Q: My turtle is bleeding/not eating/has puffy eyes/sings Sinatra/etc. Is this normal?
A: No. Turtles are pretty consistent little creatures. Your turtle should eat, should have a hard shell, and shouldn’t dance the samba. If anything happens that seems unusual, it probably is. To get the best help quickly, instead of emailing me, click on the Turtle Links of my page and post your question on one of the turtle forums. Include your turtle’s age, his size (the number of inches or centimeters across), information about his diet, and information about his habitat. There are a lot of people in these forums that have far more turtle knowledge than the humble author, and this information will help them pinpoint the problems with your little fella.
Q: I’m a teacher. Should I buy a red-eared slider turtle for my classroom?
A: Probably not. The general consensus among the turtlers I’ve talked with is to get a mammal for the classroom, but if you want a turtle, get a box turtle. They’re the easiest to take care of.
Q: My turtle only eats pellets. How do I get him to eat vegetables?
A: Well, I dunno how to break this to you, but I’m not too fond of veggies either. There are only a few I like eating, and my mom kept trying different ones until I latched on to a few. Much like Mom, the best thing you can do for your turtle is to try different foods – perhaps one different veggie a day as a side order with his regular meal. This kind of experimentation taught me that my turtles would eat bits lettuce every now and then, but not with every meal: they just liked variety. Make sure he gets vitamins, light, and a variety of food, and it doesn’t really matter if they like a specific veggie.
Q: What size aquarium do I need? My turtle is only a couple of inches across.
A: You can get by with a 10 gallon at first, but it’s only going to last a few months. I’d highly recommend you don’t bother with anything smaller than a 20 gallon long. The “long” part is important because turtles that size don’t need a “tall” aquarium – they need more room to run side to side, less room to run up and down. If you’re truly serious about keeping the turtle more than a year, go straight to a 55 gallon tank, because he’ll grow out of the 20 gallon tank in less than a year anyway.
Q: My turtle seems sick. What should I do?
A: The same thing you would do if your child got sick: take him to a doctor. Call the vets in your area and ask if there’s one in town that specializes in herps. That’s not “herpes”, that’s “herps”, as in turtles. (If your herp has herpes, then you REALLY need a doctor.) You wouldn’t believe the number of emails I get from people whose turtles sound like they’re on their last legs, and they’re asking a stranger on the internet for help. Would you do that to your kid? Of course not. Get to a doctor.
Please, please, please, whatever you do, don’t email me asking for a medical diagnosis. I’m not a turtle doctor. I’m a database administrator. If you don’t have the spare money to take your turtle to a doctor, at least visit the forums in my turtle links and post a message there. More qualified turtle experts can answer questions on those forums.
Q: I hear the turtles have salmonella. Can they get treated for it?
They just carry salmonella – it doesn’t hurt them at all and doesn’t make them sick. It can make people very sick, though, so make sure to wash your hands thoroughly after touching your turtles. Don’t put your fingers in your mouth while you’re playing with the turtles. Don’t put your turtles in your mouth, either, no matter how good you think they’re going to taste.
Q: Is my turtle a boy or a girl?
A: If your turtle is less than 4″ across, it’s pretty much impossible to tell. As they grow larger, you can tell by the length of their nails. Nails longer than 1/2″ or so indicate that it’s probably a boy. A vet can tell you for sure. I know, it’s strange! Hard to name a pet without knowing the gender.
Q: Can I add a second turtle to my tank?
A: I don’t recommend it. If you get two right from the start and they already know each other, like you get them from the same tank, then your odds are great that they’ll get along fine. But if you start with one, and he gets comfy with his environment, he probably won’t react well to new company. If the two turtles are different sizes, then you can really start fights. I tried putting Mini in with Frank & Fred several times, and things would seem okay at first, but within an hour the big guys were taking nips at Mini.
Q: How do I get my turtles to mate or hibernate?
A: It’s pretty complicated, but here’s a good overview of breeding red eared slider turtles. It involves hibernation, and you have to kinda trick your turtles into hibernating by using different “day lengths” of time, meaning different times during the day when the heat lamp is on. Whoa, Nellie, too complicated for me. I’ll stick with bachelor turtles.
Q: Where can I buy baby turtles?
A: The best place to pick up baby turtles is from a rescue agency like The Turtle Ranch in Houston. Tom and Judy will be more than happy to help you get set up with your very own turtle as well as make sure you’re well-equipped for the ownership adventure. Odds are there’s a similar organization in your state or town that takes turtles that are no longer wanted (usually because somebody got in over their head) and pairs them up with new owners. They have babies as well as full-grown tortoises.
Q: No, I mean, where can I buy baby red eared slider turtles in a store?
A: You can’t because it’s illegal to sell sliders that are less than 4″ across. Federal law. I think it’s a great idea because they look so adorable in the store, and people don’t understand how big they grow and how quickly.
Q: I bought my small turtle in a store. Should I turn the store in for breaking the law?
A: Before you call 911, talk to the store owner. They may have no idea it’s against the law. Start by asking them whether it’s legal to sell these turtles, because you read on the internet that there’s a federal law against selling baby red-eared sliders. They may say it’s legal – in that case, ask them that if you found out it was really illegal, would they be willing to stop? Then pull out your documentation.
Q: Can my red eared slider turtle live in a shoe box?
Yes, in the same way that a human could live in a swimming pool. We could do it, but we would be miserable. Can you imagine trying to poop in a swimming pool? No? Well, sliders don’t poop on dry land either. What about sleeping – could you sleep in a pool? No, of course not – and sliders don’t want to sleep on dry land either.
Q: I can’t afford an aquarium or a heat lamp. Can you send me a spare one?
No, because aquariums and heat lamps are pretty tough to ship. They’re basically big glass boxes that don’t fold down smaller. They can easily break during shipping, and they cost a lot to ship because of their size. Your best bet is to visit garage sales.
I get this question a lot, and I hate giving this answer, but here’s the bottom line: if you’re unable to afford the full aquarium setup for a turtle, complete with a heat lamp, UV lamp, and a filter, then please give the turtle back to the vendor or put him back where you found him. You’re not doing him a favor – he’s shivering cold in the water, it smells bad, and he’s in a confined space. He’s miserable. The least you can do is put him back.
Q: I don’t want my turtle anymore. How can I get rid of him?
A: I hate getting this question because there’s no good answers. Call your local vet and see if there’s a nearby turtle rescue organization. Lucky folks in big cities might have a shot, but people in small towns seem to end up dumping their turtles in streams and ponds where they’ve got tough odds for survival.
Q: You didn’t answer my question! I have another one.
A: Then contact me, or check out the links in my turtle links. There’s a lot of great forums with in-depth turtle info.
Read My Turtle Info:
This is a question.. I desperately need help. I brought two red
ear slider turtles. One recently died out of no where and now the other one seems to be extremly depressed as if he is going to die too!! what should I do. Will he die from depression??
Call a vet immediately. If your children were dying, you wouldn’t post a question on the internet. Why would you act differently for your pets?
I was just given an adult turtle (and tank et al) from a friend who needed to leave the state for work, and I have a large chlorinated in-ground pool. Can they tolerate the chlorine? Would he like the extra room to swim on occasion–supervised of course–or would taking him “out for a swim” just be stressful and unwanted?
No, definitely no chlorine. Doh!
what if i don’t really like him??
j/k thanks for the response… and I have another question… (its your fault for being so helpful!) The heat lamp I was given came with an odd shaped purple bulb, and it didn’t put out any heat; it was even cool to the touch. I replaced it with a 60watt bulb and now he’s happily sunning himself on his dry area. Do you know why I was given the purple bulb? Is it ok to use a 60watt bulb in the lamp? Should I limit his exposer or do anything to protect his eyes?
Roland – there’s two kinds of bulbs you need. Reread my aquarium setup articles and they explain the UV bulb, which doesn’t put out heat.
I have a red eared slider that was abonded to my care and i need to provide a basking area for him. Is there anything i can create on my own withiut alot of expense that would be safe?
Unfortunately, there’s no cheap way to house a slider.
Hi i’ve had my red slider turtle for like around 6 years i’ve never had any problems with him but today when i picked it up somthing black came out of the tail and i had never seen it happening before the black think went back up its tail and now im wondering it thats normal or is she sick?
thank you
xoxox
I haven’t heard of that, but I’d give your local vet a call just to be safe. Some vets specialize in herps – ask if yours does, or ask for a referral.
That would be your turtles penis. No joke. Congradulations it’s a boy!
I rescued to red eared s;iders from a lady who didnt want them anymore one is a boy and one is a girl. I’ve had them for about two months now and shelly(the girl) is nipping at freddy(the boy)shelly is about 10 inches long and freddy is about 6 inches long. What should i do?
You’ll need to keep them in separate aquariums.
how far does the heating light have to be from my turtle?
I don’t know a good recommendation, but I kept mine about 6″ away from the top of my basking deck.
Hey I noticed some wroms in my turtle’s aquarium. It looks like they stick the most to the sides of the tank and they move like tapeworms. They aren’t very wide or long, they are a white to clear color, and recently I have noticed red blotches of them. Is this harmful to my turtle and/or me? Also how do I go about getting rid of them and giving my turtle back his clean worm free home?
Shari – I have absolutely no clue there. I’d call your local vet.
my turtle is dying and is sick what should i do
Call your local vet immediately.
I just purchased a red eared slider turtle and got the tank, heat lamp, uv lamp, filter, rocks to keep her out of the water if she needs. She was bleeding from what looked like her anus after the fifth day we had her. We’ve only fed her pellets so far, any advice?
Yes, contact your local vet immediately.
My turtle came as a gift with two other turtles. When I checked thier tank, one of them were bleeding. Can you help me find out what is wrong?
Call your local vet ASAP. I can’t diagnose your turtle’s bleeding over the internet.
Also this just happened now even though I had had him for three months.
I checked my turtle’s tank today. he looked better and he is not bleeding anymore. I have just noticed that part of his tail is gone too. Do you think he and the other turtles fought? Thanks for the other advice you gave me.
Hi there! I have a turtle.(I just got it) I don’t know what the turtles should eat for their regular meal. Which one do you reccomend? Plus, how many times do I feed it a day? Thanks!! =/)
Celine – it depends on the type of turtle. Your best bet is to go into the forums listed in my Turtle Links page and ask the question there with the exact make & model
of your turtle. Take care!
Right now, I am using HBH Turtle bites Aquatic Turtle food. ^
/
i keep my red eared slider in a tank with rocks about the size of chocolate whoppers but lately she has been pooping out little black rocks like gravel. what does this mean? is she sick? her color is fine and is eating like usual.
Hi, i just got a new baby turtle but he has his eyes closed most of the day why is this? and he doesnt eat when im at the tank but when im away the food is dissapeard .. further there is nothing wrong with the turtle he swims he chill under the hotspot so idk what going on!
and btw my big turtle is scared for the baby one idk of the baby one is scared for the bigger becuz he has his eyes closed most time! but should i put them in serperate tanks or not?
does anyone know what kind or type the t.m.n.t’s are? i have a cooter which is bout 8 inches wide and have had him bout a year and he’s doing awesome short of needing to update his basking area.i noticed tho that the t.m.n.t.’s dont have tails and dont have claws and the shell in smooth around the edges. if anyone knows e-mail me at avalon4295@aol.com and soon as i get off my lazy butt i’ll take and share photos of my “stupid” which is his name.sorry but i didnt know what to call him when i got him nor the sex,so it’s universal.and he is kinda like duh duh all the time so it fits.
hi I had a question I have had my turtle for about 2 in a half months hes a red-eared slider hes sooo small and I have him in a 15 gallon tank and i have a gallon of water in there with a rock he likes to climb I feed him shrimp but just recently his eyes turned black. and they were a bluish greenish Is this normal? Im worried because he seems to be blind now. please get back to me with info. thank you much appreciated! o i forgot to mention my little 10 year old sister cleaned the tank with soap and water and im afraid some soap might have stayed in there do you think that would have caused it?
Jessica – please contact your local vet. This isn’t something you should be asking on the web. If your sister’s eyes turned black, would you post questions on the web or go to a doctor?
i have been reading through site and seem to be a tad bit baffled at why you bothered your ass to create it???
your only advice to people is…”go to a vet”….”see a vet immediatley”….
man dont you get bored of saying the same thng over and over?
coz quite frankly you have bored me too tears with the same old reply.
what on earth was the point in starting up this site?
Rain – the point of me starting up the site was sharing the knowledge I have. If you read through my posts, you’ll notice that I don’t give medical advice. The point of the site WASN’T to play internet-vet, but unfortunately, some of the commenters have tried to get me to do that.
i have two red eared sliders in a 50 gallon tank each turtle is a little more then 4inches one of the turtles “silent bob” the fat one has a strange growth on the sde of his head almost zit like i dont have a vet in the area that does well with reptiles he just keeps telling me te same thing jst feed him right. hes a tard. what could this growth be and what actions should i take to prevent it from getting any worse.