out.

By the way, it's important for them to be able to get out of the tank and dry out to keep their shells healthy. If they never get to dry out, they will eventually develop fungus and/or bacterial shell infections which can be serious.

There are several reasons to be sure the tank sizes are large enough for the turtles. One is that if the water volume is too small, it gets to be too hard to keep clean - even a very good filter can't keep up with the waste if the water volume is insufficient. You don't want to spend your life constantly changing dirty turtle water, so a good sized tank along with a good filter should be high on your list.

Here's some info on a basic start-up setup:

http://www.redearslider.com/startup.html

Good luck! Keep us posted on how it's going! Cute turtles, by the way.

[SpotsMama]

Bradmeisel, here's a great set of photos of basking platforms including many ATBAs:

http://www.redearslider.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=15260

And mccuen, you should look into them too. With an above tank basking area (ATBA) you can fill the tank all the way to the top with water, which provides more swimming room for the turtles and improves water quality.