Red ear slider adoption. Need some input

[Travis55]

Im gonna rescue a red ear slider from the school i work at. Kids have tried but im afraid "Speedy" wont make it much longer. No heater. No heat lamp. Just a light bulb. His shell is flaking pretty bad.

My plans-

20long turtle tank (current home)
Heat light
Uv lamp
Sand substrate
few big river rocks for climbing. (Dock sucks and just floats around)

100w heater (my basement is cold and water would only be 60*)

Is there any fish that could be kept with him? Long ago i tried to feed my turtle feeder goldfish and they had to be rehomed because he never ate them and they got huge... lol

 

[aquandrew]

there is nothing that can go with a RES in a tank that small. i recommend nothing less than 75 gallons for a RES or 125 for a pair. feeding the turtle food or supplements with vitamin d-3, along with proper UVB lighting, will help restore its shell. what is the turtles size right now? tanks that small are also easily over heated. do you live in the us? petco has a sale right now and if you are serious about keeping it, i would go grab a 40 breeder for now and start scanning craigslist for a proper home.

 

[Travis55]

there is nothing that can go with a RES in a tank that small. i recommend nothing less than 75 gallons for a RES or 125 for a pair. feeding the turtle food or supplements with vitamin d-3, along with proper UVB lighting, will help restore its shell. what is the turtles size right now? tanks that small are also easily over heated. do you live in the us? petco has a sale right now and if you are serious about keeping it, i would go grab a 40 breeder for now and start scanning craigslist for a proper home.

Hes maybe 4-5" i am in the us. With my biocube and my 75 build im pretty much out of room. Lol a friend has a 40 breeder i may pick up. Then id be forced to use pond foam and make its dry area. Then do a lagoon for it with an internal filter... hmmmmm the ideas are flowing.

 

[Travis55]

What if i turned my 75 into a turtle haven? Tanks drilled so i could run lower water levels. Leaving about 4" from water to rim. Then could i have fish?

 

[siva]

Oh my...poor baby! He needs heat and UVB right away. I recommend a ceramic heat emitter instead of a bulb. I use one with my RES, I have it on a dimmer switch so I can adjust throughout the year. I've had it over a year and it hasn't went out yet. Diet is crucial to recover this little guy...you want quality pellets, I recommend Reptomin exclusively, and you'll want to use a butterknife to remove the hard backing from a cuttlebone and give him chunks of that atleast once a week, but please head over to redearedslider.com for more diet info. I rescued my RES from a similar situation and got a lot of great help on the forum over there.

 

[Travis55]

Oh my...poor baby! He needs heat and UVB right away. I recommend a ceramic heat emitter instead of a bulb. I use one with my RES, I have it on a dimmer switch so I can adjust throughout the year. I've had it over a year and it hasn't went out yet. Diet is crucial to recover this little guy...you want quality pellets, I recommend Reptomin exclusively, and you'll want to use a butterknife to remove the hard backing from a cuttlebone and give him chunks of that atleast once a week, but please head over to redearedslider.com for more diet info. I rescued my RES from a similar situation and got a lot of great help on the forum over there.

Thanks! Hes a trooper. I just feel bad. In a 75 could i get him some fish company/

 

[siva]

As it matures there is very little chance fish would survive. Maybe larger fish? Definitely a good question for the RES forum, they will know

 

[Travis55]

So ive had turtles before and always called them "painted" but they said he was a red ear slider but from my google searches he looks like a regular ole painted to me...

 

[siva]

Ok...that is a RES..and that is heartbreaking.

 

[Travis55]

Ok...that is a RES..and that is heartbreaking.

Thanks! Im hopin that with a 75 he may be able to have company. I could get him another turtle friend to...

 

[siva]

Hmm..I hate to be the bearer of bad news but that just won't work..

A 75 is OK for a male, borderline too small for a female (females get quite a bit larger than the males). It is not big enough for two even if both males. Plus, unless they've grown up together, adding a new turt with your existing turt is not recommended...they typically just won't have it. They don't want company.

 

[Travis55]

Hmm..I hate to be the bearer of bad news but that just won't work..

A 75 is OK for a male, borderline too small for a female (females get quite a bit larger than the males). It is not big enough for two even if both males. Plus, unless they've grown up together, adding a new turt with your existing turt is not recommended...they typically just won't have it. They don't want company.

Gotcha. Well thanks for the input! Ive read that african cichlids and catfish will do ok with them

 

[Travis55]

Im afraid he will burn himself on the heater. Im acclimating him to warmer water. His current water was about 65*... im at 68. Can i slip a piece of PVC around the heater? I have some 1 3/4" that would slide right around the heater. Will it melt pvc?

 

[siva]

Yes, I use PVC with holes drilled all over it for flow. No melting issues.

 

[aquandrew]

Gotcha. Well thanks for the input! Ive read that african cichlids and catfish will do ok with them

even if you can keep the water quality up to par for the fish, which will be a challenge, there is always a chance that the turtle will eat them. african cichlids do sometimes work with turtles, but a 75 is not tall enough(nor is it enough water volume). i believe andrew mcfadden on here has a 150 african tank with a map or musk turtle in it. it is under the TOTM section. when the cichlids mature, they generally become more lazy and hang out at the bottom. if the turtle can easily dive to the bottom, they will eventually become a meal for it. just my two cents

 

[Travis55]

even if you can keep the water quality up to par for the fish, which will be a challenge, there is always a chance that the turtle will eat them. african cichlids do sometimes work with turtles, but a 75 is not tall enough(nor is it enough water volume). i believe andrew mcfadden on here has a 150 african tank with a map or musk turtle in it. it is under the TOTM section. when the cichlids mature, they generally become more lazy and hang out at the bottom. if the turtle can easily dive to the bottom, they will eventually become a meal for it. just my two cents

I will also be running a 40 breeder sump

 

[thebritishbloke]

I'd just keep the turtle on its own. There isn't enough room in that tank to introduce more animals, especially not another turtle (They will inevitably fight in a tank that small)

 

[msroeder2]

Just a note, If you have a Facebook acct. there are several groups that you can join, that are just for RES and they help a lot!
FB groups:
Red Eared Slider Lovers
RES International
RES Turtles
Just type it in and find Groups, I am in the 1st one and we have several long term owners that are a Great help.