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I've been looking around the forum and I see many people with thier turts in glass tanks with rocks and a light and all this nice stuff. Now, when I got my turts 8 years ago I was told by the pet shop guy to keep them in a plastic container and a rock so they could sit on. I was also told to feed them lunch meat and lettuce. In other words, compared to the tanks I see here, my "enclosure" is totally inhumane.

I'm 200% willing to get a whole new enclosure for my turts. I will spend anything to keep them happy even if everything cost $5000 all together.

So were do I start?

Also, please note that I'm 13 and my parents don't know much about turts.

Thanks!

Wow...well for starters have you read the main site? It has a ton of info and also tells you EVERYTHING you need. A diet of lunchmeat and lettuce is very bad..that pet store guy should get his butt kicked...No you wont spend over a thousand dollars. Probably around 300$.

You will need a :


UVB light -

UVA light -

Water filter -

Water heater -

Two clamp lamps -

Two thermometers -

Tank/rubbermaid bin depending how big are your turtles -

Definitley do alot of reading..

You will need a large enclosure, a big stock tank or rubbermaid container will work.
A submersible heater (the visitherm stealth is great)
A decent filter (an aquaclear hang on or a canister filter like the xp3)
A thermometer for measuring water and basking temps.
A basking platform (like the zoomed dock)
Either a two bulb hood or two clamp lamps for a UVA bulb (household light) and a UVB bulb.

Optional: Plants, river rocks, and a veggie clip.

No-no's, Gravel

Check out this page for a handy rundown of what you'll need and approximate costs. http://www.redearslider.com/startup.html

Also look at the nutrition section of the site and look for ways to expand your turtle's diet.

I'd also recommend having them seen by a herp vet, if they've been fed that much protein and have gone that long without proper light, they could have some serious shell problems.

Wow you've had them for 8 years like that? How big are they now? Are they healthy? It amazes me what some of these turtles can live through. It's great that you're looking to do the right thing, so many people would rather live in ignorance than spend the money/time it takes to keep turtles healthy and happy. You will be able to find everything you need to know on the forum and on the main site. Good luck, and show us some pics when you've got it all hooked up!

Starchick wrote:Check out this page for a handy rundown of what you'll need and approximate costs. http://www.redearslider.com/startup.html

Also look at the nutrition section of the site and look for ways to expand your turtle's diet.

I'd also recommend having them seen by a herp vet, if they've been fed that much protein and have gone that long without proper light, they could have some serious shell problems.

ok, but what is a "herp vet". I also do take them outside daily unless its too cold or windy or somthing. I don't know if thats a good or bad thing.

Thanks!

A herp vet is a vet that deals and specializes in Reptiles, they are the best to go to when your turtle is sick.

Taking them outside for some natural UVB is okay. But you still need a UVB light.

I would get them on good commercial food. Reptomin, zoo med, mazuri, jurrasi diet, are all good pellets. You should also consider supplementing their food with something like Reptivite or another Reptile vitamin supplement since they are so malnourished.

There are more foods that you can feed....do some reading, this site is very helpful

octpusgirl8 wrote:Wow you've had them for 8 years like that? How big are they now? Are they healthy? It amazes me what some of these turtles can live through. It's great that you're looking to do the right thing, so many people would rather live in ignorance than spend the money/time it takes to keep turtles healthy and happy. You will be able to find everything you need to know on the forum and on the main site. Good luck, and show us some pics when you've got it all hooked up!

Hi! Both are about 5 inches. They seem very healthy to me. Climber is SUPER energetic. She runs super fast. So does Skipper. But Skipper's shell is a bit darker than Climber's. I'll need to post pictures to show you.

Thanks!

Hey Krystell,

Welcome to the forum! Don't worry, if you had your turts for 8 yrs and you spend the next month or two upgrading their setup, that's totally fine. We all understand that things can be expensive for our turtles. The good thing is that once you buy everything you need, then it becomes way cheaper than owning a cat or dog.

I have a large (9" long) turtle named Sheba that I had in a 55 gal tank for almost all of her life. I have had this turtle for 17 yrs now, fed her mainly "Reptomin food stick" food and occasionally some earthworms or cooked fish. I didn't even know she could eat veggies until I found this site a year ago! And back when I got Sheba, there were no vets for turtles. You just had to do the best you could and hope for the best. Even the books on turtles were not very good & didn't have the most accurate information. The pet stores didn't have all the things turtles needed either, and sometimes I had to drive far away to get her the food pellets she needed. It didn't help that we didn't have all the internet stores like nowadays..... (yes, I am OLD! LOL)

It sounds like you did the best you could. I am very happy that you are with us on this site! Enjoy all the reading.....I know I did! Ever since I found this site, I upgraded Sheba's tank to a 90-gallon tank and started feeding her fruits & veggies. She is soooo happy these days! I can't wait till you start to see the results of all the upgrades for your turtles! They become instantly more happy. You'll see!

industrial_girl_2000 wrote:Hey Krystell,

Welcome to the forum! Don't worry, if you had your turts for 8 yrs and you spend the next month or two upgrading their setup, that's totally fine. We all understand that things can be expensive for our turtles. The good thing is that once you buy everything you need, then it becomes way cheaper than owning a cat or dog.

I have a large (9" long) turtle named Sheba that I had in a 55 gal tank for almost all of her life. I have had this turtle for 17 yrs now, fed her mainly "Reptomin food stick" food and occasionally some earthworms or cooked fish. I didn't even know she could eat veggies until I found this site a year ago! And back when I got Sheba, there were no vets for turtles. You just had to do the best you could and hope for the best. Even the books on turtles were not very good & didn't have the most accurate information. The pet stores didn't have all the things turtles needed either, and sometimes I had to drive far away to get her the food pellets she needed. It didn't help that we didn't have all the internet stores like nowadays..... (yes, I am OLD! LOL)

It sounds like you did the best you could. I am very happy that you are with us on this site! Enjoy all the reading.....I know I did! Ever since I found this site, I upgraded Sheba's tank to a 90-gallon tank and started feeding her fruits & veggies. She is soooo happy these days! I can't wait till you start to see the results of all the upgrades for your turtles! They become instantly more happy. You'll see!

Wow, Sheba seems like a pretty cool turtle. And I didn't know that turtles had to go to special vets either. I will definatly read everything helpful I can find. I didn't know turtles could eat cooked fish either. I'm sure that my turts will like it better than lunchmeat after all these years

Thanks!

This site has SO much good info! I found it right when I got these two turtles and it has helped me develop good environments for them. The plastic Rubbermaid containers are perfectly good tanks to use and are really, really cheap. I used one until I finally found a good sized glass tank that I could afford. They are very happy turtles! Good luck!

ajozwiak wrote:This site has SO much good info! I found it right when I got these two turtles and it has helped me develop good environments for them. The plastic Rubbermaid containers are perfectly good tanks to use and are really, really cheap. I used one until I finally found a good sized glass tank that I could afford. They are very happy turtles! Good luck!

Wow! Great! I already have a rubbermaid container I can use! Now I need a filter........

Hi Everyone!

ok, I got some good news and some bad news.

The good news is that I'm almost done with the new setup! (I'll post pics soon) I just need a heater and a filter. And my turtles are WAY more happier now. I even started building a pond in the backyard!

The bad news is one of my houses was robbed and completly destroyed so my pond project will be postponded until I get things sorted out here. This also means that I won't be on turtle talk for a while. So if I don't reply or anything, don't worry.

Talk to you Later!

Whoa! That really stinks! I'm really sorry to hear that. I hope you have insurance.

Well it's good to hear that your turtles are doing really well. I hope things get better for you.

If you need a filter I recommend the magnum 350.