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Hello,

I am moving tomorrow (within the same city) and am planning to move my turtle the day after (I don't trust the movers!). I have a 55 gallon tank which I will obviously empty to move.

But the turtle itself (at least 4 inches long -- about as large as my palm). How should I transport her (or him i'm not sure). I was planning to put her in a bucket with a little bit of water just to keep her wet. I read to not transport her in water.. why is that?

The trip won't be long (10--15 minutes).

Thanks for your advice,

Kasia

your turtle will be fine with out water for several hours.... I do not know the reason not to transport in water other than the mess it would make if it spilled.... my advice would be to put your turtle in the bucket without water and put him/her in the car so that the bucket can not slide around...

I have heard that turtles can stay out of water up to 8 hours, but I am not sure... I have only had mine out for 3 or 4 at the most...

good luck with the move and let us know how it went..

Put her in a dry rubbermaid or other container with holes in the lid. Make sure the container is just big enough to fit the turtle in, but not big enough for her to turn around or flip herself over. Put a dry towel or paper towels in the bottom. Put that box in a cardboard box to keep her from being exposed to drafts. Make sure the car is warmed up and you're good to go.

Btw, transporting in water is not a good idea because it can be sloshed around and the turt could get bumped around.

I use a small cooler (like you put cold drinks in to take to a picnic) to cart Spot around. There's no water in it but I put in some washcloths to make it soft. If he's going to be in it for any length of time, I have to open the lid for fresh air.

It's handy because I can close it up completely if I need too and it has a nice handle. It insulates him from extreme hot and cold and drafts. I think it being dark inside motivates him to sleep.

You could even put in in a cardboard box with some wet paper towels. Thats how I got mine when I went to go pick it up at the Pet store.

wet paper towels are not recommended because they can get to cold and chill your turt, the turt will be fine without and moisture for a few minutes

It kind of depends on the temp and humidity as to whether or not you'd want to add a moist cloth or wet paper towels. For a trip as short as the one above, they're not needed. I'd put him on something (a soft cloth, for example) to cushion him and give him another cloth to burrow under.

They can go for longer than 8 hours without water. Mine had stayed out of the water overnight without any problems.

Just wanted to thank everyone for their answers.

I ended up using the bucket with dry paper towel at the bottom. She freaked out when I took her out at first.. and tried to climb up the walls of the bucket. She was out of the water for longer than I expected.. emptying the tank and transporting was a big job! But I kept an eye on her throughout and she only flipped on her shell once.

Once in the new place and in the water she was quite happy. It's been 2 weeks now and no ill effects!

Thanks!

Glad to hear the move went well.