General Care Discussion :: A little embarrassed...

[demonicangel132007]

I am feeling extremely ashamed that it has taken me this long to actually research the proper care for my turtle. It was only a few months ago that I found out what type of turtle he was. So I apologize if this sounds completely naive. :\

So, my turtle Apollo was an Easter present about five years ago from the local pet shop that is no longer standing (they were selling more than just pets), they put the turtle in a little "lagoon" thing, told me to keep it filled with water, feed him, and that was it he wouldn't get any bigger than that tank. So of course, I believed him.

He stayed in the little lagoon tank until I went off to college and since I couldn't take him with me I left him here in the care of my parents, who put him in a 1 gallon (if even that) aquarium and put him on the counter in the kitchen. My mother just a few hours ago finally admitted to me that she had tried to kill him because it would've been one less thing to worry about.

Now, I'm back home and unfortunately, unemployed so for now he is still stuck in that 1 gallon aquarium (since the cats broke the lagoon by pushing him off the counter--still surprised he managed to survive that fall), but I am trying to scrape together as much money as I can to get him set up in a proper aquarium.

I read on here that the rule of thumb is 10 gallons per inch of turtle (?) he's 3 inches long now so what would be the minimum-sized aquarium that I could put him in (I have limited spacing in my room where I plan on moving him until I can save up more money to get a place of my own)?

I also think that he's shedding for the first time since I've had him (unless this happened before while I was away at college) but how do I know for sure that's what it is?

Sorry if I sound like a noob, it's just I feel bad for putting him through this crap for the last 5 years. He's my boy.

[Also, sorry if this doesn't belong here...]

[VeipaCray]

30 gallons is the recommendation, but any aquarium is better than what he's in now. The MINIMUM I would buy for your turtle is a 20 gallon long tank. However, you don't necessarily need an aquarium if it's temporary. You could do a rubbermaid type storage tub. Those are cheap, large and hold water. I know my local hardware store has large ones on sale for $5 in the holiday section. The downside is that you can't see through them... but you could leave the top off and look into the tub. You can put a heater and setup a basking area in a rubbermaid tub. For a really cheap basking area... go get a large rock from outside....clean it off really good. (or a pile of good sized rocks) The water level needs to be at least 6 inches for your 3 inch turtle, and the rock should stick out of the water a bit so the turtle can completely dry off. You need a heater to get your water about 76-77 degrees, and heat,uva,uvb lamps for the basking area. UVA + heat can be accomplished by a standard incandescent light bulb. UVB... there's several options at your local petstore. Clamp lights from your local hardware store are the cheapest way to hold & attach the lights. Clamp them to the lip of the rubbermaid tub or tank, screw in the bulb... good to go.