General Care Discussion :: im so in over my head

[zenalisa]

ive had what i thought was a red eared slider for over 5 years, only to find out recntly that he was a compleatly different kind of turtle and needed three times as much care as we thought! i would sue the petstore we got him from if i could hire a lawyer.

anyway, what kind of turtle is he?
http://s301.photobucket.com/albums/nn54 ... 0_3387.jpg
http://s301.photobucket.com/albums/nn54 ... 0_3389.jpg
http://s301.photobucket.com/albums/nn54 ... 0_3390.jpg

does this kind of turtle need any special care?

[Chrisbarnett]

Thats a Western Painted.

[megcornell]

I'm pretty sure you lucked out. It looks like a male western painted turtle.
They stay relatively small (5-7 inches) and need basically the same requirements as RES.
Here's a link to a good care guide for them.
http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/Care/c ... ainted.htm

Also check out the main site for red eared sliders, it has a lot of good info on requirements as well. The good news is that you won't need nearly as large of a tank for a painted as you would for a RES.

If you have any other questions about him feel free to ask!

[zenalisa]

retarded petstore people told me he was a res and said i could keep him in a 10 gallon aquarium... grr!!

its a relief that he wont get much bigger. how much space will he need? he's about 5 inches long.

i just went to that page, the pictures look exactly like him.

[TheComputerGremlin]

For aquatic turtles, the rule of thumb is 10 gallons per inch of shell length. So, since he's currently about 5 inches and he could get a bit bigger, I'd look around for a 55-75 gallon tank. He's a beauty, though!

And don't feel bad, we get LOTS of people coming here saying the pet store said something incredibly wrong. It's good you're here to get answers!

[zenalisa]

55-75?!??!? i can see the headlines now: "mother violently murders daughter.
girls remains found shredded in food processer" ok, she wont be that mad, but still. im so glad i found this place!

[TheComputerGremlin]

Haha! Yeah, there are a lot of similar situations as yours on the board, and a whole string of nearly-murdered children. You can check local ads and Craigslist to try to find a deal on a larger tank. And that size tank will last the turtle for life, so that's a plus. Most RES owners end up with at least 3 tanks over their turtle's life, the first being some semblance of a "death bowl", the next being some intermediate between 20-50 gallons, and the last being in the 75-120 gallon range.

[zenalisa]

ah, the ever recomended craiglist. good thing ive seen quite a few big tanks on there. im glad i can give him proper care now! and another bright side, i can use his old tank for hermit crabs (im totally addicted to them) time to start the grat tank search... again lol

[LeslieMW]

yea i found a 55 gallon and stand and pump for only 60 bucks on craigslist. keep searching and you can find a good one!

[untsmurf]

Honestly, in order to avoid upsetting your mother any further, I would just go for the 75. You don't want to get a complete 55 gallon setup only to find out that he grew to 7'' and needs more room. Plus, 75 are very plentiful. It's not as hard as finding a 100-125 gallon tank (which is what all we RES owners need). If your mom gets upset, tell her that it could be worse, you could need a 100-125 gallon like we do. As for craigslist, they have tons of wonderful deals on there, but, make sure you get the dimensions of the tank and calculate the gallons before you buy it. This will make sure you're not getting scammed and the sellers know what they're actually selling. I can't tell you how many times I've seen people buy tanks from craigslist only to find out that they're smaller than what was advertised. Also, make sure and fill it up at the location you buy it from to ensure that it can hold water. Or ask for pictures of it full from the seller before you buy it. Usually, people sell aquariums because they've lost their ability to hold water and are only usable as terrariums instead of aquariums.

Sorry for such a long post. And, lastly, your turtle is beautiful. I've always wanted a western.

[BullDog]

Nice looking fellow! To add to what everyone else said, I suggest taking the blue gravel out even before you get a new tank (and don't put gravel in the new tank). They can eat it and become impacted. I would take the gravel out now, and he'll probably poop out a bunch of it. Collect any gravel pieces that you find after the gravel has been removed

[zenalisa]

i saw the post about the gravel, i want that stuff out of there!! can i use rocks from the river if i steralize them?

[spaceapple]

River rocks are perfectly fine, but you wouldn't believe how much gunk gets trapped under them! Many people here, including me, would strongly suggest using sand. It's not a problem if the turtle eats it, and it's very easy to keep clean.

[zenalisa]

il go for the sand then! what else should i put in the new tank?

[untsmurf]

Well, you'll need the essentials:
-canister filter
-basking lights
-basking dock
-water heater
-thermometers/temp gun
-some sort of lid to prevent escape
-timers for your light(s)

And on the more decorative side:
-a few hides
-some fake foliage. this will give your turtle something to hold on to while he's swimming if he needs to take a break. It reduces the risk of drowning.
-a veggie clip will help you feed vegetables
-bubble wands/disks will agitate the surface and give your turtle something to play in. Plus, the bubbles look cool in the tank.

That's all I can think of right now