Baby turtle update

[Snake lover 3-25]

so i kept that turtle that i found sun april 26 it is sooooo cute!!! so my mom loves it but not it's smell... we got a filter, but it will only eat raw fish... is this a healthy diet for it to grow up on???? it shed and it is very active. we feed it as much as it will eat 2-3 times a day, my aunt is a big water animal lover and so my mom says that we have to give it to her and her sons for christmas... because it should be a bit bigger and more adapt to life inside by then.... i don't want it to go... but my aunt is retired and has wanted one for a long time so i think that she could probably take care of it a little better than me... i believe that it's a female, because it has a short thin tail and short front nails... is it's cage too small??? i read that it could be 1/4 the size of it's cage but... here are some recent pics...

[adamanteus]

That looks like a good sized tank for a baby turtle, Shanley.

[Snake lover 3-25]

what about her diet???

[adamanteus]

For a bit of variety you could try 'turtle pellets' from the pet store, chopped nightcrawlers, or maybe a little lean mince.

[anji1971]

Awww, Shanley, she really is cute!!
Unfortunately, I've never had a turtle as a pet, and have no idea how to care for them, so I can't help you there.

[Snake lover 3-25]

lol thanks anji... i tried turtle pellets but she didn't even notise them... she likes how the fish moves with the flow of the water...

[aSnakeLovinBabe]

hey shanley, I can help you out diet-wise. My friend Al breeds turtles for like, a living. You can feed that little guy just about anything he/she will eat. Keep in mind that a varied diet is key! Small fish, insects, and little worms are great. If he will take it, you can also use the filets of fish you feed your garters. You can also use shrimps of any kind, which you can find freeze dried or frozen at most pet stores. The pellets are okay to feed sometimes, but I am not fond of commercial diets for reptiles. especially the iguana foods which most of them are made from corn, which is something they don't even digest!

Also, I didn't notice in you picture whether you were using a light bulb that gives off UV radiation or not. If you are not, please get one asap!! Without UV, baby turtles can suffer serious consequences. Growth will be stunted, and without good strong UV doses, they have no way of getting any Vitamin D, which commonly leads to Softshell in turtles, where the hard shell actually becomes soft and spongy.

Anyways... your little red eared slider is adorable!! you have a really nice setup for him...haha too bad he will outgrow it in about a year and a half :P A good healthy red eared will reach about 10 inches, possibly larger? I used to have three and they got SO tame so quickly! little buggers would eat right out of my hands.

[Charlet_2007]

Looks to me it's a painted water turtle lol.. but yeah the diet you said( aSnakeLovinBabe) was right on the money lol I have a baby red ear that size i hatched.. And UVB is a VERY important part of it growing.. Sweet little baby you got there any names? Heres my female adult red ear to give you a guesstimate of how big they get and she still growing too.. I named her big momma.. well for obvious reasons lol

Big Momma And my hand.. (Size comparasion)


Big momma next to Flow Map turtle (AKA Yellow belly slider. Yellow cooter and so on) lol

[Snake lover 3-25]

Cassie is her name and yes it's a painted turtle... does a floresent bulb have UVB????? and i am feeding her fish fillets... that's all it'll eat... what kind of insects can i feed it??? i tried ants but it gave no response... but i did get it to eat a small dead minnow... i tried those turtle shrimp but again no response... could i try pieces of shrimp intended for people??? and someone said earlier that i could feed her pieces of mice... can i???? i have to feed my snakes today...(actually yesterday...) so if you say it's safe i'll try it... and what kind of bulbs have UVB???? also... her shell is not hard... i haven't tried to squeeze it but it seems to be sort of like a big pink eraser... it bends... i just suspected that it was from her being only a week or so old... is this from soft shell??? is it too late to make it get hard??? if i add UVB rays will it fix it???

[Charlet_2007]

ours loves crickets.. baby turtles shell are like that till they get a little older.. about the size of a half dollar.. try ghost shrimp they love to hunt food too..