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OK what would be the best way to transport my boy. We are going to be moving out of state and its going to be about a 3 day drive. Suggestions?

I've never had to transport my turtles more than 15 minutes, but this is quite a detailed guide on how to transport your turtle:
http://www.redearslider.com/transportation.html

I also remember reading about someone who was going to be driving for a couple days like you would bring along a large plastic storage container, and when they stopped for the night they'd fill the container up, feed the turtle, and let him stay in the water over night.

Aside from staying in water just overnight I'd like to also suggest that when / if you stop for any period of more than 15-20 mins you let your guy get his swim on as the saying goes.

make sure on the drive he has plenty exposure to sunlight!

thanks ill read that info not sure about plenty of light during a drive tho...water sloshing around in my car doesnt sound like a good plan..LOL. Figured once we stopped some place he would be a bath tub turtle

As far as transporting water goes just take like two one gallons jugs of old tank water with you.

I transported my turtle's 8 hours dry. She was fine, a bit frightened, but fine. I highly recommend not carrying around water in the car or anything like that, they can easily survive a day without water (look at how often we see owners of lost turtles find them wander around there house several days later).

What I would recommend is buy a *much dreaded* critter carrier that will be a fairly tight fit for your sized turtle. I say tight because in my experience, they move around a lot and can get themselves in trouble. Put a towel on the bottom, put the dry turtle in the towel, and cover him up. If you don't cover them, they'll cover themselves up, so just do it to begin with. Put him in a cool, dark place in the car (I put her behind the driver's seat on the floor) and drive as much as needed. He'll be fine! Make sure that if you are traveling through the cold than you keep it warm, like put an extra blanket or two under the tank, and when you stop for food/gas, wrap the sides and a good portion of the top (leave an air hole!).

When you get to the hotel for the night, I would either have a slightly larger rubbermaid container that you fill about an inch or two overnight, or you can use a sink/bathtub, or even the critter carrier you are using. They only need enough water to eat and keep soaked, they DO NOT need light or a full tank for a few days. I promise!

Continue the process until you get to your new place. Turtles can be abused/neglected for a day or two without any ill effect.

Also something you might want to think about - if you have a canister filter, leave the water in it and don't empty the water out during the move - just put it in another container in case any leaks out. That way you won't lose all of your beneficial bacteria when you need to set up your tank again.

gwennie wrote:Also something you might want to think about - if you have a canister filter, leave the water in it and don't empty the water out during the move - just put it in another container in case any leaks out. That way you won't lose all of your beneficial bacteria when you need to set up your tank again.

If they're going to be driving 3 days, the bacteria will likely all die anyhow. It needs a pretty much constant supply of oxygen and food. From what I've heard, it'll live for about 30 minutes, maybe a bit more. Plus, and this is me thinking of my FX5, canisters are heavy with water in them! I don't think I would be able to move mine full of water.

I think if you follow what Gremlin said, you'll have no problems. Just might want to bring a bit of dechlorinator with you so you can treat any tap water you use to fill up your container/tub

If they die after a half hour with no new oxygen, that would mean if your power went out and your pump wasn't on for more than a half hour, they'd die...I don't really think that's the case ^^

3 days is a bit long though!

I would say 30 minutes seems too short, but 3 days is much too long for the bacteria to survive well. As long as the tank starts up fine, the bacteria will start growing. I've moved twice in 4 months (not a fun experience, I might add!) and both times, the filter was transported dry and a new tank was set up. I haven't had any cloudy water, so my bacteria or new bacteria must have gotten a rockin' and a rollin'.

Good call on the dechlorinator, though! You can't really wait 24 hours when you need to get on the road right away.