My dog found a turtle

[Gloomy]

I was out today and my boyfriend called...the dog was playing with a turtle...he took it away...what should he do...I come home to a 6 inch water turtle...which we think is a yellow belly slider...He wants to keep it...so we spent every single dollar we have to get 30 gal aquarium....its a big square..a UV light and a basking light and some turtle food. I would be really grateful for any advice on the proper care of sliders...Kinda shooting in the dark here...does anyone have any experience with these?? Oh yeah...I live in the desert...so somebody most likely just dumped him out...grrrrrrr...Thanks for amy advice

 

[evercl92]

I can't say I know alot about turtle care, but I've made a decent habitat for mine (which I believe is also a yellow-bellied slider). I used some sandstone and some driftwood, filled the tank (29gal) about 3/4 full. Also allow for a spot completely out of water, for him to 'bask'.

This pic is a couple months old, so design has changed a bit. From what I've read, they go through a mainly plant-eating phase as young and juveniles, then move to a more meat based diet as they reach adulthood. I'll post a new pic tomorrow, I need to take pics of my tanks anyways.

 

[Devilishturtles]

I have two red-eared sliders. The most important thing is correct lighting (both uva and uvb), good filtration (you think fish are dirty?!), and a completely dry basking area.

Any chance you can get a picture of the turtle? The canned food will work for now. Mine also love veggies, crickets and worms(which I buy canned at petsmart).

I can post pics of my setup tommorow, as well as some pictures of the turtles for comparison.

Good on you for rescuing the lil thing!

 

[Gloomy]

This morning it looks to be doing better.....I went to check on the turtle and he came over and was checking me out...I think he was dehydrated and shell shocked yesterday. I took a picture http://i74.photobucket.com/albums/i248/gloom_and_doom/Fish/turtle.jpg
I like your setup evercl92...I do like the tank we got him....its a foot high and its a big square...We thought that would be better if he starts getting bigger...if he does? Right now his setup is bricks and a few rock and water....Is a 60 watt basking lamp and a 15 watt UV/UVB light okay for now? And what kind of filtration should I get??

 

[evercl92]

Here are new pics. Added a filter. Moved some rock out, some driftwood in. His tank buddies include a male fiddler crab, 2 male kribensis, and about 4 baby guppies. He had a female swordtail too, but she moved to the 75 gal this AM... with my 14inch oscar... who made short work of her.

 

[Gloomy]

Hey that is cool...Here is a pic of our jury rigged tank...we got a Cascade 500 underwater filter today also...

And a better pic of the turtle....

I have always thoght that Oscars were spiffy....I was cruisin' through the LFS today and saw Blueberry Oscars...they were BLUE! They were totally awesome looking....I have never heard of those before today...

 

[evercl92]

just so you know, the reason you haven't heard of those oscars is because they are dyed blue. There is no natural blue color variation, only reds, oranges, blacks, and mixes of the three.

Nice looking turtle.
The chicken wire adds a nice "ghetto" touch to the tank.. haha

 

[Devilishturtles]

Very nice looking!

Just wanted to add a few things. Keep an eye on the bottom of the turtle for areas of red. This is blood, and means the turtle has a systemic infection that needs antibiotics immediatley. It's not really as common as other issues, but you don't know how healthy the turtle was before you got it. From the looks of the turtle's front claws it looks like you have a girl turtle.

I will try and get pictures of my tank as well, which doesn't look anywhere near as good as yours evercl92.

 

[Toirtis]

Your habitat appears fine for now (it could use some tweaking eventually). I am glad to see that you were quick to realise the main requirements of the animal and provided proper basking space and light, as well as good filtration and reasonable space.

An excellent reference site is: http://www.austinsturtlepage.com/

Keep up with your water-changes, vary his/her diet, and you should have a healthy, happy turtle for a good 3-4 decades.

 

[Gloomy]

Thank you for all the help and advice...I have been watching the turtle closely for signs of anything...I noticed that her skin is peeling in big white chunks...What could this be? It has slowed down a bit...but I am a little concerned. Maybe it was from being all dried out in the sun for who knows how long??
I'm running out in a bit to get some mealworms..fed her some bloodworms last night and she ate some pellets...so far she only seems interested in worms...I got some romaine lettuce this morning also.
I also managed to crack a terra cotta pot in half for a nice little hidey spot...she seems to like to sit on top of it.
How can you tell the difference between a male and female slider??
We were thinking about the name Schnerdle...hehe
Thanks again for the help!!

 

[Devilishturtles]

The skin is just shedding, which is normal. It should stop in a few days. You only really need to worry if it peels alot for more than 2 weeks or so.

Females are usually a little smaller, have short front claws, and the shell is more convex than the male. The male will have long front claws, usually larger, and a "longer" thinner shell. The male also has an opening on the underside of the tail, used for mating. I forget what it's called.

You can feed the turtles any sort of veggie. Mine love apples!

Do you live near a river or large pond at all?

 

[EdgarMedina1010]

Cool set ups how much does it cost to keep those nice turtles?

 

[Toirtis]

Cool set ups how much does it cost to keep those nice turtles?

For a good set up, expect an initial output of about $300-$500.

 

[EdgarMedina1010]

Cool set ups how much does it cost to keep those nice turtles?

For a good set up, expect an initial output of about $300-$500.

cool Im willing to spend around $450-500.

 

[Gloomy]

Well so far we've spent about $150...and we still need some more stuff! exspensive little bugger.
We live about 2 miles from a little lake. Its stocked with fish occasionally but I have never seen signs of turtles there. We were thinking someone dumped him there and he wandered back up the wash.
He is eating better now. I got some anacharis that it munches on through the day along with some kale. In the evening we feed him some mealworms and minnows. The minnows originally came from the lake...my neighbor keeps them in her pond...which isn't missing a turtle. The minnows we catch and dangle in front of his face and he goes crazy for them. Its gross.
What else should we focus on getting this week? We have a day light and a night light, a UV lamp, filter, and a basking dock. I was thinking a heater for the water and some more turtle safe plants. What else?

 

[Devilishturtles]

I don't really have many other suggestions. You can add decos as per your liking.

One thing to note, is do not feed the turtle daily. Every other day max. They can get fat very fast, and it's not good for their health. Even though they will try and trick you into making you thing they are starving to death, don't give in!

 

[Gloomy]

LoL Okay!Would the anacharis be okay to just have in there though?? Yay! An end is in sight!

 

[Devilishturtles]

The anacharis should be fine. There are a few plants that turtles can't eat, but I'm fairly certain anacharis isn't one of them.

 

[Gloomy]

Now the turtle is sick! Whyyyyyy? It is very lethargic and his eyes are closed and puffy what do I do now? I won't have vet money til Friday. The water temp is 78f and we did a 50% pwc yesterday. What could these sytoms be?

(edit: I checked the water...ammonia was at 2.0 and we just did a pwc yesterday! How did it get so bad? Did another pwc just now...ahh the joys of late night water changes. Could that be why his are shut?)

 

[Sparkie]

It is possible that is why the eyes are shut. Also if he was in a lake there could have been some pollution that got into his system and that can take a few days to set in.

good filtration (you think fish are dirty?!

Never a truer statement. I typically recommend double what you would use for fish when setting up a turtle tank.

Females are usually a little smaller

???????????? Are you sure, all of my females have been larger than my males.

The other thing that you may wish to watch out for, if you are using a glass tank, chek it frequently. I have had 2 now that were cracked by the turtles swimming into the sides. As a matter of fact, I was just here checking some posts, and I heard some water hitting the floor (at 3am never a good sound). I went out into the living room and saw a nice crack in my 50 gal turtle tank (I have 2 RES). Just got finished changing out tanks (good thing I still had the old one in the garage.